Jen Rathbun profile picture

Jen Rathbun

About Me

Born in El Paso, TX, Jen’s been singing since she was knee-high to tumbleweed. Her grandparents, who raised her, bought Jen a piano when she was 6 years old. She started piano lessons at age 7, and grew up playing for church services and school choir shows. In high school, she won first chair at a regional voice competition, and began voice lessons, paid for by a generous, but anonymous benefactor.Fleeing the hot dusty deserts of El Paso for the mountains of Colorado, she earned a degree in vocal performance at The University of Denver. However, Jen suffered from performance anxiety and knew she’d have to make a living somehow. Since music was the only thing she knew, she decided to go to Colorado State University, where she earned a masters degree in music therapy.An internship brought her to Houston, where she stayed on at a hospital that treats brain-injured patients. She used the rhythm in music to guide a patient’s abnormal gait pattern into normal walking. For those who had trouble talking, Jen sang familiar songs with patients to help them produce words. Unfortunately, nobody knew about music therapy, and Jen always felt like a fish out of water.Jen always dreamed of performing. With the help of her husband, and a little maturity, she began to sing at open mic’s all around Houston. Amidst a sea of guitar-picking folkies, Jen was the lone keyboardist in the crowd, playing an eclectic range of tunes from humorous to girl angst music. She was a misfit again.But this time Jen prevailed. The guitarists admired her talent and she was welcome at every open mic she attended. With increased confidence, Jen entered The National Singer/Songwriter Auditions in 2003. This time, the uniqueness of being a keyboardist set her apart from the other zillions of guitar players. She won the auditions.The prize was a trip to Nashville to play at the famous Bluebird Café. Some well-known music industry professionals made it out to see her, and one well-known producer, Hall of Famer, Robert Metzgar, snatched her up on his label, Platinum Plus Universal.With his guidance, Jen explored the realm of jazz cabaret and blossomed. Her knew CD, “Coffee, Chocolate & Men,” offers a salacious mix of humor and sexual innuendo.Jen lives in Houston with her husband, three cats, a turtle, and a fish.
Profile courtesy of MySpace Layouts
Special Thank You to Cheri Arnett for help with this space!!

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 21/04/2007
Band Website: www.JenRathbun.com
Record Label: Platinum Plus Universal, Sixerdoodle Publications
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

living and learning

They say that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.  I'm not altogether sure of that.  I can think of many people, who have had tough lives, who still make the same dumb c...
Posted by on Tue, 24 Jul 2007 08:57:00 GMT

Two new songs...

Wrote two new songs.  Can't tell you how long I've waited for them.  It's been a dry spell beyond dry spells.  I mean, I've been writing, but they've been icky songs that are made out o...
Posted by on Mon, 25 Jun 2007 18:38:00 GMT

Ch-ch-ch-changing

I wanted to post a special shout out to Cheri Arnett (MySpace/cheriarnett) for helping me with this thang.  Cheri is one of the most thoughtful, passionate, wonderful people I know and I'm proud ...
Posted by on Sun, 20 May 2007 15:10:00 GMT

!!!Hello Friends!!!

Hi everybody! It's really nice to see you out here, thanks for stopping by. Be sure to visit my main website, www.jenrathbun.com, to see more pics and lots of other cool stuff. Happy Mother's Day t...
Posted by on Sun, 13 May 2007 17:35:00 GMT