Charlotte "Charlie" Hunt - Vocals

Charlie Hunt's sensitivities have taken a turn toward meditations on life, vigor, and the spiritual. "Music has been a part of my life since I was very young," she says. Her creative life began "as a poet and writer in the most basic sense" creating lyrics and idyllic expressions early on. Take a snapshot look and you'll get a glimpse of a distinct versatility. "I think I always knew I wanted to be a singer," she says, "For a while, I was driven by my love for musical theater. I performed in a lot of theater productions, as wells as scholastic competitions when I was growing up." With her latest offerings, she reaches out to listeners with open arms. As she puts it, "Music should grab people by the shoulders. I want the audience to be engaged, to feel something when they hear it -- be breathless. The best songs are those helping us to remember to relax, go crazy and party, be revolutionary, focus on the positive, think about events and history... also to be still and reflect on your feelings.

Laying her clear sweet vocals and eloquently painted words on varied productions, Charlie recently teamed up with award winning Reggae group Gizzae for the tunes 'Star In The East' and 'Sweet Lovin' which are sure to be favorites for fans. Groove merchant DJ Anthony Nicholson featured her voice on dance tracks for Clairaudience and King Street Records. Their work generated a buzz on play lists around the world. King Street records has a reputation for cutting edge, non-conforming musical compositions and Charlie's voice fits right into the lush, deep house compilation, which is comprised of only a few vocal tracks.

She has performed with an improvisational 'acid jazz collective' on various Chicago stages; with an international reggae artist at the Africa Unite concert -- part of a month long celebration of Bob Marley's 60th Anniversary in early 2005; with the group Baaro (former backing band for Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers); as well as with the acclaimed Ken Arlen Orchestra, an act featured during the Bush presidential inaugural ceremonies in Washington DC. Other credits include back-up vocalist work for Nervous Records dance music recording artist Kim English; for British Soul sensation Julie Dexter; televised performances with other Chicago artists; reggae & reggae fusion performances at the Wild Hare reggae club; as well as jazz sets with local bands at the Green Dolphin Street jazz club.

Talk to fellow musicians and they'll tell you stories of live moments. One colleague comments, "I've never seen people react to a singer quite the way they do" with her. "They want to come up and just touch her or grab hands... whatever. They really get into it... It's nuts!" Another says that "she sings like an angel" while injecting "that energy" the band needs… Her soul is infectious…"

Influences: Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Sara Vaughn, Chaka Kahn, The Artist/Prince, Stevie Wonder, Zeppelin, David Bowie, Bob Marley, Celia Cruz, Cesaria Evora, Incubus, Killswitch Engage, Sevendust, Jimi Hendrix, Sleater-Kinney, The Clash, Patti Smith, Bad Brains, Pearl Jam

http://myspace.com/charlihunt

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