Today we’d like to introduce you to Raquel Sutton.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
A Song in My Soul by Raquel Sutton
I have always had a song in my soul. My family has a background in singing and performing, and music was a part of our gatherings for as long as I can remember. As a young girl, I often went to circuses where our friends, The Flying Wallendas, were on the high wire. When a member of a local Symphony Orchestra heard me singing between acts at a circus when I was four years old, she turned to my parents and said: “Get that girl in voice lessons.” Another vivid memory is singing as a 7-year-old with my mother to a crowd of about 200 people at a church service. I faced the crowd with a mixture of excitement and stage fright. Excitement won the day. I never recovered; the applause was intoxicating. From the moment I took the mic and looked out at that crowd, I felt more excited and alive than ever before. The excitement, applause, and interaction with the crowd after the service sparked a passion and gave birth to a dream for singing and performing that has been with me ever since.
My mother helped keep the dream alive by involving me in singing with her, keeping me in dance lessons from my 3rd birthday into my teens, taking me to plays and symphonies, and enrolling me in the local Symphony School of Music. Piano recitals followed and soon, I added playing the piano to my singing. In 8th grade, I joined the school choir. Singing and performing at various events was my favorite part of school that year. The first time my music teacher heard me sing, she pulled me aside and, with a big smile on her face, said: “You have talent and a unique voice.” From that first encounter, she began encouraging me to audition for the spring musical. The idea of competing for a part left me feeling nervous, but I was excited to give it a shot. I worked hard between daily rehearsals and loved every minute of it. Other students came to school each day talking about how tired they were with all the practice. It was different for me; I was excited, not exhausted.
My childhood dream was feeling more like reality, and I knew this was what I really loved to do. Waiting for the decisions after final auditions was agony for me. When the judges announced their decisions, I suddenly learned what it was to have haters. Some of my fellow students frowned, some scowled and a couple cried. I was selected for the lead role by unanimous vote of the judges. The cheering and applause after that musical further rekindled the memories of singing with my mom as a 7-year-old and added fuel to my heartfelt passion for singing and performing. Music seemed to come naturally for me. There was still a song in my soul. There was no doubt; this was what I wanted to do more than anything. Shortly after the musical, I began writing and developing my own material.
From the time I was a young girl, piano lessons and practice were part of my life. During middle school, I started teaching myself chords on the piano visual, online music sheets. I practiced and learned to play and sing songs I liked from the radio. Some of my favorite singers at the time were Christina Aguilera, Selena and Alicia Keys. One of my favorite songs was “Fallin” by Alicia Keys. My after-school hobby became singing and learning new songs on piano. My interest and creativity kept emerging more and more, and I started making simple melodies on the keys with chord progressions and adding lyrics to them. Writing poetry and merging it with my melodies became a regular ritual. Earlier lessons in music theory helped me, but this was different. I heard melodies in my head that mingled with the song in my soul, and they flowed spontaneously out of me. I loved the whole process of songwriting, but I didn’t really identify myself as a “songwriter” at that early age. I was just doing what I loved to do.
In my teen years, I traveled with my family and friends to several countries like Jamaica, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Africa. This gave me more musical opportunities—and greater exposure to different genres. I learned lyrics to songs in Spanish and loved singing with groups and outdoor events in Mexico and Costa Rica. Exposure to reggae music in Jamaica rocked my world. Learning lyrics in different African dialects and singing with bands was among my most exhilarating experiences. I think my experience with music groups in those countries had a significant impact on my style today. Sometimes it feels like different genres are merging, or meshing, in my head and spontaneously flowing out together as I write or perform.
Opportunities to perform at home also increased during my teens. Throughout high school, I sang in youth bands, at weddings, church services, talent shows, and lots of open mic nights at clubs and coffee houses. In my twenties, I began writing about life experiences and turned them into songs. Songwriting became my outlet to release all my stories of love, happiness, pain, relationships, and searching for purpose. Many of my songs tell a story or convey a message from my personal life.
After moving to the Los Angeles area, I was given more opportunities to perform cover songs with live bands at open mic nights and other events. I loved performing but kept dreaming of the day when I would have the opportunity to put my own material out there. Several people in the industry told me I had some great songs and encouraged me to find a way to produce and release them; but I just didn’t know how to go about perfecting or finishing my art, who to trust or how to get it out. Although songwriting had always been my creative outlet, I didn’t know how to go about the process of sharing my songs. I always dreamed of making my childhood dream to become a music artist real, but the challenges, obstacles and setbacks often seemed overwhelming.
All the compliments on my voice in my youth fed my passion and inspired me to keep dreaming and working. It helped me believe that I had something special to share, but nobody gave me a roadmap to my destination—and nobody told me how rough the road would often be. I kept seizing opportunities as they came but I kept hitting a wall and couldn’t see a way around or over it. Discouragement dimmed, almost derailed, the dream. But somehow, I persevered. I will never forget the day that everything began to shift in my thinking. I was determined to go for broke and committed myself to stay the course, making whatever sacrifices necessary to see my dream become reality. I began visualizing myself not only as a singer but as a true music artist releasing my own material. A break came on a regular day after work. I was at home playing and singing one of the songs I had written about a relationship gone bad. On a whim, I recorded a video and sent a clip to a talented, creative friend in the industry. They didn’t even know that I was a singer, so I was very interested in seeing what they would say about the song. They responded immediately and were genuinely excited. They said that everyone who watched the clip was blown away.
Then it was my turn to be blown away. They said: “Raquel, the song is great. You have a unique, really amazing voice. The world needs to hear this. Get that album recorded ASAP!” That moment stands out to me because it was the moment I really started to believe my dream could become a reality. I finally dared to believe that I was destined to be not just a singer and songwriter but a music artist. At that moment, something came alive in me and I decided, even though I didn’t fully know how to do it, I was going to take my talent by the reins and make this happen. That led to the release of “Bad”—and lots of new opportunities.
Encouraged and more determined than ever, I started showing my material to friends and other musicians. Their feedback inspired me even more to find a way to share my music with the world. I started organizing all my music on voice memos and practicing daily. About two weeks later, a team member on a new job overheard me singing at lunch and asked if I was a singer. I told him I was but hadn’t released any music yet. I was feeling bold, so I played a voice memo of a live clip of “Bad”. He reacted with real excitement and said that he wanted to work with me. An opportunity had just fallen in my lap. I was thrilled to learn that he produced and recorded music and did DJ sets on the radio.
That day marked a milestone on my journey in pursuing my childhood dream to become a music artist. I didn’t know how it would all play out or if it would even lead me to the next level. I just decided to believe in my talent and take the leap to go further on my journey as an artist. Within a few weeks of meeting that producer friend, I pulled together a band. We rehearsed my first song and recorded it a few weeks later. Shortly after that recording, I shot my first music video and released my debut single “Bad.” I had finally found the next level.
About a month after my first release, I was invited by a podcast host to an artist interview and “Bad” was played on Dash Radio. After the radio interview, I was asked to feature with another artist and shot my second music video. We did it to a popular Spanish cover song called “Yo Te Extrañare.” More encouragement came after that project. When the original artist saw the video, she commented saying that it was “beautiful.” The momentum just kept building and I went into full-blown creative mode. I had never felt so excited and hopeful.
My co-worker produced my second solo song, “Stranger’s Eyes”, two months after my debut single. When it played on 101 radio, more opportunities followed. After a long and difficult journey, breakthroughs finally started coming more quickly than I had anticipated. The hope that developing my talent and pursuing my dream seemed to finally be taking me somewhere. Invitations increased and I began performing regularly with local DJ’s and other venues. My modeling gigs also increased along with the music performances. They help support my music addiction.
Covid slowed public performances down but I finally got to perform my own songs with a live audience in Los Angeles last April, just two months after releasing “Bad” and “Yo Te Extrañare”. It was a small event with about 150 people outside a restaurant, but definitely a memorable moment for me. I didn’t care where I was or how many people were there. I was able to share my own music with the world for the first time. It was exhilarating. Suddenly, I had become more than just a singer in a band. I wondered: Is this the beginning of living my childhood dream? Opportunities have continued coming and now I’m excited that this article will lead to more.
I have been fortunate to make great friends who engineer and help produce music with me in the RNB, Soul, Spanish and Reggaeton genres. I’m still networking and making great connections but after a long journey, I feel like I finally have that roadmap to my desired destination. I’m truly thankful for all those who have helped me. Their friendship, encouragement and support have made it possible for me to record about twenty songs and release eight on Spotify and all music platforms in the past two years. I’m still learning, networking, and evolving as an artist. But it’s exciting to see the dream I first had as a seven-year-old girl becoming reality. I never imagined that releasing one song would open so many doors. I’m doing what I love and I can’t wait to see where the journey leads from here. Maybe this article will be the stepping stone to the next level.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It has been challenging with some rough places in the road, but smooth portions, too. I was fortunate to have some good connections and friends who have given me guidance and helped me along the way. The rough places came when people who acted like friends had ulterior motives. They expected something in return for freely offered favors. Thankfully, good friends had my back and I had the courage to perform another day.
When I started, there was a lot I didn’t know about the industry so I had to work hard to learn as I was trying to get material together and learn the ropes at the same time. Working independently as an artist can be tough, but navigating to this point has been a great education. The journey has developed me and taught me valuable lessons—good and bad.
Learning how to network and build the right connections has been challenging. Trust is a big deal. Talent is all around you, but connecting with a group of talented people you can trust can be difficult—especially when you don‘t know them well. Taking calculated risks is just part of the journey.
I have several great people in my corner now, but I had to survive dealings with some shady ones to get here. It’s hard to read people. Sometimes the ones who seem the most sincere are just opportunists looking for a way to profit from your talent. I had to learn that some people are “all talk and no action.” Some of the promoters and producers who offer the most deliver the least. Truthfully, sometimes it feels like swimming with the sharks.
For a young artist, I think it is important to understand, early on, the process necessary to legally register and control rights to your music. That requires discretion and careful selectivity with whom you share and practice your unreleased material.
Finding talented, like-minded people is important. Paying out of pocket for help can drain you. It’s crucial to talk to people you feel are trustworthy to help you find the right plugs to work. There are people who are committed to help you, not just make money off you. It’s well worth it to be patient and take a little time to try to find people with integrity.
One of my biggest struggles was trying to find producers and musicians who were willing to let me be me; who would give advice but not try to control everything or change my music and vocal style.
There are lots of talented artists to work with in this city, but finding people you really vibe with personally and musically can be tough. The whole process of partnering—composing, producing, engineering, mixing, mastering, percentages on royalties, and deciding when, where and on which platforms to release—can be contentious and stressful. Conflicts are inevitable. Building and maintaining relationships in this atmosphere takes a lot of work. Finding a “tribe” really makes a difference in making and releasing quality music. It always takes a team to get the job done: “Teamwork makes the dream work.”
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As a solo music artist, I have written lyrics to and composed many songs in the last few years. Having a musical background in live performances, musicals, piano and dance recitals are among some of my best experiences. During the past couple of years, I have performed at various venues around the Los Angeles area. A lot of time has been spent working on beats and productions in my small studio at home and with different producers and bands in other studios.
I’m not sure what sets me apart from other artists. I imagine we have a lot in common. I have a background in dance and performance recitals from elementary and throughout high school. Performing, playing music and singing has been a major part of my life since I was an applause-loving three-year-old.
I guess not being limited to singing on a beat alone but making up melodies on piano and writing my own lyrics might set me apart from some. I write songs in both Spanish and English which may open more doors and create more versatility in style.
Although I’m open to working with various styles of music, my niche is mostly in RNB, soul, Spanish and reggaeton genres. I work hard and constantly strive to become more competent in my music. My drive to improve and my commitment to continually create new music keeps me focused on my goal.
For me, music and performing isn’t just about the lifestyle; I love creating and cannot be happy unless I’m doing it. Music is what I love. I even love the hard work and practice that might be exhausting to some.
I am most proud of the performances I have done in LA and Hollywood recently, where I felt the crowd come alive as I performed. There is nothing more amazing than that to me. I am also very proud of getting two of my songs played on the radio this past year! I’m excited about some of my recently completed work. I hope I will soon be able to say that I’m proud of some of it. This is early in the game for me. A lot more content and music is on the way!
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
For anyone pursuing a music dream or career, networking is the most important yet challenging part of the journey. I have gone through a few mentors who acted like they knew something about everything and thought they knew just what I needed to do. Fortunately, I found a few along the way who thought more and said less. Their advice has helped me move forward, protected me and prevented me from making some serious mistakes.
Although I don’t have one mentor in particular, I have been fortunate to have help from a few gifted and experienced individuals in the industry. They have graciously helped to guide me—both in the face of new opportunities and over rough spots in the road.
I think it is extremely important to find trusted mentors and solid people to work with. It is also necessary to work hard to make connections with other artists in the industry and collaborate with others when you can. Collaborating on songs and in performances has opened new doors for me. I have especially benefited in making new connections and with others who do the same genres as me.
For me, that has made it easier to find trustworthy people that have made it possible to get to the next level. Producers that have already seen you perform and know your music style can help get your music to the next level and, hopefully, help you make more and bigger connections.
After two years of networking, I have recently been blessed to start working with a couple of DJ’s and producers. I’m still learning a lot about marketing and promoting my music, but I’m really excited to see the hard work beginning to pay off. Finally, networking takes time, patience, hard work and dedication. It’s a process, but it’s a worthwhile one that can lead to the right connections. Take the time, gather good people around you, and you will be on your way. Go for it. Your dream is before you.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/raquelthesingerofficial/ https://www.instagram.com/raquel_rocki/?hl=en
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVi6jti6BXpYbY0SeIv_RRQ
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5KigepYSx6OKk1IPR6kBFl?si=PU5hKv39RNy4_wVahC9Ncw
