Angela Parrish
Hi! I'm a singer-songwriter who performs original music both as a soloist and will a full band. I'm based in LA and willing to travel. I also play functions, parties, and events as a solo pianist/singer will a full repertoire of standards and covers. Thanks for checking me out, I'd love to play for you!
Artist Bio
Subtle jazz flourishes, echoes of country swing and overtones of Laurel Canyon: Angela Parrish weaves radiant threads of American music into a style she describes as “new music for old souls.”
A breezy verve and a whimsical vibe, offset by poignant lyricism, illustrate her artistry in her newest collection of songs, Vehicle. Titled in homage to her personal history of living in her car in her early months in Los Angeles (a Honda Fit named Tessa), and the transitions of life, she notes that words and melodies are also a vehicle to transport her stories to the world.
There is a much wider world now. Millions of cinema devotees have heard her buoyant vocals on “Another Day of Sun,” the song that opens the Academy Award-winning film musical La La Land. Attending studio screenings and performing at the posh ASCAP Screen Awards is a far cry from dining on dollar meals from Taco Bell, as she did when she first arrived on the West Coast.
Angela is originally from Newton, Kansas, an industrious railroad town. “I grew up falling asleep to the lullaby of train whistles every night,” she remembers. Music came into her life with piano and viola lessons, children’s chorus and high school choir. Playing piano with the jazz ensemble in high school foreshadowed her future. After graduating from Wichita State University with degrees in special music education and jazz piano performance, she was awarded a master’s degree in jazz piano from the University of Northern Colorado.
Returning to Kansas, she was planning to travel to China for an extended gig, but the necessary paperwork never came through. She took this as an omen, and with $700 in savings, came to Los Angeles. “I wanted to pursue performing, a part of me I was denying,” she says.
After car sleeping and couch surfing, a regular stint at the venerable Vitello’s jazz club in Studio City became Angela’s anchor gig. It was through a musician friend that she heard about the La La Land opportunity. After auditions, she spent four days recording the track with the film’s creative team, including composer Justin Hurwitz and director Damien Chazelle.
As a recording artist, Angela’s debut CD, Faithful and Tall, with guest vocals from Sean Watkins of Nickel Creek, was nominated for a pair of Independent Music Awards. Her song “Borrowed Time” was selected as a Lennon Award Winner in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest; she sang backup with Ben Folds at the Hollywood Bowl, and headlined listening rooms on a national tour.
Band
Country, Soul, Jazz
