Photo contributed by Mandy Dembach
Founder- Champ Records
Indie Artist
Co-Producer San Diego Music Fest Rocker Alicia Champion founder of
Champ Records
and co-producer of
"The San Diego Music Fest" also won VH-1's "You Rock With Melissa Etheridge."
With heavy weights like Melissa Etheridge and Steven Tyler throwing their
support behind her find out what Alicia has planned for '06.
Alicia Champion Interview
TCZ: You've performed with some of the biggest names in the music industry like Melissa Etheridge, Pat Benatar and Sophie B. Hawkins. Is there any other female artist you were influenced by that you would someday like to perform with?
Alicia: Oh wow, there are too many to list. There are so many incredible female musicians that inspire and move me everyday that I dream to share the stage with; international superstars such as Beth Hart, Ani Difranco, The Indigo Girls, Heart, Tori Amos, Sarah McLachlan, and Alanis Morisette, to indies around the country such as Holly Figueroa, Jenn Grinels, Kelly Buchanan, Caroline Blind... just to name a few.
TCZ: Coming from a family that was so heavily involved in music, did you ever feel pressured to pursue a music career instead of the theatre?
Alicia: Actually no.. even though both my parents were trained musicians, neither of them really supported my pursuit of a music career initially. I think mostly because they could see just how difficult a professional life in the arts can be. I think even now, they occasionally wish I had gone into a more "practical" business field just for fundamental security reasons. But only occasionally.. they know it's absolutely necessary for me to be making music in my life.
TCZ: You've been composing and winning awards since a very young age, is there any one song that is very special to you? Why?
Alicia: Each song is special in its own ways. Like many songwriters, my music is inspired by and created from experiences and different landmarks in my life.. therefore, each song is its own memory, entity, being.. it's hard to say one means more than another.
TCZ: What spurred your decision to form Champ Records to release you're music on and than later on branching out to other artists?
Alicia: I started Champ Records when I was 17 years old, after I had been performing live in the San Francisco circuit for about 2 years. During that time, I was being courted by a particular Major record label who slowly more and more, tried to mold me into an "ideal" that I didn't like so much. (Sometimes when I think back on it all, I wonder why they even stuck around as long as they did to tell me everything I needed to do differently in order to be a success.) In a nutshell, they said that they liked my sound, but that I needed to decide if I wanted to be either a folk singer or a rock singer because I couldn't be both.
They said the industry needed me to conform to one genre only.. and oh ye ah... they said I needed to lose 15 pounds (that's real nice thing to tell a teenage girl, eh?). So I realized after all this, that there was no way I was going to be able to release a CD under this label, performing music that I felt truly reflected me. And I certainly didn't want my music career to be conditional to this record company's ideals on physical image.. So I said f*ck the man, if Ani Difranco can form her own indie label at 19, I sure as hell can form my own now. So I did. I recorded my first CD in my bedroom in San Francisco, created a logo for my lab el... and poof! there you have it :)
I decided to sign other artists to Champ Records much further down the road when I met other outstanding musicians who could not afford to record CDs on their own. My other artists, Kevin Wood and Elena, are two of the most breathtaking performers/ writers I have ever come across. It just broke my heart to think that these incredible artists could not get their music to the masses, simply because they couldn't cover the recording overhead. So.. I took them into my studio, produced and engineered their records, covering all recording costs. I couldn't be happier doing so either.. Their records are two of the most beautiful projects I have ever been a part of. It is a true honor to have been a part of their work.
TCZ: What is the biggest obstacle you face in today's music industry as an independent label owner and indie artist?
Alicia: Being heard. As indie artists and entrepreneurs, we don't have even a fraction of the money the Majors have to spend on advertising, radio and print PR, etc. It's almost impossible to get your music played on FM radio, even on the local stations, no matter how many fans you may have in your home city. So often, people come up to me and say, "You're amazing! How come you're not on the radio?" Well.. that's because we don't have $50,000+ a year to spend just on radio promotion like the Majors do. And even the mainstream print media can be so controlled and restricted to corporate news. If it wasn't for alternative press and websites like yours, there would be far less hope for us indies.
TCZ: Tell us about the San Diego Indie Music Fest. How did you become involved in it and what are your future goals for the fest?
Alicia: For years I had dreamed of putting together an extravagant indie music event, be it a large cross-country tour or a festival. These aspirations came out of my time at The Berklee College of Music, when I ran indie music nights at a Boston nightclub, Emily's. I became so in love with the outstanding indie music I was seeing week after week, that I dreamed of educating the world on a large scale, about the phenomenal independent music that is being made by fantastic artists and bands everywhere - bands that the general public may never hear of, simply because they're not on a Major label with Major bucks.
So I fantasized.. knowing what I wanted to do, but also knowing I couldn't do it alone. It wasn't until after I moved to Southern California and met the West Coast's indie freedom fighter, Say It Records owner and founder, Danielle LoPresti, that I realized, "Wow, I think we can do this together."
So Danielle and I met and talked at great length, and discovered that we have very similar goals and aspirations for an Indie music revolution. We co-produced a large Women's rock concert in March of 2004 in San Diego which went over fantastically. With the success of that concert, we knew we had the combined drive, passion, resources, and work ethic to pull off producing a full-scale indie music festival. It had never been done before in California and we knew that we had to be the ones to do this. I don't know that there's anyone out there who believes in the Indie revolution more than Danielle and I.
It's from that belief and that passion that Champ Records, and Danielle's label, Say It Records, gave birth to the 1st annual San Diego Indie Music Fest - California's first and only independent music festival.
TCZ: You're a big supporter of indie music and promoting independent artists. Have you ever considered putting together a Women of Rock Tour consisting of indie artists only? Something like an all female Warped Tour?
Alicia: I would love to put together a tour like that. I have toured on a small-scale with other female bands and will do so again in the future. It would be fantastic to produce an indie tour at the same scale as The Warped Tour, but alas.. we are indie and have to face the $$ issue again. But I do believe we can find the sponsors for it. It's all about teamwork, baby!
TCZ: After winning VH1's "You Rock With Melissa Etheridge" did you see a significant increase in you're fan base? Have you covered any of Melissa's songs?
Alicia: There was a definite buzz right after the show aired which I am ever grateful for. But in all honesty, that died down after a coupla' months. There are still some folks who come up to me occasionally and ask if I'm "that girl from TV with Melissa.." And that too is really cute, and I must say it feels neat.
I've actually been covering Melissa's music for a very long time as she's been a huge inspiration to me since I was a child. Since the VH1 show, I've been covering "Breathe" as to make that connection, but I've also covered "Like The Way I Do," "Your Little Secret," "Come To My Window," "Bring Me Some Water," and her rendition of Joan Armatrading's "The Weakness In Me."
TCZ: Can you tell us about your upcoming album and how it compares to you're previous releases?
Alicia: The record I'm currently working on (entitled "Pillar") will be my third full-length album, and the sixth Champ Records release, which in itself is pretty exciting :)
"Pillar" is definitely the most mature work I have done and it is growth that a listener can clearly define from my first releases, as those were such young works. What's neat about this record, is that it encompasses many genres of music.. something that I feel is totally indie.
It's hard rock, it's pop, it's soulful.. it's all the flavors I want to be. I'm proud of the production.. it's bigger than my first two al bums... it's nice. I'm excited for it. I know my fans are too, as this record is long overdue. All the songs I've been singing live for the past year have been off this CD which has not yet been released.
TCZ: What is the one thing you want fans to know about you today?
Alicia: November 5, 2005 - San Diego Indie Music Fest 2005!! :)
TCZ: Will you be touring in '06 at all?
Alicia: Yes, up and down the West and East Coasts.
TCZ: Any music videos on the horizon?
Alicia: Absolutely :)
TCZ: Is there anything we haven't touched on that you would like to share?
Alicia: Well since you asked... Danielle LoPresti and I are both currently without managers/ agents and are looking for some good references :)