Tell us about Marla Lewis?
Born in New Jersey, wrote my first song at the tender age of 12 called “Hopeless Love” (LOL). From the time I could talk, music has always been my closest friend. I sang and played guitar in clubs, got disenchanted, went back to school for my Masters, and became an English as a Second Language teacher in a Harlem elementary school for 23 years. That’s when I started writing songs for kids, to help them learn English. I released two children’s albums, WE ALL LAUGH IN THE SAME LANGUAGE and I LOVE TO TALK TO PLANTS. One tune from PLANTS, called “Leap of Faith,” appears on a Grammy-winning Children’s CD called ALL ABOUT BULLIES... BIG AND SMALL, with my incredible friend and producer, Bob Stander.
Who are some of your musical influences? What else inspires you?
Ella Fitzgerald, the Beatles, Michael Franks, Phoebe Snow, Carole King, to name a few. My mom aspired to be a jazz singer, so we had lots of Big Band music playing in the house. Besides music, the rhythm of conversation inspires me.
Congrats on the release of “Kill the Lights”! We love it. What’s the story behind the song?
Thanks so much! Bob (my producer) said to me, “We need another R&B flavored song with a catchy chorus.” So, I played around with a new idea about love on the rebound. I wrote the lyrics first, a very rough draft, and put music to it - that’s how songs usually evolve for me. I was really “in the zone” when I was working on this one, fiddling around with it until it felt complete. The song went through many incarnations before I got the “actors in a play” metaphor right. I don’t think it’s autobiographical – unless it’s about an affair that I’ve totally forgotten about!
Who is one artist you’d love to tour with?
Nora Jones! Oh, yes!
What’s your favorite thing to do when you’re not doing music?
Walking the dogs, hanging out with friends, watching a great TV series.
What's the 2022 plans for your musical journey?
I want to continue live streaming - it’s fun! My show is called “Marla in La La Land.” You can tune in every Wednesday evening at 7:30 PM Eastern. I already have enough songs for my next smooth jazz album, and I’m calling it, “Livin’ the Dream.” The songs are very socially conscious – I can’t write in a bubble any longer, with what’s going on in the world. I hope to record and release that album in 2022. And perhaps, I’ll muster the courage to do live shows!
How can our readers find you online?
Lots of places! First, my website: www.marlalewis.com
My Facebook group: MarlaTheMuse
My YouTube channels: Smooth Jazz I Children’s
Twitch I LinkedIn I Twitter I Instagram I Spotify I Apple Music
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