Heyyyyy it's been too long!
How are you?
I hope well.
So there's been a lot of changes in my life the past six months…
Positive changes fortunately!
Let me start from the beginning, from six months ago when I last wrote ; )
So the show at Harlem in September was fun even though I was recovering from food poisoning! Thank you to everyone who came out to show their support and help me remember my lyrics!!! Haha I so appreciate the love from the community in Toronto : ) Home sweet home. Here's a photo of me with the lovely publicist Soraya Mangal before the show:

and one of me crooning on the keys while the band had my back:


Shortly after that I was off to New York City to shoot a video for a song I wrote with the incredible Long Island emcee Kaleber called "Love Love Love":

You can check it out online:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMJO_LDmZfo
I programmed the strings for that tune too, one of my many favorite things to do : )
I also did some recording in New York with my fellow Berklee grad and Grammy-winning engineer Ari Raskin:

That's me at Chung King studio finishing up some background vocals. I had to put the new material on hold for a while though while I handle a bunch of business and really see my last project through. More on that later…I also had to rush back to do a couple christmas performances for the Mississauga News and CBC's Sounds of the Season. Good stuff.
After that I was blessed with the honor of arranging and conducting a ten-piece string ensemble at Metalworks Studio for the sweet and soulful songstress Jenna Andrews on a track co-written and produced by Jon Levine:

We couldn't take pictures while I was actually conducting 'cause that would've made too much noise while we were recording! It was a bit stressful because one of the players got sick at the last minute and couldn't make it in, but we managed to find someone else to fill in right in the nick of time and we pulled it off with seconds to spare!!! It ended up sounding beautiful…keep a lookout for Jenna Andrews and her music.
Then, at the end of January, I was asked by Live Nation (thanks to my friends Metalworks) to put together a three-piece female gospel group to sing with Michael Buble at his Ontario performances. I chose Saidah Baba-Talibah and Ammoye Levy because I knew our voices would blend well and that they would bring the professionalism and vibe that the gig needed. It was a success! They loved us and said they'll be calling us again, and Michael was every bit the gentleman, joker and professional that you would imagine him to be. Here are a few pics from the closing night:


Those are the boys from Naturally 7, the opening act who tours with Michael. They are AMAZING live. If you're a fan of Take 6, check these guys out!
The same day as the closing night we performed with Michael, I did a photoshoot for Big It Up for their summer campaign. Here's me and the lovely Angie Choi who was the photographer for the shoot:

You can see some more shots of me in their wicked hats and other local talent modeling their stuff at www.bigitup.com and at any of their retail outlets across the province!
Next it was off to Los Angeles to sign a management contract with the fabulous Jacqui Thompson, formerly manager of Prince, and do a photoshoot for my new EP that's about to drop in a few days (I can't believe it! FINALLY!!!)


Special thanks to the brilliant and charismatic photographer Jae Feinberg, make-up artist Patti Wheelock, stylist Kim Porche, jewellery designer Susan Keough and the late chef Anton Perkins (may his beautiful, finger-licking soul rest in peace).
The result is some of the photos that you can now see on www.myspace.com/jennielaws and www.jennielaws.com. More to come soon!
When I got back to Canada I had to start right away on a bunch of string arrangements for Anjulie, a sassy singer/songwriter with an unmistakable sound, signed to the Concord/Starbucks label. Again it was Jon Levine who was writing and producing the project, so I knew it was going to be tasty and playful yet still really high caliber. This time we chose to work with a quintet (3 violins, viola and 'cello) and I was shocked at how full and present the sound was that we got. The players had to be really on point and the engineer had to mic them just right, but the end result was a thick, in-your-face sound that I actually like better now than the larger string ensemble! And I always love working with one of my dear friends and musical partners, Juno-winning L. Stu Young, who also mixed and recorded a lot of my EP. Definitely keep your ears peeled for Anjulie's CD 'cause I know it's going to be a hot one!
Back on the west coast again, I had the privilege of performing in Champ Records' and Say it Again Records' San Diego Indie Music Fest in North Park San Diego at the end of March. Jacqui brought Prince's keyboard player Morris Hayes on board as my new musical director, and he just took my live show to the next level! Claire de Lune Coffee Lounge was crammed to the brim and I really felt the good energy coming from the crowd…here's a few pics from the show:



The last one is of me and crazy brilliant singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Chris Rouse who is featured on my song "You Choose" and was generous enough to join us for the show. Isn't it crazy how the colors turned out?!
He also joined me for the next two events I performed at, Los Angeles independent film director Samah Tokmachi's ("Missing Pieces") Peace Gathering and my show at the Temple Bar with Bruno Mars and Black Cowboy. The Peace Gathering was beautiful…my favorite part was when Samah said insightfully that "one" was the most important number to remember because we are all ONE. Wow. I got shivers. That's the TRUTH. The Temple Bar show was also wonderful! This time Morris Hayes' schedule allowed him to actually PLAY with me and he brought in some of the greatest players in the area for the show. Morris is the BEST. He's a leader without you noticing that he's leading. So humble but so strong, so hilarious but so capable all at once. Here's some photos from one of the rehearsals:


The show was crazy. Prince's twins came in and danced the salsa to my new song "Done With Love" (and somehow we can't find any photos of this!!!) That was the "surprise" I was talking about in my email blast. It all happened so fast…I got a really good response from everyone in the audience and at the venue and in the other bands, so what else could I ask for? I'm so grateful to everyone involved. Here's a couple of the shots we got so far:



While all this was going on we were busy putting the EP artwork together and getting it printed, setting up distribution, marketing and promotion, and a few other things that are bubbling underneath the surface. So far I can tell you though that my song "Beautiful People" is in a video game and "Heavenly" is on the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (N.A.R.M.) compilation for this year's conference in San Francisco which is happening right now. More to come…
In the meantime some stuff I've been into lately:
The Power of Now
The Artist's Way
The Secret Life of Bees
Gavin DeGraw
Emily King
Justin Nozuka
The Moses Code
And just how precious life is. Making peace with everybody. Forgiveness. Gratitude. Trying my very hardest to let go of my ego and just be, but not quite getting there yet…
So that's what's up with me.
My EP comes out this Tuesday May 13th, and there'll be a million and one ways to cop it or a piece of it, so look into it if you like : )
I'll be adding more and more new features in the next few weeks, and hopefully have more content for you soon. It's been a slow process all of this, but a worthwhile one!
Also, my EP release show is at The Supermarket in Toronto on June 19th and at the Temple Bar in Los Angeles sometime this summer. I'll keep you posted...
So do you know what "Namaste" means?
It's one of my absolute favorite sayings:
(one translation)
"The Divine in me recognizes and honors the Divine in you."
Namaste,

Jennie