Elle Varner

by jacksonista  |  November 13, 2011 [Edit]

Gabrielle Shellise Varner (born February 12, 1989), simply known as Elle Varner is an American recording artist.

Varner is of Cape Verdean decent and the daughter of Mikelyn Roderick and Jimmy Varner, songwriters and publishers. Roderick was a backup vocalist for Barry White; and has written and recorded with Tevin Campbell and Rahsaan Patterson. Roderick released an album on the Dome label in 2007. Jimmy Varner is a songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist; who has collaborated with Gerald Alston, Kool & the Gang, and Will Downing.

Elle Varner spent most of her childhood sleeping on studio couches, running around green rooms, and watching her parents struggle to make a name in the industry. With music running through her veins, Varner was singing as soon as she could speak, playing the flute at 6 and the piano at 9. But it wasn't until her attendance at AGC (Amazing Grace Conservatory) that her ear for harmony, melody and complex rhythm truly developed. Due to this Varner grew up around music: in recording studios and backstage at her parents concert performances. At age six she began to play musical instruments, beginning with the flute, and later she moved on to piano and guitar. She attended several music programs including actress Wendy Raquel Robinson's Amazing Grace Conservatory starting at age 11 and Alexander Hamilton High School's Academy of Music's Vocal Jazz Group.

At age 16, Varner picked up the guitar for the first time. Frustrated that she wasn't instantly as good as Hendrix, she dropped the guitar and became a part of Alexander Hamilton High School's Academy of Music's Vocal Jazz Group. Once there, she learned about the complexity of the voice, jazz music and talented jazz artists like Ella Fitzgerald. Varner was surprised to discover that she had been chosen to be a part of The Grammy in the Schools Mentoring Program. Through this program she was taken weekly to the Fox Studio, where she met with mentor Kelly Burgos, and President of Fox Music, Robert Kraft. In October 2009 she signed with MBK/J-RCA Records along with a co-publishing agreement with Sony Music. After honing her skills even further, Varner became one of the first artists featured in BET’s Music Matters campaign for 2010.

Varner's debut single "Only Wanna Give It to You" was released on August 6, 2011. The song, which serves as the lead single from her debut studio album Perfectly Imperfect (2012), features American rapper J. Cole. The song peaked at #20 on the US Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In October 2011, she was listed as one of TheBoomBox's '15 Artists to Watch' and was one of the artists featured in BET's Music Matters campaign. On October 7, 2011, RCA Music Group announced it was disbanding J Records along with Arista Records and Jive Records. With the shutdown, Varner (and all other artists previously signed to these three labels) will release her future material on RCA Records.

In preparation for her debut studio album, Varner released a mixtape on January 23, 2012, titled Conversational Lush as promotion towards her debut. The second single from Varner's debut album "Refill" was released to iTunes January 31, 2012, and debuted at #78 on the US Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. On February 11, 2012, Varner and The Roots gave a performance dedicated to Whitney Houston, for the Roots Pre-Grammy Jam Session at the House of Blues in Los Angeles. When asked in a interview what is to be expected from her debut, Varner said in a statement: “a lot of color, a lot of range. There’s fun songs, emotional songs, deep songs, everything you could think about is on that album." Elle Varner's debut album was announced to be released on August 7, 2012.

(Last edited by itemvn)