In my short time as an opera singer, I have found that most every one of us has an intriguing story of how we came to sing this music. My story, too, has been rather interesting and action packed. I am a lyric soprano, Army veteran, Pan-Africanist scholar, and single mother (among other things). Over the past six years I struggled with how to reconcile these seemingly unrelated aspects within myself. None of the descriptions listed to characterize myself were planned or expected.
After high school I chose to attend Santa Monica Community College. I had always been interested in music, having sung in choirs since age 7, but I didn’t think it practical to make a career of it. Besides, what would it mean to get a degree in music anyway? Though I thought better of majoring in music, I took both a music course and a dance course each semester for nourishment.
During my freshman year of college I felt an inexplicable, internal tug toward the military. I never dreamed of military service, and nothing in my past would have indicated enlistment in my future. Everything laid itself out, however, and in March 2000 I found myself enlisting in the Army Reserves as an ammunition specialist. At Ft. Jackson the drill sergeants soon learned that I sang, and my extra duty assignment became singing the National Anthem in the chow line before lunch every day.
Upon completion of basic training and advanced training for my specialization, I returned home and completed my associate degree in transfer studies—which merely meant that I’d completed all requirements for transfer to a university, but still hadn’t determined what my major would be. I transferred to San Diego State University and, after coming to terms with the fact that I could not escape music, decided to major in music education because it was more practical.
During this time, at the age of 19, I also married a high school friend and Navy sailor. Upon completion of my first semester at SDSU, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. Unfortunately, my marriage was unsuccessful, and we ultimately divorced. I found myself a single mother while still pursuing my college education and serving as a part-time soldier in the Army Reserves. Because I have an amazing support system in my mother and sisters, I was able to move forward and maintain focus on the one thing I knew for sure and had planned on from the beginning: I would get my degree. In a time of life transformations, I made a stronger commitment to the pursuit of music.
I returned to community college study to focus solely on music, establishing a foundation in theory, musicianship, and keyboarding skills. I also took voice lessons as a requirement of the program. After a year, I was prepared to transfer again to university study, applying to California State University–Northridge. Though I was clear that music would be a focus, I was still unsure if it would be my primary focus. I considered Breadth Studies, a Bachelor of Arts degree that would allow me to merge music with Pan-African Studies, another area I developed a strong interest in my freshman year of college.
Upon auditioning for the Voice faculty, I was advised to consider a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance. To this point, I was still unaware of what such a major would entail and what the ultimate goal would be. When I was told I’d focus on singing classical and opera repertoire, it was merely curiosity and that same internal nudge that led me to declare a major in vocal performance, for I knew little about solo classical music and next to nothing about opera.
When I entered the program in the fall of 2004, I knew immediately that it was a perfect fit! What I had felt were quirky characteristics in my voice (a fast vibrato, loudness, wide range, etc.) were all well suited for the classical repertoire I studied. After only three weeks into my first semester, however, I received orders to deploy to northern Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I was devastated to leave my then 21-month-old daughter. My support system made it possible for me to maintain my sanity in such extraordinary circumstances, and I went with as much peace as could be expected in the situation. I also went with the conviction that I had found my career objective and the determination to continue progressing over the year-long deployment. To this end, I performed for official deployment, promotion, memorial, and change-of-command ceremonies throughout the United States, Kuwait, and Iraq. I also sang for church services and researched notable opera singers. In the spring of 2006, I returned to school and picked up right where I left off with a clearer focus and stronger determination.
I graduated summa cum laude with my bachelor of music in vocal performance and minor concentration in African-American studies in the spring of 2008, nine years after having begun college. I completed a master of music two years later, graduating with honors. In 2008, I also completed over eight and a half years in the Army Reserves as a decorated veteran, having served in northern Iraq as an ammunition sergeant.
I recently relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, where I am establishing myself as an emerging artist. As I embark upon the beginning of a new career in a new city, it has become blatantly obvious that elements that seemed so unrelated before are actually inseparable. Their commonality is that they are all my experiences and have come together to make me who I am. They each motivate me, offer guidance and direction, inform all of my choices, and provide me with insurmountable joy. I recognize and embrace the value in each of my lived experiences, realizing that as a singing-sergeant-scholar-mommy, I bring a quality to my performances that I can guarantee are unique to only me. In knowing this, I aim to approach each audition and performance with the confidence that I have something valuable to say.
