Biography
Welcome to a journey through a woman's life as an artist. This is the life of Sharon Brooks, and indeed a journey it has been. From representing her country as Miss Barbados, to working in studio with Motown legend Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Sharon Brooks continues to be one of the fastest growing underground names in Montreal. Her career began at 16 working as a back vocalist with the popular Caribbean band Spice & Company. After touring with them for nine months (while juggling studies to complete college), she went on to tour with John King & Jegna and it was with this group that she gained the experiences of working with acts like Beres Hammond, Machael Montano, The Mighty Sparrow and more.
Juggling her music and modeling, Sharon joined her designer Wayne Smith to win The National Ambassador titles in 1995, and then went on to represent her country as Miss Barbados in the 1995 Miss Carival Competition in St. Vincent.
In 98 Sharon moved to Toronto, Canada where she was fortunate to immediately work as a lead vocalist with “Collective Selective” a Jazz, R&B group led by Henry Heillig, one of Toronto’s leading jazz/blues musicians. She also began work as a session singer, recording commercials and vocals for other artists. This led to her fronting an R&B cover band “Motor City” which eventually led her to living and working in Beijing, China. It was her life in China which inspired her first album “A Taste of Life”.
Returning to Toronto, Sharon recruited the services of well known producer and musician Andrew Craig, as well as Henry Heillig to realise her dream. Armed with a cart load of Toronto’s best musicians, including Rich Brown, Adrian Eccleston, Mark McClean, Neil Brathwaite and more, “A Taste of Life” was brought to form. The album is indeed a reflective masterpiece, encompassing Sharon’s love of Jazz, Blues, R&B, World Music and Gospel. For more information, or to purchase the album visit http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/brookssharon.
Sharon Brooks has since moved to Montreal and embedded herself within the industry, becoming one of Montreal's most sought after vocalists, performer and writer. Her endeavors led her to DNA Productions in Montreal, where she began co-writing her second album with producer David A Sturton. Together the two completed her sophomore EP “Defining Me”, which also includes collaborations with James DeSalvio of Bran Van 3000, Liquid also of Bran Van, Ghislain Brind Amour(Planet Studios, Montreal), Jude Prophet & Patrice Agboutu (All Good Music), and Jean Leloup(LeClerc).
One of her motto's - more done in meticulous mass! This is exemplified as Sharon’s most recent addition to the line up of Canadian Multi-Musician performing group KALMUNITY Vibes Collective. In the summer of 2005, Sharon’s gospel track "Follow You" from her first album was selected for the Montreal Mass Choir's debut DVD recording. She also had the honor of performing with the choir at The Metropolis, one of Montreal's largest and well known venues. Her charisma and on stage presence led her to performing at a hosts of festivals including Barbados On The Water Festival in Toronto with The Everything Irie Jazz Ensemble, Musique Du Monde Festival, Montreal, The Funk N Soul Festival, Montreal and Diverscite, Montreal performing alongside Crystal Waters.
Sharon has also performed as a back vocalist for European sensation and UMA Winner Omar and grammy nominated pop superstar Martha Wash, Deborah Cox and Jonas. Her track Outside & Inside produced by G&F Productions, was recently picked up for the My Jazzy Soul compilation released in the US. She was also added to the Press Play and Walk Away Compilation where her track Secrets is becoming increasingly popular on Southern US stations.
Sharon is currently wrapping up a tour of Morocco and will be completing her third album upon returning to Montreal. The 2009 release is a distinctive step away from the softer side of Sharon, and already the more rock/funk side of this powerhouse artist is beginning to win over, new fans worldwide.
You can find her music anywhere online, including, Itunes, Facebook, Myspace, Reverbnation, and a host of other music providers.
Instrumentation
Sharon Brooks - Lead Vocals
Steve Bucci - Drums
James Challenger - Bass
Kepler Jean-Baptiste - Keys/Vocoder & Sounds
Wayne Tennant - Vocals
Odessa Thornhill - Vocals
Cecile Doo-Kingue - Guitar
Malika Tirolien _ Vocals
Discography
Discography:
2001 - A Taste Of Life
2005 - Defining Me (EP)
Movie Soundtrack:
Silent Men
Online tracks:
www.reverbnation.com/sharon
www.myspace.com/sharonbrooks
www.cdbaby.com/brookssharon
www.audiostreet.net/sharonbrooks
Sharon's voice can also be heard on the following:
The Voodoo Monx (The Voodoo Monx)
The Free Oxygen Band (FUNKOSYNTHESIS)
La Confrerie
Michelle Sweeney (This Time)…
and so many more…
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