Shannon Hurley
Hand-picked as one of Rolling Stone’s top 25 best bands on MySpace, Shannon Hurley’s alternative pop style has often been compared to Aimee Mann and Sarah McLachlan, but her songwriting and singing have lifted her to a place that is completely her own. You might have heard her music, thanks to a deal she inked with Muzak. Her songs can be heard in department stores, restaurants, and grocery stores throughout the U.S. What caught Muzak's attention was Shannon's debut album "Ready to Wake Up". Shannon invited her heavy-hitting friends to pitch in. KCRW favorite Carmen Rizzo and Guy Erez (producer/writer for Jennifer Love-Hewitt, Sarah Bettens, and Ryan Cabrera) help make this album shine. What led this Indiana-born artist to this path was moving to LA after studying songwriting with Pat Leonard (hit writer for Madonna). She spent time honing her own material and also became a session musician. By 2005 she was touring with Universal Motown artist Brie Larson, opening for Jesse McCartney, Gwen Stefani, The Black-Eyed Peas, and Gavin DeGraw. She also became a keyboardist/ backup singer for international artist Marina V. In addition to these accomplishments, she is also co-founder for Don't Call Us Tori! (www.dontcallustori.com), a showcase for women singer-songwriters. These shows are held in L.A. venues such as the Hotel Cafe, the Derby, and Tangier. Shannon was recently commissioned to write a song for the Getty Center exhibit, The Zuccaro Drawings, in which Frederico Zuccaro depicts the struggle of his artist brother Taddeo. Shannon performed at the Getty alongside Tom Freund, Jim Bianco, Beth Thornley, Priscilla Ahn, and Libbie Schrader. In the summer of 2008, Shannon posted stems to her songs from “Ready to Wake Up” on www.CCMixter.org and www.acidplanet.com. She chose 8 winning submissions out of over 400 to appear on Second Light: The Ready to Wake Up Remixes. The styles range from trip-hop, trance, heavy rock, and ambient. Shannon was also honored to be a semi-finalist in the contest to find the theme song for the movie Henry Poole is Here. Her tune was chosen over 4,000 contestants to be in the top 30. Although it wasn't chosen for the movie, she decided to put it up on AmieStreet. It can be found here: http://www.amiestreet.com/shannonhurley Shannon recently relocated to Nashville, and as witnessed by her new single “California”, she will continue to make records that have an organic and tuneful pop sound. Her full-length debut. Ready to Wake Up, is available on iTunes and www.cdbaby.com/shannonhurley3.