Rising Stars: Meet Francesca Castro

Today we’d like to introduce you to Francesca Castro.

Francesca, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. I started singing and playing guitar ever since I was six years old. I grew up in a musical family with my dad being a guitarist and my mom being a singer. One day I saw my mom performing and was like, “I want to do that too!” so they started having me perform as well. I started off with Pop and Rock and as I got older, I got into more Jazz, Funk, R&B, and Latin music. I immersed myself in anything music and played in orchestra and jazz band throughout high school (I even led my own all-female band). My EP called “Day by Day” was released in 2019 and featured four of my original songs. In 2021, I graduated from Berklee College of Music on a full scholarship and studied with well-known Jazz musicians including Terri Lyne Carrington, Terence Blanchard, and Peter Eldridge. Now I live in LA and continue to work in the music industry playing guitar for other well-known artists and recording in studio sessions. I also just landed my first big movie role playing guitar and acting!

Alright, 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?
To be honest, it has not been a smooth road at all. After graduating, it made me realize that I am now a professional musician living in the real world where nothing is perfect, and not everything will go as planned, and that’s okay. There have been many bumps in the road and I’m constantly learning from these day-to-day struggles. However, there are times where I have amazing opportunities that are all happening at once and I live for those moments. If there’s anything I’ve learned so far, it’s that I just have to keep going and all the hard work will pay off in the end.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a guitarist, singer, composer, and producer. I am proud of the music I create whether it’s performing live, recording in the studio, or writing and producing a song. I would say I’m different from others since I am versatile in a wide range of genres. My style is unique as it has some hints of Jazz mixed with groovy R&B and Pop influences. One thing I am known for is soloing on guitar and voice simultaneously. I am most proud of my song, “Cup of Tea” which has reached over 1 million streams on Spotify. Also, I am proud to be one of the few female guitar players in this industry and I would love to inspire more young female guitarists to be a part of the industry as well.

The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
What I have learned from the Covid-19 Crisis is that life is too short. Get out there, meet new people, and take advantage of the time you have being a musician. During the pandemic when we were all in isolation, it was impossible to play live in front of an audience. Live streaming performances online did not even compare to the energy of a crowd watching a live show. Also, playing with other musicians in the same space and getting to interact with each other in real-time is something that you cannot do online. Now I am grateful that things are mostly back to normal and I try not to take anything for granted.

Contact Info:

• Website: francescacastro.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/francesca.cayla/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@FrancescaCastro/featured

Image Credits
HTET