Armed with a truckload of talent, mature and powerful vocals, and the courage and support to pursue her dreams, 24 year-old April Zamora has found her calling.The Del Norte graduate, who danced with the Castelles Drill Team and used to sing to her friends over the telephone, has expanded her audience to the national level. Outperforming over 50,000 other entries, Zamora earned one of only six spots in the 23 rd Annual 2004 Colgate Country Showdown. The Showdown final, which was held on January 29 th , 2005 at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, will be broadcast nationally on the Great American Country channel (GAC) May 1 st at 7pm and May 4 th at 11pm EST/PST. Hot new Country artist and a past CCS contestant herself, Sara Evans hosted the Showdown, which can also boast Martina McBride, Toby Keith, LeAnn Rimes, John Michael Montgomery, and Garth Brooks as previous contestants as well. Without a doubt, Zamora is in good company having graced the Epcot stage for this event.Although another contestant walked away with the $100,000 Grand Prize, April was so excited and proud to be part of this event that she didn't give a hoot' about the money. My prize, the prize that meant the most to me, was being on TV, having all that exposure, being in Disney World, she shared enthusiastically, I'd never even been to Disney World or Florida, so that, to me, was just awesome! I was just excited to be there I was loving it.So, how did all this begin? About six years ago, April's father, Marty Zamora, was repairing their telephone line. Unaware that he was tapped in to her conversation, April was singing away to one of her friends. Upon hearing his daughter, Mr. Zamora immediately grabbed his wife and said You have to listen to this! They quickly began entering April into local fiestas, Journal Pavilion events and State Fair performances. Zamora's first performance was at one of these fiestas, when she was 15 years old. I knew one of the girls who was performing, and during one of the songs she was singing she invited me up on stage, she continues, so I went up and sang with her and was like, O my gosh!', I'm addicted! I have to become a performer. So it is; Zamora loves the stage, loves singing and dancing, and when asked what other hobbies she enjoys, she just flashed a huge grin and said, This is it for me. Performing is my passion.While drawn more toward the laid back environment of the Country music industry she also likes the energy and flair and outrageous outfits that accompany the pop/hip-hop scene.And although she is currently doing cover songs such as Bill Mack's Blue, Shania Twain's 'Don't Be Stupid' and A.B. Quintanilla's 'Como La Flor', (all three can be found on her 2002 Debut CD, This Is Only The Beginning ) Zamora has eleven years of piano under her belt. She tries to continue to play daily, and is also learning to play guitar. She has written a few original songs and would like to eventually find her own personal niche in the music world. She sings mostly Country, pop and Spanish tunes right now, but when considering her own personal style, she would like to perhaps combine a pop/hip-hop genre mixed with Country and flavored with a Brazilian beat. It sounds like she already has the potential to create a fresh, new sound.Like many of today's young pop stars, Zamora incorporates her love and talent for dance into her performances. Traveling with her four dancers, Kristin Richter, Tracey Boughton, April Webber, And Jonte Culpepper, (The April Z Revue), whose background training include classical ballet, modern jazz and hip-hop, Zamora gets her audiences pumped up with this additional visual component. Along with her dancers, April's family is right by her side. My parents are both super, super supportive, she said, my mom has been there for me every step of the way, so has my dad. Her mother, Jesse Zamora, is her manager; she does all the leg-work, makes the phone calls, deals with any stressful situations, schedules shows and so on. I don't know what I'd do without her, Zamora says with wide eyes, she does so much it can be totally overwhelming. April's father keeps her motivated to work hard and keep things fresh. I don't get paid yet, and it's a lot of work, she said, I have to take time off from my job and stuff when I travel, so I miss out on those checks. So, my dad pays me for my gigs; it's really cool of him. She continues, If I throw in a new song, hell even add bonus cash, so it helps keep me really motivated! Zamora has three sibilings, A brother Anthony and two older sisters Christina, and Jennifer of which live in Texas, who also greatly support her. They try and make it down to almost every show, no matter how large or small. She also is a mother to a precious little girl, and is expecting a little boy this May 08' "my kids are my world!" They all came with me to Florida for the Colgate Country Showdown, it was so awesome to have my family and friends there. Both Mr. and Mrs. Zamora produced April's debut CD, This Is Only The Beginning , in 2002. For one of her many competitions, she won ten hours of recording time at Santa Fe Center Studios; she laid down eleven songs in that ten hours and put every minute to good use.It goes without saying that New Mexico is home to some extremely talented musicians. The more artists such as The Shins, Soular, Alex Maryol and Miss Zamora get out there and obtain national coverage, the sooner New Mexico shall be recognized as a major contributor to America's music scene. Look out Seattle.
Contact information, CD's and Performance schedule for April Zamora:505.881.6688
Booking contact
Phone: 505.710.0089
[email protected] April
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April Zamora
