Bonita

I was born on the 30th July 1977 in a small village near Cape Town, South Africa. Being the only girl in the family, it was inevitable to fall into the musical footsteps of my mother who had a great influence on me as a child. She learnt to play the organ by herself, as a youngster. I remember spending hours listening to her playing and singing hymns. Later I would also sing in church and try to play some tunes on the piano by ear. That was pretty much how the dream of becoming a singer began. I got my first guitar at the age of 15. The first tune I could play was Paul McCartneys "Mull of Kintyre". When I was about 16 years of age I joined a local "Grunge" band. This brought an abrupt end to my time in the church choir and band. Rock'n roll!! I started experimenting writing songs and soon found more friends with whom I could make music. I went to Germany as an Au-Pair when I was 18yrs old and it didn't take long before I hooked up with some young musicians in Bremen. This was my first attempt at singing Jazz. After a year of experiencing German culture and learning the language I returned to South Africa only to make arrangements to move to Germany for good. In 1997 I toured with Till Broenner, a great Jazz trumpet player from Berlin, who practically opened my eyes to a new world of music. Through this experience I realised that indeed music can be the main part of one's life without having to constantly dread a painful death of hunger and thurst. The following year I produced my first Album, of which the single "Superman" was released in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Two years of promotion didn't break my spirit instead it gave me the opportunity to get to know the business and even be the opening act for the Eurythmics Peace Tour 2000 in Cologne(Germany) and in Rotterdam (Holland)! After parting from my record company, I returned to the stage. In 2004 I took part in a Talent Casting Show which was followed by a recording deal with Raabrecords. Not only did I get the privilege to produce an Album with my own songs, I was also involved in a Soundtrack production for the movie "Traumschiff Surprise"; collaborating with Bootsy Collins. I even got the chance to perform with Kool and the Gang later that year. Shortly before my Album release in June 2005 I met Michael Bublé in a TV Studio in Cologne (Germany). He truly is one of the most talented singers with a great personality. It was a joy and an even greater honor to perform a duet with him. The promotion for my latest Album "Bonita" and the live performances with my band are still ongoing. I'm currently living in the country-side near Cologne writing and recording songs for my next Album... to be continued.