Libbie Shrader

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0><script type="text/javascript" src="http://hb.lycos.com/hb.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://ratings.lycos.com/ratings/lycosRating.js.php"></script> <script type="text/javascript"><![CDATA[//><!]]></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://scripts.lycos.com/catman/init.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/ad/code-start.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/ad/code-middle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/ad/code-end.js"></script> <noscript> <img src="http://members.tripod.com/adm/img/common/ot_noscript.gif?rand=859854" alt="" width="1" height="1" />  <iframe frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" width="728" height="90" src="http://ad.yieldmanager.com/st?ad_type=iframe&ad_size=728x90&section=209094"></iframe>  </noscript> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=125 BGCOLOR="#AAAAAA" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03c467d1euxmic.gif"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>Kristi Singer</b></FONT><B>     </b><B>|     </b><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Kristi Singer"><U><B>home</b></U></A></div> <div> <B>Libbie Shrader </b>   |   <A HREF="id217.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Lifehouse"><U>Lifehouse</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id236.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Lillix"><U>Lillix</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id185.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Lisa Loeb"><U>Lisa Loeb</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id103.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Little T and One Track Mike"><U>Little T and One Track Mike</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id57.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="LTrain"><U>L-Train</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=190 BGCOLOR="#111111" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <A HREF="id16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Writing Samples"><U><B>Back to Articles</b></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=355 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> Libbie Shrader </div> <div> <B>Pro-Voice Winner Cleans Up:</b></div> <div> <B>1,200 contestants make women's musical voices heard</b></div> <div> By Kristi Singer</div> <div> <I>Singer Magazine, </I>January 2002</div> <bR> <div> What would motivate 1,200 young ladies to go through the trouble of writing and recording an original song for a competition? How about: a new car, a demo-recording contract with Atlantic Records, distribution of their winning song, a $10,000 endowment to the high school of their choice, and multiple performances as the opening act for established artist's summer concert tour. That's enough to make any musician want to compete.</div> <bR> <div> This past summer, Pantene, a leading hair care brand (distributed by Proctor & Gamble), designed just such a competition as part of a celebration of "what women have to say."</div> <bR> <div> From January 15, 2001 to April 30, 2001, unsigned female solo performers and female-fronted bands (ages fourteen to twenty-four) who composed original music, were invited to submit an original song lyric sheet, a demo tape of that song and a photo. They were judged on lyrical and musical composition, and originality.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Many Voices</b></div> <bR> <div> From the initial 1,200 contestants, fifty semifinalists were selected and sent on to the Pantene Pro-Voice Advisory Board made up of celebrity and industry professionals like Sandra Bernhard and Laurie Anderson, as well as Atlantic Records A&R reps and representatives from Pantene. The board picked five finalists to appear on stage on July 19, 2001 in New York City's Central Park. In front of thousands of excited friends, fans, and music industry execs, finalists Rachel Diggs (22), from Agoura Hills, California, Celia Kipp (23), from Baltimore, Maryland, Stella Maxwell (21) from Austin, Texas, Libbie Schrader from Portland, Oregon and Johnaa Spruill (24) from Greenbelt, Maryland, took the stage after an opening set by Jewel.</div> <bR> <div> The five finalists were flown to New York and given the star treatment complete with make-up artists, hair stylists and lodging (including parents or guardians). The final competition was broadcast on Much Music in September. </div> <bR> <div> <B>And the Winner is...</b></div> <bR> <div> The contest's winner, Libbie Schrader and her band The Wash, were notified that they made the finals in early June. "They came over to our house with a video camera and knocked on the door. They said 'You're going to New York!' We were interviewed for almost three hours, had us play some songs, and they made a video clip that they showed at Central Park."</div> <bR> <div> Libbie met her band mates, guitarist Jason Mandell, drummer Matt Taylor and bassist Nick May while attending Pomona College in Claremont, California. Her interest in music began at age five, when she began learning piano. She trained classically for sixteen years. She also started clarinet at age ten and by sixteen was testing her vocal chords.</div> <bR> <div> By the end of high school Libbie was performing to large audiences and writing her own songs. Libbie remembers that the college students weren't very excited about her band. "There were maybe three people who were like 'wow, you guys are good.' Everyone else was like 'eh, this isn't the kind of music I would want to listen to at a party.' So we didn't get all that much support at our college," she said.</div> <bR> <div> The band was drawn to the competition by the contest slogan, "celebrating what women have to say." They recorded Libbie's song "Blood Red Moon" in Reseda, California (outsides of Los Angeles) with their producer, Jack Arky. Libby's dad covered the recording costs as a graduation present. Two days later the band had completed their recording and produced what became the winning song.</div> <bR> <div> The July concert was Libbie's first large crowd performance. She said that she was "unsettled" before the show, but not nervous. "The crowd was so great and tons of our friends were in the audience. Personally, I play better when they are there. Once we got on stage we did great."</div> <bR> <div> "This contest... is solely based on how good the song is. That's really exciting because the way music works today, it's based so much upon connections. They didn't tell us to wear anything specific. They gave us a lot of free Pantene, but they didn't say we had to use it and we didn't have to say anything about Pantene. I got the genuine sense that all they wanted was fur us to be ourselves." (For more on The Wash, go to www.thewash.net).</div> <bR> <div> <B>Stepping Stone to Success</b></div> <bR> <div> You might think that the contest would generate competitive vibes, but Libbie reported that was not the case. "All five of the girls, and their bands too, ended up making really good friends with each other. We're all still in touch. I think we were all rooting for each other." So much so, that when The Wash needed a new back up singer they turned to fellow Pro-Voice finalist, Rachel Diggs.</div> <bR> <div> According to Libbie, hip-hop artist and finalist Johnna Spruill plans to have a song in an upcoming movie, as well as a meeting with the manager of pop group Destiny's Child. "Another one of the girls is making her own video. And this other band, Cruiserweight, they're playing all over and getting national attention. Since all their songs were so good, it meant that they were on their way anyway."</div> <bR> <div> Atlantic Records also awarded The Wash $5,000. With that money Libbie estimates the band will be able to record a three-song demo at a studio of their choice. If Atlantic likes the demo they might consider signing the group.</div> <bR> <div> From being scoped out by Atlantic and Virgin Records, to hanging with Willa Ford, Jewel, and the other finalists, The Wash has gained national recognition, as well as some new friends through the Pro-Voice competition. "They want us to succeed, for us to be really successful musicians. And it's nice for us to have that support there, to have someone helping us out along the way and not just to be by ourselves."</div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>