密歇根新闻广播 皇家橡树音乐家在她家的咖啡馆里表演

 

Her stage name is Stephie James, but friends and family here in Michigan know her best as Stephanie Hamood.

The Nashville based singer-songwriter got her start playing gigs at a coffee shop her family opened near Detroit.

Now, after years of touring with big name bands, James is getting ready to release her debut¹ album later this year.

Her music radiates with the vintage atmosphere of the 1960s mixed with a little surf rock.

James credits her mom for introducing her to musicals at a young age, and says listening to show tunes² shaped the way she thinks about song writing.

"I got into a lot of 60s stuff like Roy Orbison and Phil Spector records. And when I was really young it was Bob Dylan. And once I heard Dylan, it was like, 'Ok, this is what I want to do, I want to write songs.'"

In 2009, while still in high school, James craved³ a place where she and friends could play music. At the same time her family opened a small shop called Dessert Oasis⁴ in Royal Oak. The idea was to bring the community together with sweets and live music. And you could find James playing almost every night for hours on end.

"A lot of my friends played music as well, and we didn't have a place to play. We didn't want to do the covers at bars; they also wouldn't let us play in bars because we weren't 21. So, kids would play guitar in the parking lots after school and hang out," James said. "I thought that if we kind of made a place for it and just built up that community. That's like a big thing for me, like artists supporting other artists. And so that was just what we did. We started promoting shows and putting on shows there. And booking a lot of local Michigan acts and who are still making incredible music and have passed through those doors at that coffee shop, it's pretty cool.”

One night while James was on stage at her coffee shop, none other than eight-time Grammy-winning R&B legend Anita Baker⁵ walked in the door.

"I knew who she was like right away … and I was so nervous. You're standing⁶ there kind of defenseless. She's watching me, and I'm like 'Oh man don't mess up.'"

Baker told James to consider taking her music career more seriously. And so James had a decision to make: stay in college at Oakland University or go on tour with Anita Baker.

"And when I got the call from Anita Baker to go on the road, it was like, there will always be a classroom. I could always get a degree, but Anita Baker doesn't call everyday and say come on the road, so I better do it."

James didn't have a hard time finding work in Nashville. For a while, she worked with Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. She also toured with Nikki Lane and Michigan's own The Accidentals before deciding to focus on her own project. Earlier this year, James released a new single titled "Silent Film.”

The song was picked up by another Grammy-winner, Michael Bolton, and released in conjunction with the premiere of Boltons's documentary film American Dream: Detroit.

Now, James is working with Alabama Shakes producer Andrija Tokic to debut her first solo album coming out at the end of the year.

In the middle of all this newfound success, she and her family are still committed to supporting local artists in her home state. Dessert Oasis Coffee Roasters opened a second location in downtown Detroit earlier this year.

Stephie James is playing at the Tip Top Deluxe⁷ in Grand Rapids on Wednesday, July 11.

1 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

2 tunes   

n.曲调，曲子( tune的名词复数 )v.调音( tune的第三人称单数 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• a potpourri of tunes 乐曲集锦
• When things get a bit too much, she simply tunes out temporarily. 碰到事情太棘手时，她干脆暂时撒手不管。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 craved   

渴望，热望( crave的过去式 )； 恳求，请求

参考例句：

• She has always craved excitement. 她总渴望刺激。
• A spicy, sharp-tasting radish was exactly what her stomach craved. 她正馋着想吃一个香甜可口的红萝卜呢。

4 oasis   

n.（沙漠中的）绿洲，宜人的地方

参考例句：

• They stopped for the night at an oasis.他们在沙漠中的绿洲停下来过夜。
• The town was an oasis of prosperity in a desert of poverty.该镇是贫穷荒漠中的一块繁荣的“绿洲”。

5 baker   

n.面包师

参考例句：

• The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
• The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。

6 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

7 deluxe   

adj.华美的，豪华的，高级的

参考例句：

• This system puts the top hotels in a special deluxe category.这种分类法把最高级的旅馆列为特殊豪华级。
• I liked the deluxe edition,but I could afford only a second best.我喜欢精装版，但我只买得起一本稍差一点的。