ON THE RISE
Summertime by Sifuentes is an album that has multiple layers. Jim Sifuentes created this album after and in the midst of some very trying life situations. From a cancer diagnosis to losing a job he had for 19 years, the album is nothing short of a testament to the power of perseverance. He also wanted to share his gift of music with his children and his friends.
“My cancer diagnosis at 50 was a bit of an awakening for me of the tenderness of life, being in and out of a situation and being able to overcome it. Additionally, six months after losing my job, I had a heart attack. With all this going on, I realized I wanted to get back into the music. I wanted to get back with my brother who grew up making music with me and put some songs out at this point in both our lives so I could do something with the talent I have since I didn’t do it when I was younger.” he said.
The album includes songs Jim, who’s now over 60 years old, wrote when he was a teenager as well as ones he wrote just last year. This a testament to his songwriting skills and musical ability. These songs, no matter how many decades apart. still paint a narrative within the sequencing of the album. As a songwriter and storyteller, Jim’s album crafts an auditory journey of where he was mentally and sometimes even physically, at various points in his life.
“I made the song ‘The Memory’ when I was in my 20s and visiting my old neighborhood. I wanted to add a brass sound that was reminiscent of Glenn Miller for that one as an homage to my parents who enjoyed listening to him. My colleague and collaborator Matt Riggen did that part of the song for me. There’s another song on there called ‘Mary’ that I wrote for a girl I was dating when I was 19. I actually was able to perform it for on stage at that time in my life and that’s an unforgettable memory.” he said
Some songs on the album have both sentimental and practical value.
“The track ‘Rumors’ is one me and my brother recorded when we were the age we are on the cover of the album. That was between the 80s and 90s. I decided to add that one to the tracklist because I had 11 songs and my goal was 12 and that one just naturally fit the tone of the album.” he said.
Other songs paint a picture of the reality of life when it’s clouded in uncertainty, a feeling many twenty somethings can relate to. This one has a significantly darker melody than the other songs on the album which have an upbeat pop rock feel to them.
“I wrote ‘Searching for the Day’ when I was 19. I didn’t know what I wanted to do outside of being a musician and people were asking me if I was going to college and what I was going to do with my life. And, at that point, I didn’t really know. I never forgot those lyrics.” he said.
Jim Sifuentes collaborated with his brother Bill and multitalented musician Matt Riggen to create the sound of the album. His brother is a musician and songwriter in his own regard and Matt is a colleague and collaborator that Jim met while in the Chicago Park District. Throughout the album, the three of them play multiple instruments and each one brought their own ideas and expertise to the songs.
The sound of the album is Beatles inspired with Jim growing up studying their music but now he can listen to them for pure enjoyment. Many of the songs on the album have a lighthearted uplifting atmosphere to them as Jim sings of enjoying the summer, love and the aforementioned topics across the album.
“I grew up on The Beatles. I wanted to do something that compliments them and is true to that sound but do it in my own style and my own way. Paul McCartney is my biggest influence and I was thinking ‘Would Paul McCartney and John Lennon be proud of this if they heard it?’ he said.
Jim’s love for the bass is directly connected to his love and admiration for Paul McCartney.
“My goal was to make melodious basslines that compliment the songs just like he did.” he said.
The importance of the bass goes all the way back to Jim's younger years which is a full circle moment considering this album encompasses multiple moments from his younger years and life overall.
“I’ve had that bass for about 40 years. When I was a freshman in high school, I got put on academic probation and my Mom told me I needed to get on the honor roll and if I did, she would get me something. I asked her for the same bass that Paul McCartney used. I didn’t know how to play it at that time but it was something I really wanted. She told me that if I made the honor roll for the next three and a half years, she would get it for me. So that’s what I did and for financial reasons, I didn’t get it until about four years after I graduated but I still got it and I still play it to this day.” he said.
When speaking to Jim, his love for life and the music shined through with every story he told and every word he said. He shared that his mission statement for life is
“Create and play a melodious song of love with your life.” With the album out now, all the people who were not aware of Jim’s wide ranging musical ability are fully aware now and he is happy to share it with them.
Music has been the source of happiness and comfort throughout Jim’s life. Even with everything he’s been through, it was always there for him.
“...I got fired in July and in January I had a heart attack. But the music came back. I picked up my guitar and I said ‘Darn it, I love music.’ It actually brought me back to life. I never lost my optimism. It gave me life in a whole new way. All throughout my life when things were going haywire, especially when I was younger, I’d go to my guitar and express how I was feeling…I came back to music and music revived me. It’s like it partnered back with me. It was always there.” he said.
By putting this album out, Jim has continued to move through life with a positive forward thinking attitude.
“Given where I’m at and what I’m doing at this point, I’m happy with the result and where it’s going. It’s also a testament to people my age that no matter what challenge you have, keep living fully and go after what you have to go after because I’m going to do it until I can’t. That’s what I’ve been doing and I still feel good. I have a choice every morning to decide if I’m going to decide to feel good to decide to feel well and I always choose to feel well.” he said.
Summertime by Sifuentes is available on streaming services now.
You can see more of Sifuentes and his love for music by keeping up with him on these platforms.
ON THE RISE
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Lettie Law is a vessel for God’s message and she spreads it through her music. She gives Him all the credit for the songs she releases, which she says come to her from Him directly. Her latest single, “Forward Ever Backward Never Jesus” is one that celebrates the ever lasting power she believes He has.
When I spoke to Lettie, I could feel how strong and at peace she was just from our conversation. She shared a variety of stories of her life with me and God was the constant throughout all of them. She has a writing process for her songs but as earlier mentioned, she always credits Him with giving them to her.
“I write songs as they come to me from the Divine. Something is whispering to me to tell me what to write, how to sing it and what instruments go with it. Sometimes I’ll get partial parts of a song gradually but for this song, everything came together at the same time. It all comes from Heaven and I give out what I receive from the Almighty.” she said.
Sharing God’s message is a part of every song Lettie releases but this one was specifically crafted to encourage people who are dealing with everything happening in the world today. Lettie sees all the turmoil people are going through in the world and wants people to know that they will make it through any situation they find themselves in.
“No matter what is going on in life at this current time, you can look to God. If yesterday was not good for you, you don’t need to look back. Look to God and there is no way He will not deliver you. Keep moving forward and doing your best and look to God.” she said.
Lettie believes that music and singing can bring people joy, hope, courage and also healing. The latter can come in the emotional sense but also the physical sense too. During our conversation, she shared a story about how one of her other songs, titled “Yaweh” had a large impact on someone’s life.
“My favorite thing about music is how it can be healing. Not all diseases are physical. A woman called me had shared how she had been dealing with insomnia for eight years and had taken all kinds of medication for it. But once she started listening to my song, she would sleep like a baby.” she said.
Lettie Law knows about the power of God and music from firsthand experience. She shared that while she enjoyed singing in front of the congregation at church as a child, this changed as she began to get older. She became more shy and reserved not just in church but in life and in general.
Her shyness and reluctance to sing became the catapult that would push her to sing as God wanted her to after she went through a life altering situation.
“I ended up getting sick and my son suggested I record one of the songs I had written in the books I had from years ago. But once I started recording more, the sickness left my body. But recording and singing in public are very different. So it became a tug of war between me and the Lord because He wanted me to sing publicly but I didn’t want to.” she said.
“A different situation happened and I ended up in a coma and I could hear various voices around me as I faded in and out. I thought I was dying but I woke up on this side and realized I was still alive. The Lord asked me ‘Are you ready to do My work now?’ And I said ‘Of course! I’ll sing in front of the congregation. I will tell my story to the world. Wherever you send me, I am going.’ And when I woke up, all my family members who I had heard while I was fading in and out apologized because I heard them planning for my funeral and things like that. So the Lord spared my life and I’m not shy anymore. The Lord gave me strength and I chose life.” she said.
As Lettie said, she truly did go wherever God sent her. She’s since sung at Boston College, in Connecticut, at churches and even a club.
“University students love Christ. They were singing and dancing and they wanted me to come back. In the club, people were drinking and smoking and couples were dancing and it was nice because everybody belongs to the Almighty. God sees a sinner and knows one day they will become one of His children.” she said.
Lettie Law is West African with her father being from Nigeria and her mother being from Cameroon. The range of the diaspora is felt throughout “Forward Ever Backward Never Jesus” whose production is far from traditional Gospel instrumentation and blends a variety of musical styles. The positive and uplifting atmosphere is felt through both the instruments and the lyrics.
For many Gospel artists, their foundation was laid by someone older than them that raised them in church and likely also had them singing in church as child. For Lettie, this person was her father.
“He played a very big role in introducing me to Gospel and the Almighty. He introduced me to reading the Bible and he and my Mom introduced me to reading hymns.” she said.
Lettie Law has a 10 track album coming soon which will include songs like “Prayer is a Masterkey” and “God is Our All in All.” Her journey with Gospel has encapsulated her whole life and her ongoing faith continues to motivate her to keep making more music.
“I am just a vessel for His word and His message.” she said.
“Forward Ever Backward Never Jesus” is available on streaming services now.
You can experience more of God’s messages through Lettie Law by following her on these platforms.
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