Moniquea:
was born in Gary, Indiana and raised in Pasadena, California. She vividly recalls watching her mother rehearse as a lead singer alongside other relatives and friends in the Pasadena-branded group The Roses. As a youth, she was exposed to countless volumes of 70’s soul and the electrified sounds of 80’s R&B, which shaped her sound immeasurably. Today, she counts a wide range of artists as influences, from Deniece Williams and Etta James to Stevie Nicks. Her voice carries two distinct characteristics that play into each other perfectly – A “so-retro-it’s-actually-new” twang that harks back to Evelyn “Champagne” King; the second, a jazzy vibrato that easily evokes the tender, smoky voice of Erykah Badu or even Billie Holiday. Moniquea is vocally equipped to sing contemporary R&B/soul, go the Amy Winehouse route, or bring back the synthy, dance-friendly sound of 80’s boogie funk – her current musical direction.
No stranger to the spotlight, Moniquea solidified her local presence by singing at Pasadena’s world-famous Rose Bowl at only 15 years old. Quickly moving past hometown boundaries, she went on to open for Westside Connection during the height of their success, and has since performed at nearly every reputable venue in LA – The Whisky, The Roxy, Viper Room, Cinespace, and more. She has also twice performed at the annual Taste Of Soul festival, and the Kingfest at Leimert Park, both drawing crowds in the thousands.
After independently releasing her self-titled debut in 2011, Moniquea joined forces with the Crown City Entertainment label to bring her vision of the revamped 80’s sound to life.
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