Spotlight - Sheryl Skye

New Jersey born Sheryl Skye has been walking down that road to success for many years. She's made quite a few friends along the way and, while her journey is not yet complete, she continues to travel in search of her dreams. There's an old saying about a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. Only a select few ever find out if that's true or not. But, in this case, sheer determination will eventually lead this artist to discover the truth about what's really at the end of that rainbow.

Her childhood years were spent living just outside of Allentown until she moved back to New Jersey, spending a good ten years of her life there. It would also be the state in which her musical career would begin. In 1994, Skye recorded and released her debut album, "Wading The Waters," which was mastered in Waterfront Studio in Hoboken, New Jersey. This was released as a solo album with studio musicians.

She came back to Pennsylvania in 1996 to record her second release, "The Sheryl Skye Band," at Raspberry Recording in Bethlehem, which is owned by Skye's bass player, Gina Balducci. In addition, it was a recommendation by Balducci that brough Skye to Pennsylvania again, in 1999, to record her third CD, "Ripple," at Red Rock Recording in Saylorsburg. The music was being put to tape in Pennsylvania, but, the musician remained in New Jersey. Eventually, Skye relocated to Easton, where she remained for a little over a year. The move was benificial to Skye, as she was closer to two of her band members, drummer John Sproat and piano/keyboardist June Thomas, both of whom are established musicians in the Easton area.

When it comes to musical style, Skye is an artist that seems to wear two different faces. When she performs with her band, her songs take on a heavier form, she can "rock out" so to speak. As a solo performer, her songs are a little more laid back. This kind of flexability is what allows Skye to appeal to a much wider audience. Her music goes over rather well with the adult crowd and the younger generation.

Most artists, when talking about performing live, claim that they're "taking their music to their fans." That's what concerts are all about. While Skye, like any other artist, plays the local scene on a regular basis, she came up with an original way to really take her music to the fans. In a suprise move, Skye announced her "Living Room Concert Series," which was a tour that was built around fans who requested a performance in their homes. During these shows, it would be her fans who would decide what songs they wanted to hear. This idea was more or less an artist being one on one with the people who buy her music.

While Skye considers herself to be a songwriter first, she also dabbles in other areas of creativity, such as writing fiction and drawing, a "hobby" she started a few years ago. There's no plans to take any of these side projects to a professional level because, as Skye states, "I'm really just begining to explore that whole field." While Skye does have thoughts of being published someday, it's music that will forever remain her first love. Sheryl Skye continues to walk down that road to success. Unfortunately, for the residents of Pennsylvania, that road led to Michigan, where Skye relocated to last week. "I found that the Lehigh Valley seemed to be lacking a little bit in some of the opportunities for original music," Skye commented, "So, I'm sort of getting away from the East Coast and finding some peace and quiet out in the Michigan country."

While Skye is once again a non-Pennsylvania resident, she'll continue to frequent our area on a regular basis, as well as some of the clubs around her new residence. She'll continue to follow her dreams until she reaches the end of that rainbow and whatever riches may be waiting for her. When she finds out if there's really a pot of gold there, I'm sure she'll be the first to let the rest of us know.

http://www.sskye.com