“When I get older, I want to be able to look back on my career and be proud. I don’t want to have any regrets, and I want to know that I worked my hardest to get to where I am. That is my definition of success, and I will work as hard as I have to to achieve that.” @kaitlynbarbee

GETTING TO KNOW KAITLYN BARBEE
by Jacqueline Jax

I have always really had a love for music….
When I was three I would put on Spice Girls concerts for my family. I then began doing little plays at church and singing in the church choir with my Grandma. I think having my Grandma always wanting me to be involved in that kind of stuff made me realize how much I really enjoyed it. I really cannot remember when I first started writing my own songs. I do remember thinking that they were these huge hits though, but looking back now that’s pretty comical. My senior year of high school, I wrote a song called “Sweet Addiction”, which is available on iTunes. My mom loved it, like she claimed she loved every other one of my songs, and told me to play it in the school’s talent show, which I ended up winning. When everyone started commenting on how catchy it was that’s when I realized I wanted to do this for the rest of my life. I wanted to be able to write things that truly captivate an audience and keep them wanting more. So, that’s when my mom and I found Real II Reel Productions, which brought us to producers Jaunty Meek, and eventually Randy Lynch. Being able to go into the studio and let my heart poor out is the most rewarding thing I could possibly ask for.

Success…
When I get older, I want to be able to look back on my career and be proud. I don’t want to have any regrets, and I want to know that I worked my hardest to get to where I am. I have been having a difficult time deciding whether I want to move to Nashville for my music, or move to New York City for musical theatre, my current major at Oakland University. I am a firm believer that God will point me in the right direction, and that I will go with no regrets about leaving the other choice behind. That is my definition of success, and I will work as hard as I have to in order to achieve that.

Fire..
My whole album “Blue”, which is coming out later this summer, is pretty much about the same guy, as much as I hate to admit so. We were friends for a long time, but I always wanted something more. I would watch him move on to other girls, and I somehow had this gut feeling that they were not for him, but I was. It’s crazy how your heart can completely drive your mind into a certain direction and keep it stuck there for years. Right before I started writing “Fire”, I had told him how I felt about him. He told me he didn’t feel the same way, and then began to ask himself why. It made me confused, but at the same time, full of hope. Hope that maybe he will realize there is a mutual feeling there. So, I wrote about half of the song, and then he started dating someone else. I was infuriated. My heart felt so incredibly heavy, so I left it. When they broke up, he and I were still very close, and I felt that hope again, so I finished the song. “Fire” is not about a beautiful love story, or two people who absolutely know this will work, but it’s about hope. Now when I play this song, my heart fills not with hope that a relationship will form, but hope that this song lets others feel the way I did. Eventually, he and I did “Start a fire”, and I ended up once again being the one burned, but this song is still so important to me.
https://www.reverbnation.com/kaitlynbarbee4/song/20762996-fire-snippet
Puchase on Itunes ~ https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/fire-single/id999129371

Hartland Michigan..
I was born in Southeastern Michigan, and lived there for ten years until we moved to Oviedo, Florida. I became very involved in the school choir in middle school, and that’s where I started theater and writing music. I think my move to Florida is really where my passion began. I surrounded myself with people who loved music and theater as much as I did. Five years later, we moved to Hartland Michigan. There’s not much to do at all in Hartland, so it was a big change for me, and one I did not enjoy. My high school years we highly involved in the school choir and theater. Whenever we had free time during choir class, I would go into a room with a piano and write. All of us songwriters would perform for each other in class. To this day, we all support each other’s music, which is really something great to have. We all perform in different coffee shops across the town. My friends and I live for the summer around here. We love going to theme parks, carnivals, and of course anywhere with water.

Social media…
I just love the idea of being able to talk to everyone across the country at the touch of a button. It’s a great way to get your music all across the world, and so easy. I have a lot of friends out of state, so it’s a great way to stay connected. I think the most challenging aspect of it all is finding new ways to connect with new people, which I’m still trying to get the gist of. It’s so hard to gain followers and likes on Twitter and Facebook, and I’m continuously trying to find new ways to do so. Twitter is great for finding other artists, which I’m really starting to appreciate. It is so easy to just send them a short little message, or just reply to their previous tweet!

I really love Facebook…
I really love Facebook. You can post everything on there, comment on anything you want, and private message people. I think that Facebook is the best social media site to find the most information on people, and to feel closer to them. I also love how when you share something, it doesn’t have to be a certain word count!! I also think with having a music page on Facebook, it is easier to invite people to like your page.

My First Time…
All that can come to mind is when I did The Wizard of Oz in 7th grade. I played Dorothy Gale, and it was the first time that I thought the show had depended on me. At first, I was completely obnoxious making sure everything was perfect. I did not like to depend on others to make the show go on. I guess that showed how much I cared at such a young age. The amount of fun I had whenever I would walk up on stage is indescribable. It’s a different kind of “fun” than riding a roller coaster or seeing a movie. It was “fun” to me because at this point, we have put in all of this work, and now we get to show it off, and what an awesome feeling. I still feel the same way when I’m in a show at college, or doing a gig in a little coffee shop. When people come to see your hard work, it is such a motivation to keep on doing what you love.

BIO:
Kaitlyn is a 21 year old singer/songwriter from Hartland, Michigan. She is currently working with III Worlds Entertainment and Death By Lipstick Productions. Along with working on her music, Kaitlyn is currently a Senior at Oakland University, where she is working towards her BFA in Musical Theatre.

When she was just 3 years old, Kaitlyn began performing in front of her family and friends. By age 10, she had begun writing songs to express her feelings and thoughts. Her senior year at Hartland High School, Kaitlyn entered the talent competition with her original song “Sweet Addiction”, where she won the first place title. She then began recording her songs at Real II Reel Productions, which led her to Jaunty Meek (Death By Lipstick), and Randy Lynch (III Worlds).

Kaitlyn placed 3rd in the 2011 Talent Search in Van Buren Township. In 2012 she was chosen to perform The Nation Anthem at The Palace of Auburn Hills for the State High School Wrestling Championship. Later that year, Kaitlyn won the 1st place title and People’s Choice Award in Livingston County’s annual Livingston Sensation Singing Competition with “Sweet Addiction”. The song also gained her a win in 2013, when she competed in Walt Disney World’s Night of Stars talent competition.
Kaitlyn is incredibly thankful for the constant support of her family, friends, and people who have helped along the way in the beginning of her music career. She looks forward to continue working with Randy and Jaunty, and is thankful to be given the opportunity to do what she loves.

Listen in Live for her interview: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/avaliveradio/2015/07/16/episode-244-ava-live-radio-behind-the-music-with-jacqueline-jax