I'm a singer-songwriter. I write songs, and sometimes I sing them. I'm in a groovy band with some great gals - we're known as The Near Misses . I also do my part to help keep a fabulous music venue alive. I cook, I paint, I do a bunch of other stuff, too... sometimes I am restless, but I am never bored!
QUICK BIO:
Etta Lea began as the solo project of Charlotte singer-songwriter Lea Pritchard. Grounded in roots 'n' rock, Lea creates and performs music that features her innate poetic lyricism and lush, melodic vocals. Lea's vocals have been compared stylistically to the diverse likes of Natalie Merchant, Janis Joplin, Edie Brickell and Billie Holiday. Her arrangements vary from minimalist ambient rock to rollicking americana, woven with threads of jazz, indie-folk and an undeniable pop sensibility.
BIO:
Etta Lea is the product of a southern Methodist choir-girl upbringing. Her formative years in Old Church, Virginia exposed her to 70s country radio via her momma, while her father and his brothers regularly played bluegrass during family gatherings. Lea began writing poetry at a young age, presenting one of her poems to the Virginia governor at the age of 9. She began setting her poems to music during her teenage years, but her songwriting really took off when she moved to North Carolina and began singing with her sister Eva Gael; she's been performing live shows ever since. Currently a member of critical darlings The Near Misses, Lea has fronted and written with several area bands including Ishi, Boaliri and Terra Firma. In 2000, she was selected as Best Local Female Singer in the Creative Loafing Best of Charlotte Awards: "Subtlety when it's called for, impressive full-tilt growl when needed..." The Near Misses won the “Best New Band†Award in the Arts & Entertainment category of the Creative Loafing Readers’ Choice Awards, and in 2006, Creative Loafing named the group the “Best Band†(Readers’ Choice) in its “Best of Charlotte: International Edition.â€
As a solo artist, Etta Lea writes and performs music that features lush vocals augmented by acoustic and electric guitar and mandolin. Her arrangements vary from minimalist ambient rock to rollicking americana, with an undeniable pop sensibility woven throughout. Songwriting influences include Sarah Harmer, Patty Griffin, U2 and Natalie Merchant. Creative Loafing music writer Tim Davis selected Etta Lea for the Singer-Songwriter category of "Rock & Roll Call: The Best of Charlotte's Original Music Scene." Davis described Etta Lea as "the honey-voiced alter ego of Lea Pritchard." Lea has recorded two EPs, It's True in 2005, followed by Canvas in 2006. Near Misses bandmates and local songbirds Shana Blake and Reeve Coobs assisted with backing vocal on Canvas; several of those songs went on to become a part of the semi-live Near Misses recording Early Hits.
Lea is the co-owner of the Evening Muse, a nationally-recognized listening room in the NoDa Arts District of Charlotte, North Carolina. She is also a member of the Tosco Music Party Singalong Choir and is the founder of QueenCityMusic.com, a promotion and portal site based out of Charlotte for local and touring artists and bands. Etta Lea continues to write, perform and promote her original music via the internet as well as local and regional live performances. She is pleased to continue working with the estrogen-kickin' vocal powerhouse ensemble the Near Misses, who are currenty unveiling their first studio album, Marigold.
Lea's BANDOGRAPHY:
The Near Misses: '04 - present
Ishi: '98 - '01, Boaliri: ' 96 - 98, Terra Firma: '94 - '96
and the lesser-known bands that never amounted to much in the way o' giggin': American Lush aka Sugar Slut (all-girl power trio!) '03, we had like three rehearsals and that was that! The Sunflowers (never played out but had a groovy web site!) '01, binary star (a one-gig wonder!): '01
Lea currently books the Evening Muse and is always up for gig-exchanges with other artists and agents!
