Amanda

AMANDA - Music for the Mind, Heart and Soul.Music is therapy for the mind, heart, and soul. "It has the very special ability to stimulate so many of our emotions, memories, and senses taking you to another place in time". This is Amanda's musical philosophy; she uses R&B as therapy to heal herself and her fans."At a very young age I knew I wanted to be a singer. I have always felt in my element when around music. The recording studio and on stage are where I feel most at home". Since she was 8 years old, Amanda has been using every opportunity in her path to train for a career as a songwriter and performer. Singing in the church choir started the passion for musical expression that has been driving Amanda to this day. As a child, she was quick to entertain at family events, talent shows, and festivals. Amanda started in the music business with the opportunity to sing back up for Tejano singers in her native Texas. She used that opportunity to learn from other performers.Amanda credits her strong emotional connection with her audience as the inspiration for writing her powerfully personal songs. And at the young age of thirteen, she was ready to commit to expressing herself in music. She started a band and began touring throughout Texas. Amanda immediately fell in love with performing. She loved the travel, meeting new people, and connecting with the audience. It was Amanda's mother who made her pace herself and finish school. "My mom has always supported my dream. She was adamant about the importance of an education, but she also understood my passion for the arts".Family has been an anchor and a guide throughout the years. Amanda is the third of four children born to a Colombian Father and a Mexican mother in Houston, Texas. Tragically, her father died from a brain tumor when she was only six, but her bond with his family kept her in touch with her Colombian roots. Growing up, watching her mother struggle to raise four children with the help of her grandparents has taught Amanda to work hard to pursue her goals. She worked as both a waitress and a legal assistant after graduating high school to make ends meet while pursuing her musical dream, "I don"t recommend having music as your only source of income in the beginning. The stress can become overwhelming and cause you to make bad moves or decisions."Inheriting the cultural influences from her Latin roots and popular culture in the United States has helped Amanda to create her own unique voice in the world of R&B. "I feel blessed to have the best of both worlds. Being Latin and raised in the US has exposed me to so much culture. You adopt customs, languages, and influences of both sides. A lot of my generation can relate to that". She grew up in a home filled with music and artists like Ana Gabriel, Juan Gabriel and Mana inspired her early on. She credits her early influences as Commodores, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Night, Madonna, R. Kelly, and Whitney Houston. Today, she loves Alicia Keys, Keisha Cole, and Fantasia. Taking influence from these great performers of smooth R&B and integrating her own cultural influences is allowing Amanda to create her own personal sound. "It is very important to have a unique sound. If you don"t have something special to offer, your music won't be remembered".