“I don’t have to work in the summer.”

-Joseph Vincent (when he found out he won a million dollars on The Ellen Show)

ISSUE: Winter 2010

On The Rise

Photo courtesy of Carmen Chan | www.carmen-chan.com

When Joseph Vincent first performed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, he was nervous. If you watch the Youtube clip of the episode, you can see Vincent stepping onstage, his brown eyes scanning the audience in wide-eyed wonder, as if he can’t believe this is all happening. For a guy who regularly sings in front of more than 90,776 viewers, it may be surprising that he’s not used to that kind of attention. But it’s probably because those audience members are usually watching him on a computer screen.

Vincent may have risen to fame in 2007 when he started posting videos of his acoustic versions of Top 40’s on the video-sharing site, but the crooner prefers live performances. “[When] people see me on Youtube, I sing, boom, it’s done,” he says. “Onstage, they see me talk and say, ‘oh, I didn’t realize you were so funny or quirky.’ I get to be random.”

Vincent won DeGeneres’ heart (and $10,000 from her online talent competition) last summer and has since been signed with Plan C Management. The Filipino American singer is currently working on nailing down his sound. He counts Jason Mraz as a major inspiration. “That guy is just insane live. I hope to be on that level someday,” he says.

The level that Vincent is on is already impressive considering the 21-year-old only started playing the guitar when he was 15 and has never taken a singing or guitar lesson in his life. And it’s not likely that he’ll use his winnings to start either. When he learned that he had won the competition, his first reaction was, “I don’t have to work in the summer.”

Ironically, with a new CD in the works and gigs lined up across the country, it seems like Vincent will be working plenty in the new year. — Janice Jann

More stories from Audrey Magazine’s Archives here.

Malea McGuinness’s star has been steadily rising, ever since her second single “Sweet Light” off her debut album True Believer hit number three on the adult contemporary top 40 music charts in 2007. We first featured the Korean-Irish-Scottish American in Audrey‘s Aug/Sep 2008 “Indie Music” issue. And now the singer-songwriter is out with her second CD, Close As Air.

Since then, she’s completely revamped her look as you can see below.

Malea McGuinness.

And it’s not just her look. Her sound’s been amped up as well. It’s a lot more rock, but there’s still that intimacy that makes Malea so addicting. Like in her song “Stars.” You see, Malea was born in Fort Hood, Texas, to a Irish Green Beret father and a Korean mother. After living two years in Seoul, Korea, Malea, then 5, and her younger sister were sent to live with her paternal grandfather and step-grandmother on Long Island. She says she wasn’t allowed to listen to much music or watch TV growing up.

You can hear that aching loneliness and isolation in the song: “There’s a wild and lonely child in the airport/Standing there with tears in her eyes.”

“That was me at 5,” says Malea, “waiting to be picked up my grandparents.”

Or like the title track which pays tribute to one of her close friends and personal musical mentors. “It’s about having faith in something you can’t necessarily see or touch — a higher calling, a higher being,” she says.

You’d never guess that Malea got her start studying opera at the prestigious Manhattan School of Music, before landing a featured role in the Broadway revival of The King and I. Her warm, sensual vocals has a hint of country twang, a nod to her inspirations ranging from Linda Ronstadt, Crystal Gayle, Stevie Nicks and Sheryl Crow to more R&B-flavored singers like Roberta Flack and Elton John. Here’s a taste:

And now we’re giving away five autographed copies of Malea’s new CD Close As Air. All you have to do is comment below by Friday, May 28, 11:59 pm, and we’ll pick five lucky winners!

Wanna hear more? Check out Malea at these hot spots in June:

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Breast Cancer Fund Raiser at Dakota Music Lounge, Santa Monica, CA, (310) 393-8200

8:00 PM

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Brixton, Redondo Beach, CA, (310) 406-1931 (She’s opening for Crash Test Dummies)

8:00 PM

Find out more at Malea’s official website.