- Title: USA: 14-YEAR-OLD BLUES/ROCK GUITARIST PHENOMENON SHANNON CURFMAN
- Date: 1st January 1999
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, (OCTOBER 13, 1999) (REUTERS TELEVISION NEWS-- ACCESS ALL) (SOUNDBITE) (English) SHANNON CURFMAN TALKING ABOUT HER DECISION TO RECORD BLUES AND ROCK INSTEAD OF THE EXPECTED "TEENY BOP POP", SAYING: "I mean congratulations to whoever's making it at the pop kinda thing, but I'm doing what I've always loved to do and nobody's ever said,
- Embargoed: 16th January 1999 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA3VWIMW5WLEWM4NTFISRCYAZ80
- Story Text: Shannon Curfman is a 14-year old blues/rock singer with blazing guitar skills that were recently put on display at opening gigs for the likes of Buddy Guy, Jimmy Vaughn, and John Mellencamp.
Reuters caught up with the recently signed Arista artist to find out what she knows about the blues.
Shannon Curfman has been playing guitar for only three of her fourteen years, yet has managed to land a recording deal with Arista Records, tour with Grammy-winning musicians, and make music with artists that her peers don't even know about.
The teen sensation is turning heads with her potent mix of rock, blues, and funky R&B that seems out of place for someone who by all accounts should be recording or listening to pop music, such as the Backstreet Boys or Britney Spears.
"I mean congratulations to whoever's making it at the pop kinda thing, but I'm doing what I've always loved to do." she says.
Her love affair with the guitar began after taking lessons at the urging of her "hip" grandmother, who along with Shannon's parents, was into classic rock and blues.
She made her stage debut singing at a local talent show and had a few coffeehouse gigs in North Dakota before fellow teen musician Jonny Lang introduced her to the blues.
The Fargo Blues Festival, where she jammed with blues-rock virtuoso Jeff Healy, was her first professional gig, followed by opening dates for blues legend Buddy Guy and country rocker John Mellencamp.
Concerts and contacts do not stop the question from being raised: what could she possibly know about the blues? "I know nothing about the blues...it's just more about telling a story to me and really trying to make people understand the emotion," she explains.
As she takes her place amongst young artists like Lang and others who aren't following the current industry trend towards "teeny-bop pop", Curfman is heartened by the response to her musical choice and hopes to grow into her already formidable songwriting and playing skills.
"My biggest goal is to make them not think about me as a 14-year old white girl from North Dakota.I want them to think of me as just a musician period.Because that's what I am. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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