SISTER NYC Resident Vocalist Rhiannon

It was 1994, in the warehouses and deserts of the Southern California underground that Rhiannon discovered her passion for electronic music, first in the early jungle, hardcore, and house scenes. Bearing witness to a full spectrum of the creative and destructive potentials of dance culture, she resolved to become an organizer and take matters into her own hands.

Back in NYC, she did just that, first throwing events on her own and later becoming the Music Director of The Lunatarium. Together with a small group of inspired and ambitious urban visionaries, she helped turn a 20,000 sq. ft. raw riverfront warehouse into one of the highest-profile underground venues in the nation. Managing the space as well as producing the majority of events, the crew received a "Best US Dance Music Venue" nomination by the Dancestar American Dance Music Awards in 2003 as well as being featured in a VH1 documentary. At Luna, Rhiannon had the privilege of working and performing alongside multitudes of the nation's most well known and respected production companies, artists, and publications and hosting some of the hottest domestic and international talent.

In addition to singing with award-winning choirs for most of her life, Rhiannon has always held an interest in teaching herself to break the rules of vocal conformity by experimenting with improvisation and fusing together the many styles of music that she loves. Her influences include blues, jazz, classic rock, IDM, trip-hop, hip-hop, jungle, punk rock, industrial, experimental, and indigenous rhythms from around the world. Over the years, she has sung and performed in Spanish, Latin, Portuguese, Quechua, German, Italian, French, Hindi, Gaelic, and Czech. She is known for her ability to connect with the essence of a song and compliment it with vocals that both stand out and blend in to create a harmonious mix. That's why DJ Element dubbed her the "Vocal Chameleon." But despite this ability to reflect a multitude of styles and moods, her personal voice is never lost. Soulful and evocative, dark and dream-like yet energetic and uplifting, her personal style is inspired by the contradictions and bitter sweetness of life. She is currently focusing her talent on live PA sets, live vocals with DJs, studio work, and coaching other aspiring artists.

Rhiannon is also a drummer, poet, photographer, visual artist, consultant, and freelance journalist. Her music reviews have appeared in The New York Times, her poetry in The Los Angeles Times, her music on CBS, and her photography in publications and press kits. In Santa Barbara, she co-founded an art center for urban youth that used mural painting as an alternative form of gang mediation. In the South Bronx, she taught "Literacy Through the Arts" to elementary school students, helping them to find and value their voice and designing the prototype for a youth-run newsletter. She created the graffiti wall in the Busta Rhymes/M.O.P. video "Ante Up," as well as being featured in the video. And in Santa Cruz, Rhiannon was a staff music and arts writer for a local newspaper and a staff news reporter for radio station KZSC.

Currently Rhiannon is working on several independent music projects, writing, singing, and beginning to produce. Her track "12 Step Amethyst" [produced by Prima Dona] was released independently in the spring of 2004 as part of an art book and CD called "Lavender". She is a resident of Brooklyn, but if she were stuck on a desert island, the three things she would need to survive would be: a big blank book, a djembe, and a fat roll of duct tape.

For bookings and demos, contact: rhiannon@sisternyc.com

For more info on the Lunatarium, visit: www.dumboluna.com