Thanks for stopping by, y'all! Exciting things are happening, and life is beautiful! The writing is great and the recording continues in just a few short months! STAY TUNED!!! Come out on March 29, 2008 for the Magnolia Music and Medicine Show at the magnificent Magnolia Theatre in historic Eastman (yep, Main Street).
An evening of bluegrass and country, headlined by the Biscuit Burners, featuring yours truly with the Medicine Men! Tickets available pre-order through the box office or at the door.
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CAST YOUR VOTE FOR SAMANTHA STEPHENS
to win an AMERICAN IDOL FASTPASS TO ATLANTA
chance to get straight to the producers on Aug.14!
Fox 5 Atlanta and Star 94 have selected me as one of their ten hopefuls! Based on YOUR VOTE, the top five will perform live on Good Day Atlanta! From there, three winners will be chosen and given a fasttrack to meet and sing for the producers of American Idol at the front of the line here in Atlanta!
I love ya'll very very much! big, BIG, Georgia hugs and love :-*
--Sam
Growing up in the sleepy, southern town of Eastman, Georgia, Samantha Stephens always knew she was destined to sing...be it as an international recording artist or a local, yet professional wedding/bar-mitzvah/kiddie birthday karaoke queen. Determined to escape the latter, she set her sights on a future career as a professional musician. At the age of four, Samantha made her first public appearance onstage at a local pageant, not as a contestant, but as an entertainer. Overwhelmed by the crowd's acceptance and her child's ability to recognize pitches at such an early age, her mother began to encourage Samantha's musical cravings by purchasing hordes of karaoke tracks from Broadway musicals to gospel to oldies for Samantha to sing along to. Sam continued to entertain crowds at local events and even began performing at church. At the age of eight, Samantha began studying professionally with Victoria Bryant of FSU, and by age 12 was well on her way as a classically trained soloist, despite personal tragedy surrounding the death of her only sibling; however, she never neglected her love for popular music and the freedom of entertaining audiences. Samantha continued to perform, competing in various statewide talent shows and receiving much acclaim. At age 15, Samantha enrolled at Dodge County High School, where she became an active member of the renowned Choraliers with Charles Hernandez and Drama Team with best friend and VSU Theatre alum Holly Smith. Continuing on in her classical training with Eastman native and renowned opera star Barbara Dean, Samantha also began to focus on her acting career as well, receiving the Georgia High School Association's Region honors for Best Actress three years and the coveted State Best Actress title in 2003. Her passion for music continued as she joined musicians Karl Hilliard, Josh Sheffield, Kevin Sheffield, and Bill Walker of the Psychedelic Blues Train to form The Wingtips, a folk-rock cover band. The group enjoyed many local performances and Samantha enjoyed every minute--life would take it's toll and a year later, the group would fade out with Hilliard, Josh Sheffield, and Sam becoming an acoustic trio, drawing in crowds on the weekends at a local lounge--a cult following and one lucky break ensued after recordings of the trio were leaked out. At the age of 18, tragedy once again struck the family when Sam's father was suddenly diagnosed with three types of terminal cancer. He quickly passed two months before Sam's high school graduation;however in the midst of tragedy, God smiled on Sam's career and personal life and crossed her path with that of esteemed musician Vinx, who took on Sam as his protege and immediately put her to work in the studio. Sam and Vinx spent the next three years recording a demo record of Vinx material as a possible debut album. The collaboration has had a profound effect on Sam's life and career, earning her the privilege to travel to Los Angeles to perform at the Scleroderma Foundation's Annual Charity Gala in Hollywood, CA, a function that Sam hopes to be a part of indefinitely. Since the emergence of the record, Sam continues her work with Vinx and also continues to record, write and hang with musicians like Kerisha Roi, Chandra McKnight, GeeGee, Billy Kent, Todd Beauchamp, and Jimmy Byrd to name a few. In the Spring of 2006, Sam began work on another project with producer/good friend Jimmy Byrd, a blend of southern soul and country rock. The two co-wrote the project together, drawing from Sam's personal experiences and perceptions, and are very excited about the work-in-progress.
She now resides in Midtown, Atlanta, Georgia and is set to earn her B.A. in Creative Writing in Summer 2008. She continues to write poetry and music and stay inspired by Little Five Points.
Sam's story is one of love, loss, and southern style and continues to have a profound influence on the person and musician she is today.
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