Meet Molly Cottrell

Today we’d like to introduce you to Molly Cottrell.

Molly, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Since my very first memories were consciously formed, I have known what I was meant to do. In the same way that all children instinctively know that their legs are meant for walking, and so they struggle until they are able to, I have always known that I was meant to sing. Every single major and minor decision I’ve made regarding my life path has been in honor of that knowledge and goal.

The week of my college graduation, I packed up my car with everything I owned and drove out to LA without having a job or even an apartment lined up. Within four months, I was linked up with Grammy award-winning producer Kelvin Wooten and traveled back and forth from LA to Alabama for a few years recording an album with him. Kelvin was and continues to be one of the most influential and inspiring mentors in my life. The freedom I felt in the studio to create, experiment and express was complete and pure joy. To have the honor of working with a producer and musician of his caliber who has consistently worked with so many of my favorite artists was a dream to me.

At the time, I was being managed by the manager of one of my all-time favorite artists. I couldn’t believe I had this support and team behind me and things were moving along faster than I had imagined. I was told that the album I recorded with Kelvin was about to be taken to Capitol Records, I was in mock-interviews with a publicist to prepare, I had photoshoots and a music video shot for the project, and was taken along backstage to various Grammy events, as well as the Grammy awards themselves with my manager and sound engineer.

Then just a few months later, the rug was pulled out from underneath me. I was no longer with that manager and was left to pick up the pieces. This was the first time I really learned what happens to me personally/internally when I get knocked down hard: my fire burns even hotter and I fight with double the strength I ever knew I had. Not to say I wasn’t devastated because I was. Deeply. It forced me to really examine what I want and how to achieve it without the support I had before. I then put my own band together, kept writing, ran rehearsals, booked shows all over the city, played once a month, and payed every single member of my band with the money I made waitressing. My monthly shows actually cost me more money than my monthly rent at that time. Between paying for rehearsal spaces, and paying everyone fairly for their time and talent, I was left with little else.

After about a year of this, I met Kip Blackshire. Kip is a Grammy award-winning musician and toured with Prince as a keyboardist and backing vocalist. He has also done production for Dr. Dre and Eminem to name a few. Kip came to one of my shows with my band and had a serious talk with me about my goals in this industry and ultimately decided that he wanted to work with me. For the past three years, we have been in the trenches together of artist development, vocal mastery, and laying the foundation for a career with longevity and depth. We have recorded dozens of songs and I have picked up some of my own production skills. I am now co-producing my new album with him that will be released this year! It is called The Ripening and it is a true amalgamation of my blood, sweat, tears, the depths of the most difficult years of my life, combined with the most hopeful moments. A ripening of sorts. This album will feature Grammy-nominated songwriter and rapper Sixx John, as well as some of the most deeply talented musicians in the industry.

This journey has been rough. And there have been people who have asked me things like “How do you know when it’s time to give up?” My answer to that has always been: “The day I ask myself if it’s time to give up, is the day it would be time to give up. And that day is nowhere in sight”. If we can fail at something we don’t love…why on EARTH would we pursue anything less that what lights our soul on fire?

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been the exact opposite of a smooth road. When you’re really in the middle of it, it’s not the glamorous, romanticized story of being an artist. It’s sacrifice, instinct, grit, dedication, and constant evolution and self-development. I’ve been tested on levels I never could have imagined. I have learned things about this industry that shook me. I’ve also learned this: almost anyone is willing to struggle for 1-3 years for something they love. And that is no small feat, to be sure. But it’s those who are willing to put in the next 3, and the next 3, and the next, until they have forged the path to something greater. Diamonds are only created under extreme pressure.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I am an r&b singer, a songwriter, a producer, and a lover of all things beautiful. Another huge side to my artistry is aesthetics. Melody lines to me are brush strokes. Each line is a different shape, a different sized brush, a different depth of color. Visuals feed my soul.

Aside from my main passion of music, my artistry has bled out into other passions of mine including photography and graphic design. I am a freelance photographer under the company name Bang Bang Photography, and my work can be found on IG @bangbangphotoshoots. I have a deep love for artistic, abstract shoots, portraits, fashion editorials, and travel photography! I have currently been to 18 countries and counting and my most important traveling companion is my camera.

I am also the co-host of a podcast recently launched called SOS With Molly & Alissa. My dear friend Alissa Razzano and I started this platform as a way to honor what we call “SOS moments” in life where something big happens that shakes up your life entirely and forces you to reexamine what you need, want, and what makes you happy. We cover a wide array of topics each week so please tune in! Recommend to a friend! We’re on Apple Podcasts and all major platforms, as well as Instagram @thesospod

I also am the graphic designer for an incredibly beautiful jewelry brand called Lace By Tanaya. It’s founder, Tanaya Henry started her own business in NYC in 2009 and her pieces have been seen on Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Erykah Badu and more. I was a customer for years and would always wear her pieces in my shows, so when I got the opportunity to work with the brand, it was a dream. Tanaya has such unique vision and I’m beyond excited to be part of her creative team! Check out the Instagram @lacebytanaya

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
It’s hard to choose a single one, but I do know my favorite thing about my childhood without a doubt. Travel. The greatest gift my parents ever gave my brother and me was the gift of travel at a young age and all throughout our lives. We lived abroad in multiple different countries, experienced vastly different cultures, beliefs, languages, customs, climates, foods, and living conditions. My first trip overseas was to West Africa when I was 9. We spent time in Ghana, Niger, and the Ivory Coast. We lived in Norway when I was 11, China when I was 17, and by the time I was 17, they had taken me to 15 different countries.

It has been the greatest gift of my life and has shaped so much of how I see the world and my own place in it. My parents have been living abroad for the past five years in Senegal, Egypt, Jordan, and soon Argentina! Our family holidays are always an adventure and my parents continue to teach me that we all ALWAYS have the opportunity to change our life. To go somewhere new, to live differently, to open our minds, and to discover ourselves over and over again.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @mollycottrell
• Other: Other Instagram accts: @bangbangphotoshoots @thesospod

Image Credit:
Kip Blackshire, Andrew Dupuy

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