- MoZella
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MoZella Birth name Maureen McDonald Born May 13, 1981 Origin Detroit, Michigan Genres Pop Years active 2006 - present Website http://www.mozellamusic.com MoZella (born Maureen McDonald, 1981[1] in Detroit, Michigan) is an American singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known for her raspy vocals and smooth, soul/pop sound.[2]
She has toured with Tyler Hilton, Dave Matthews Band, and Lifehouse. Her music has also been featured in television series, and her songs have been featured in national TV campaigns (“Amazed” in a Mercedes campaign in 2005 and "It's Magic" in a Verizon campaign in 2009).[3]
MoZella has released two full-length albums, I Will (Warner/Maverick, 2006) and Belle Isle (Universal/Motown, 2009), as well as three EPs, MoZella (Warner/Maverick, 2005), The Straits EP (Universal/Motown, 2009) and The Love EP (Universal/Motown, 2010).[4][5]
Contents
Early life
MoZella was born and raised in Livonia, Michigan, where she first got her start as a performer booking her own gigs in coffee houses at age 15.[6] Immediately after graduating from high school, she set out for Los Angeles to pursue a career in music. She took a day job decorating cakes, leaving her free to perform at coffee houses in the evenings. In 2002, MoZella was invited to England to write and record with Tim Saul, producer for Portishead. After she spent six months in Europe, she returned to Los Angeles when label interest was building.[7]
Music career
Warner/Maverick Records
MoZella signed to Madonna’s Maverick Records in July 2003. In 2004, when Maverick was absorbed into Warner Bros. Records most of their artists were dropped, however, MoZella was amongst a select few who survived the merger. In July 2005, she released her self-titled debut EP on Warner/Maverick Records. Then, in November 2006, she released her full-length debut I Will (produced by Jude Cole) on the same imprint. I Will was well received by fans and critics alike. Allmusic.com even called MoZella, “One of the best things to come out of pop music this year.”[8]
Universal/Motown Records
MoZella signed to Universal/Motown Records in July, 2008. She immediately enlisted multiple producers for her second album, including Marty James, Jimmy Harry, Tony Kanal, Sunny Levine, and Smidi. ‘The Straits EP’ was released on July 7, 2009 on Universal/Motown Records. On October 20, 2009, her album Belle Isle was released.[9]
Touring
Following her Warner/Maverick debut in 2006, MoZella toured the U.S. with Tyler Hilton, Dave Matthews Band, Lifehouse, Five for Fighting, Daniel Powter, Michelle Branch, and Colbie Caillat.[10]
Film and TV placement
Her songs have been featured in several television series including Pretty Little Liars, One Tree Hill, Las Vegas, How I Met Your Mother, Life Unexpected, Bones, Wildfire, Lipstick Jungle, Fringe (TV series), The City, Castle, Unnatural History, The Hills, Switched at Birth (TV series), Kate Plus 8, as well as many others. In addition, she wrote and recorded the song “Amazed,” which was used in a national Mercedes-Benz television commercial.[11][12] Two of her songs from ‘The Straits EP’, “Thank You” and “Let’s Stop calling It Love” were used in Nivea commercials.[13] Her song "Magic (Oh Oh Oh)" is featured in commercials for Verizon's "iDon't" Motorola Droid campaign. Her song “Let’s Stop calling It Love” was used on the TV Spot for the movie Did You Hear About The Morgans? and her song "This is Love" was featured on a JC Penney holiday TV advertisement. Most recently, her song "More of You" was featured on the season's premiere of Pretty Little Liars. Most recently, MoZella's cover of The Temptations' song Get Ready was featured in TNT's The Closer Season 7 promos. "Life Is" was used in an episode of NBC's Love Bites.
Discography
- MoZella (2005)
- I Will (2006)
- The Straits EP (2009)
- Belle Isle (2009)
- The Love EP (2010)
References
- ^ David Jeffries, "MoZella", AllMusicGuide
- ^ Brown, Marissa."MoZella: I Will". [1]. Retrieved 09/08/2009.
- ^ Katz, Larry (January 5, 2006). "Sleep No More! Waking Up To The Undiscovered CDs Of '06". [2]. Retrieved 01/05/2006.
- ^ Mitchell, Gail (August 7, 2009). "Billboard.biz Q&A: EMI Music Publishing's 'Big' Jon Platt". [3]. Retrieved 08/07/2009.
- ^ "MoZella Album Cover" (September 8, 2009). [4]. Retrieved 09/08/2009.
- ^ Adams, Lauren; Benaym, David; and Tidwell, Danny (Summer 2006). "Discovering MoZella". Movmnt Magazine. Pages 60-63.
- ^ Frazer, Bear (May/June 2007). "MoZella: Decorating Cake and Sharing It Too". Skope. Page 40.
- ^ Brown, Marissa."MoZella: I Will". [5]. Retrieved 09/08/2009.
- ^ "MoZella Album Wraps" (March 7, 2009). [6]. Retrieved 09/08/2009.
- ^ Adams, Lauren; Benaym, David; and Tidwell, Danny (Summer 2006). "Discovering MoZella". Movmnt Magazine. Pages 60-63.
- ^ Adams, Lauren; Benaym, David; and Tidwell, Danny (Summer 2006). "Discovering MoZella". Movmnt Magazine. Pages 60-63.
- ^ Katz, Larry (January 5, 2006). "Sleep No More! Waking Up To The Undiscovered CDs Of '06". [7]. Retrieved 01/05/2006.
- ^ "MoZella Songs In 2 Nivea Commercials" (July 8, 2009). [8]. Retrieved 09/08/2009.
Categories:- Living people
- 1982 births
- People from Detroit, Michigan
- Warner Bros. Records artists
- Motown artists
- American singer-songwriters
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