About Me
Not too long ago, a close friend called me Raz. That was my father's nickname. My father, Persian born and world reknowned cardiologist, was a strong and inspiring force in my life from whom I learned invaluable lessons: tough love, priorities, dedication and hard work. My mother blessed me with the gift of music. Playing the violin, the piano and singing around me my entire life, her music became a huge source of life for me. Her parents, as well, were piano virtuosos. I spent many years singing in school and church choirs and then in college with the Ohio State University Chorus. At 19, I purchased my first guitar from a pawn shop on High Street, in Columbus. I studied journalism and regularly watched a local blues band at Bernies Bagels; they called themselves, Tonight Only. I was so inspired by these guys. Their lead guitarist played with George Clinton and the Funkadelics. I vowed some day that I would play guitar and sing on stage. Soon after college, I was married, blessed with two beautiful sons and moved to the desert in Yuma, AZ. There was little time to devote to my musical passions. Still more complicated, a few years after my sons were born, I had to move back to Cleveland as a young single parent, to raise two toddlers alone. They have been the most incredible and blessed journey of my life, and the hardest. I can never imagine my life without them. From toddlers to teens, now it was time for me to return to the music. Ted Riser, an instrumental inspiration on this new journey, has given me the opportunity to perform as a back-up vocalist and rhythm guitar player. Some of my most memorable performances with Ted were: "The House of Blues", "Tower City Amphitheater", "The Boneyard", and the Daytona Biketoberfest. I will be forever greatful for his musical gifts to me.
My current projects involve all original music set for recording in the near future. Having walked the blues and paid my dues, I have much to write about. My younger son, Teddy, a self-taught drummer will contribute to the CD. My oldest son, Michael, gifted with his expression of words on paper, will be a collaborative force on lyrics.Michael and Teddy have been an amazing source of unconditional love, which keeps me reaching for the stars. As my son Michael, so poignantly stated on my birthday card this year, "...you deserve the world, so go out and get it and I'll be here waiting, waiting for your success and failure but never leaving you alone. I hope the rest of your life you get everything you deserve. "
