Lawrence.com

Jamie Benvenutti, sultry songstress and sporadic student, enjoys chocolate-covered cherry confectioneering, friendly gossiping, and Bottleneck smacking down

lawrence.com: You're an acoustic guitar-slinging singer-songwriter in Lawrence. How does one carve out a niche for themselves in this scene that's seemingly dominated by DJs and quirky indie bands? Surely not talent alone…. Spandex? Biting heads off of small animals? Unicycles?

Jamie: "The key is to be willing and ready to do pretty much anything. Which I am. In terms of singing styles, I mean.

Besides the whole singer-songwriter acoustic thing, I love to sing jazz a cappella. I also perform what I call 'college rock covers' with my band Fusion Theorem—you know, RHCP, Sublime, Beatles, and so on. I'll do blues, bluegrass—really anything.

The more you're willing to do, the more options you have to get paid for what you do. Although I did actually have a friend suggest to me once that he would pay good money to see me perform in red spandex. But that got us onto talking about Britney Spears, so we changed the subject. No unicycle. Still don't know how to ride the two-wheel variety. Any patient teachers out there who promise not to laugh?"

How do you prepare for a show? Do you recommend lots of practice, or just getting blackout drunk before you go on stage and hope for the best? Is stage fright ever an issue?

"I think excelling at anything takes a lot of practice. I sing anywhere and everywhere I go. Seriously. A friend of mine came up to me at Henry's and said 'Hey, I think I saw you yesterday at the corner of 9th and Mass. and you looked like you were singing to yourself.' Yep. I don't have a car, so I walk pretty much everywhere. No iPod. I'm my own radio.

I don't really get nervous anymore because singing is second nature, and I trust my voice completely. However, a few weeks ago performing with the band at Henry's I had a massive brain fart, and couldn't remember a good portion of the lyrics. I think it was because so many of my friends were in the audience. I'm not sure why it is, but it's much easier performing for strangers."

You auditioned for "American Idol," right? What sort of soul-draining exercise was that?

"I did audition for American Idol three years ago with my twin sister Mali. I don't think I would have done it of my own accord, but our parents paid for us to go to Memphis for the audition. Needless to say, we didn't make it past the first cut. In the 15 seconds we were given, we weren't noticeable—i.e. loud and crazy enough. But we still had a good time. I have thought about doing it again now that I know what to expect. I think I've still got three years eligibility."

Does Susan Boyle piss you off? Why or why not?

"Actually I've yet to see that particular infamous Youtube video. Though I think it’s about time that people realized talent can come from anywhere, it’s not just limited to the superficially beautiful.

Speaking of which, looking good seems to be the primary talent of most of today's pop singers. There are a few exceptions, but I think a good majority would sound like crap without all the bells and whistles and synthesizers. That's why whenever you go to a concert, there's more spectacle than song. If they had to stand on their voices alone, the audience would probably demand a refund."

Who are some of your influences? Do you count troubadour Congressman Dennis Moore amongst them?

"Don't know much about Dennis Moore's chops, but I like Jimmy Buffett, James Taylor, Janis Joplin, John Denver, Peter Paul and Mary, CCR, Dixie Chicks, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Bonnie Raitt, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Elvis, and many more. I don't try to sound like anyone in particular, I just try to sing a story. And every song has its own unique style."

What advice do you have for people pursuing music, either professionally or simply for wooing?

"Do it because you love it. Not because you want to emulate someone else, or you think the lifestyle is glamorous. Very few make it big in the industry, and most of those do because they have connections, not because of the quality of their voices.

But if you don't happen to be among that extremely fortunate lot, passion is something that will set you apart. People notice that and are sucked in by it, whether you've got the voice or not—look at William Hung!"