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Location: Ruskin, FL
Height: 5'7"
Current Hair Color --Blonde again.
Natural Hair Color -- Dirty blond
Eye Color: Brown
Favorite Color: Pink
Hobbies - Singing/acting
Achievements: Her song Lullaby, that she reportedly
wrote in 30 minutes, was featured on the Pokemon
Movie Soundtrack;In High School she played the role
of Sandy in "Grease", Ronnette in the "Little Shop
of Horrors", and Dolly in "Hello Dolly".
Fave Food: Spagetti, itialian food, tacobell
Fave Color: Baby blue and purple
Fave Artists: Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Aretha
Franklin, BSB
Fave Activities: Singing, dancing, acting, shopping,
hanging out.
She’s no ordinary queen of teen. Princess of pop?
Don’t dare go there. Just try to pigeonhole Willa
and you’ll come up wrong every time. The 18-year-old
knock out newcomer is a walking contradiction, a
talent whose emotionally mature lyrics and soulful
sound transcend her youth; a fresh face who puts the
down to earth in diva; and an artist who’s proving
that the pop/R&B universe hasn’t seen or heard
anything like her ever before.
"You see a white, blonde girl who’s 18 years old and
you think that I’m going to sing like you expect
someone who looks like me to sing and that I’m going
to say what the world wants a young girl to say only
I’m flipping it on you," challenges Willa. "As one
unity, we’ve all decided that any kind of person can
sing any kind of music. I love R&B and I love pop.
That’s where my heart is."
Willa’s forthcoming Lava/Atlantic debut is truly a
gift. It’s as provocative as it is relatable,
showcasing her exceptional vocal talents and knack
for penning lyrics that matter and grooves that
inspire. "I believe in destiny. From the day I was
born, this is what I was put on this earth to do,"
says Willa. "My family and friends all knew there
was something kind of different about me."
The youngest of four, Willa was born and raised in
Ruskin, Fla., a southern suburb of Tampa. She grew
up on a produce farm, racing four wheelers and go-carts
across her family’s land and sailing the warm waters
of the Gulf of Mexico on her parents boat, the Mandy
Lee. "I was the biggest tomboy. I refused to wear
dresses," Willa laughs. "My kindergarten teacher
used to make fun of me because my mom would send me
in a cute little outfit and pigtails, but by the end
of the day, I looked like a munchkin Tina Turner, my
hair was everywhere, my face was dirty and I had
stains all over my clothes."
When she was just 5, Willa got the first taste of
her future: A friend of the family started playing
the piano and out of nowhere, the little girls with
a big voice joined in and started singing a harmony.
At 11, she turned pro. "My Grandmother knew how
important singing was to me," Willa explains. "She
cut out an article from the newspaper looking for
girls to be a part of this group called
Entertainment Review in Tampa. I auditioned, and I
got in. I sang, danced, did everything I could."
As Willa excelled as a performer her love of music
grew. As a child, she was influenced by pop stars
like Cyndi Lauper, Madonna and Duran Duran, but
discovered R&B as a teen, embracing and learning
from artists like Jodeci, Mary J. Blige, Toni
Braxton, En Vogue, Destiny’s Child, Silk, Shai and
Az Yet. But her biggest influences remain the same:
"My mom [who is also a singer], and the people
around me, the older girls in Entertainment Review.
We fed off each other, " Willa says. The Southern
girl also professes her intense love for old-school
rock groups including Chicago and Air Supply. "I
really want to remake the Air Supply song, ‘All Out
of Love,’" Willa admits.
At 16, the high-school honor student with a 4.25 gpa
parted ways with Entertainment Review and decided to
go after her dream of becoming a solo artist. She
briefly considered perusing career as an opera
singer (That’s Willa belting it out at the end of
her song "Somebody Take the Pain Away"), but when a
friend in the business convinced a scout from Los
Angeles to see what the world was missing everything
changed, literally overnight. The day after seeing
Willa perform she was on a plane to LA. Willa has
collaborated with a diverse group of writer and
producers in crafting her debut album. While she
writes most of her own lyrics, she’s found that
working with talents such as Travon Potts (Monica’s
"Angel of Mine"), Zomba Music’s K&S, Rhone and
Haynes (Lil’ Kim) and DJ Skribble and Anthony Acid
have made her voice sound even stronger. "When I
talk and when I sing, I’m speaking the truth. I tell
it like it is straight up, that’s me. And my lyrics
always reflect that," Willa says.
The tracks on Willa’s upcoming album are a new brand
of urban meets pop perfection. Her voice is raw and
raspy, yet refined. Her songs are all about real
life. Like "It’s all About Me," for instance. "I’ll
do what I want to do, I’ll say what I want to say,
I’ll feel how I want to feel, ‘cause its not about
what my mom wants, not about what the person I’m
dating wants," says Willa of her motivation for
writing it. "It’s my life. Their job is to run their
lives and mine is to take care of me." Willa also
sings about people who just can’t mind their own
business on "Get a Life."
"I’m a very outspoken person, so obviously, my music
is going to reflect that as well," Willa offers. She
hopes girls take notice of her tell-it-like-it-is
attitude. "I don’t want them to be just like me,"
she explains. " Just want them to get the message:
Do what you want to do, because if you don’t, you’ll
never be happy and you’ll never be true to yourself.
I believe that my getting out there and doing my
thing is going to inspire someone else to keep going,"
Willa continues. "I want to get out there and show
young girls that we don’t have to be manufactured.
This strength of character, devotion to herself, her
friends, family and fans as well as her dedication
to keeping her music and its message real are what
makes Willa different from all the rest. "I
sincerely hope everyone likes this album, and I hope
that they can find some inspiration from what they
hear," she says. "I’ve always wanted to make a
difference, and I will. You can count on that.". |
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