Hidden Gems: Meet Vi Jordan of Vocals By Vi

Today we’d like to introduce you to Vi Jordan.

Hi Vi, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Thank you for the opportunity to share my story!

My name is Ivana Cespedes. I was born in Pasadena, CA into a family that adored classical music. I began piano lessons at age five and, by nineteen, performed a full Saint-Saëns concerto with a local orchestra as my final milestone. After pouring so much of myself into the piano for so many years, I realized I needed something new to keep my love for music alive. That year, I joined a collegiate vocal jazz group—despite having no formal jazz background—and instantly fell in love with singing. Even though everything felt new, I quickly recognized how musically prepared, adaptable, and intuitively creative I was. I thought joining that group would be the best musical achievement of my life. Little did I know what was coming next!

After completing a Master’s in Nutrition Science (yes—despite everything, I never actually majored in music), I felt compelled to merge my academic passions with my artistic calling. I began working at a recording studio in Woodland Hills, dedicating every hour to studying the craft, observing singers and musicians, learning studio etiquette, making connections, and learning to advocate for myself. Coming from a second-generation Cuban-Mexican family where pursuing music wasn’t considered a stable path, I had to push past every instinct and cultural expectation to ask for the opportunities I truly wanted.

At the end of my time at the studio, I gathered the courage to make one big ask—something I never imagined would be possible. The engineer instantly picked up the phone, called Verdine White, and within months I found myself in a red suit filming a music video with members of Earth, Wind & Fire. That video went viral a year later and has now reached over 7 million views. It remains one of the proudest moments of my life, and sharing it with my family meant everything.

From there, my career took off in ways I never could have predicted. I’ve sung on major films (Encanto, Black Panther 2), TV shows (The Goldbergs, Hacks), commercials (T-Mobile), music videos (Allen Stone), and with major artists including The Weeknd and Darren Criss. I’ve appeared/sung on shows like I Can See Your Voice and Family Feud, performed in iconic venues such as the Hollywood Bowl and the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and sung for massive crowds at festivals like Coachella and Sick New World. I am also a roster artist at the renowned Vibrato Grill Jazz in Beverly Glen. Some of my all-time favorite experiences include performing with Danny Elfman in his large-scale concert productions across Southern California, and singing with a young Olivia Rodrigo on Disney Channel’s Bizaardvark. I’ve also been featured on Grammy-nominated recordings, including Scott Hoying’s “Rose Without the Thorns,” Carla Patullo’s ethereal Nomadica, and Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up.”

In every musical path I take, I find a new love and excitement for where this business will take me. I had the special opportunity to release my own EP in 2021, with covers of iconic songs and with some of the best musicians in the world. I have truly had the best time learning how to be Ivana. How to sing. How to play. How to be present. How to live as an artist. COVID years were truly a challenge to my self-doubt and thankfully, I learned instead how to self-record, start making content, and really became a regular demo singer at that point. I had one of the biggest opportunities of my career in my lowest moments. I was really struggling with a difficult marriage, being away from family and friends, no social connection and losing my faith in myself. I got a call from friend who asked me to audition for a live event with Disney. I was chosen to sing the theme song from their next big movie, “Wish”, in front a live audience of 400 Disney execs. It was my name they announced! I was so nervous, some people in the front must have seen me shaking in my boots, literally! That led to doing more demos and eventually singing the for the soundtrack/score for the movie over the next two years. My work with Disney continues, as I am now the featured lead singer on the latest cruise ship, Disney Destiny’s, theme song! You’ll be able to hear it at the Macy’s Day Parade on Nov 27!

I am beyond blessed to also be a mother to my beautiful daughter, Nikea Essence. She can already match pitch, stomp and clap on beat and likes to sing Mama’s warmups with her. It is so precious to now be able to share all of this with her. I currently teach voice and mentor young talent into the music industry through my vocal studio, Vocals By Vi and am continuing to reach into different areas of the music business.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
One of the most challenging long-term battles I ever faced was telling my Cuban father that I wanted to be a singer. There is truly nothing more terrifying than telling a machismo man you are not going to do what he wants you to do—LOL! My dad and I had been butting heads over control of my life for as long as I can remember. And like many Latino parents, especially immigrant or first-generation ones, he came from a world where stability was survival and creative careers were seen as risky luxuries, not legitimate futures. Music, in his eyes, was a hobby—beautiful, but not something to build a life on. When he came to see me playing with Verdine White, he broke down in tears and began to call me by my stage name, “Vi.” He told me he was proud of me and brought a huge Cuban dinner to celebrate! It was a full-circle moment. He supported me up until the day he died, in Nov 2022. I got to sing him into glory. It was very special.

COVID was so brutal. I was enduring a lot of personal pain during those years, from a difficult marriage, a loss of deep social connection, distance from my family, losing my relationship with my best friend and ultimately the death of my father, grandfather and grandmother. It seemed like the waves kept hitting and the storm never stopped. This all deeply challenged my commitment to music as a career. So many things were uncertain, music felt like it was just one of those things that might slip away and I might fall away into oblivion with it. I know many of my friend shared the same feelings. But it was a very lonely time.

We’ve been impressed with Vocals By Vi, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
When I’m not singing in the studio or on stage, I’m usually spending time mentoring new talent through my business, Vocals By Vi. When I teach, I am investing in my students from day 1. We talk about their lives, their routines, their ambitions, and their needs. We create goals and set a plan for how to get them on film sets, in recording studios and on stage. We spend a lot of time digging through the emotional pile of being an artist and learn to put those feelings to action steps towards their goals. Vocal health is a significant focus of my work; as a nutrition and health coach by trade, my focus on personal health and holistic care of the voice is a non-negotiable for training the voice to last and have strength.

I am particularly passionate about supporting young Latinos in the music business. As I described previously, there are strong cultural expectations for children of immigrant families, even if you are a generation or two removed. It is not often that parents or grandparents will be supportive of kids wanting to be a career musician (composer, engineer, artist), but there are so many of us out there! I want to be a champion for Latino voices in Los Angeles, so I invite any and all hispanics that have family members interested in being studio singers or musicians in general to give me a call! I want to be able to help give some direction to anybody asking, and if I don’t know the answer, I probably know somebody who does ¨̮

Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
I’m a big fan of the Huberman Lab for general wellness.
I love any books on resilience theories (because we all need that as artists!).

I always recommend musicians have forScore (you’ll need it for most gigs that send digital music) and Tenuto, a really awesome music theory app. Practice, practice, practice your sight reading! It’s an underrated skill that you absolutely should have some experience with as a studio singer, and it is often helpful for live settings as well (Melodia is a great classical resource for that, as well as this website https://www.lasightsinger.com/free-resources.

For teaching with the little ones, I always emphasize rhythm as a guiding force for the rest of their musical journey. I use fun apps like T-M-A-S-G, or Rhythm Cat to help them practice with actual music playing and fun visuals.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.vocalsbyvi.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vi_jordan24/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vijordan24
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@vocalsbyvi

Image Credits
I Can See Your Voice, Season 1, Ep 7 (in the tennis outfit)