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In a Conversation with Ingrid |
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It
was truly a blessing for me to
interview such a phenomenal woman of
music, Sheri Hauck. There are
some that have been graced with the
opportunity to come to know Sheri,
whether personally or
professionally. It is my hope that
this interview will bring many more
to the table of grace by introducing
the Professional Sheri with a
Personal touch. Upon meeting her to
conduct our interview, it wasn’t
hard to make a connection with the
powerful, firm, private yet
personable person. She didn’t
hesitate to find common ground with
me from one professional woman to
another. In this day and time and
especially in the entertainment
industry, that was very refreshing
to me. We naturally came into
agreement to find ways to help
empower and uplift each other to
make things happen to change our
youth and the world for the better.
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I hope
you will be just as encouraged as I
was at the close of our conversation
that God is truly raising up women
who don’t mind taking charge,
however balance the power and
importance of being a woman. Meet
Sheri Hauck:
The youngest of 8 children, Sheri
was born in St. Louis, Missouri and
moved to Milwaukee, WI with her
siblings when her mother became the
Vocal Instructor at the Wisconsin
Conservatory of Music (One of the
most prominent schools in music
education). At a young age, Sheri
and her siblings already had a
thirsting for the stage. Sheri, her
3 sisters, and their niece formed a
singing group-appropriately named
after their mother "Jessie Hauck".
The group began taking Milwaukee by
storm; placing in talent shows,
performing for events and opening
for major acts. |
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.:read more: |
After the untimely and
tragic death of their mother, the singing group moved to Nashville,
TN-where Sheri later became a solo artist and continued writing and
performing. As a soloist, she's opened up for Major acts like
Destiny's Child and Donell Jones. Sheri has worked as a writer and
vocal arranger with the music industries chart topping producers and
songwriters Carlos "6 July" Broady (Biggie, Puffy & Mase, India Irie),
Mike Jordan (Mary J. Blige, Carl Thomas, Debra Cox ), Jack Knight
(Puffy, Faith Evens, Keyshia Cole), Eric Seats (Missy Elliot,
Aaliyah, Timbaland), D-Moet (Nas, Foxxy Brown, *Hip Hop Pioneer*)
and most currently partnering with Heinekin The Hitmaka ( G-Unit
South) and Dan Mitchell (Award-winning Songwriter) the list
continues to grow.
Taking notes from the best in the business, she
spent the last 2 years touring the world as a background
singer/dancer for Tamia, Angie Stone, performed and have done live
recordings with Kelly Price, and have done demo work with the King
of R&B himself, Mr. Robert Kelly. This working relationship landed
her the opportunity to record "Havin' A Baby" with Mr. Kelly on his
latest hit album DOUBLE UP. Sheri recently had the pleasure of
working on a project with Young Buck in Nashville. Inspired by the
strength and entrepreneurial spirit in her peers Tamia and hit
producer and writer Shep Crawford, she is preparing to launch her
own production company TWELVE26 Music Co, and is currently writing
for major projects with her writing team 3's Company consisting of
herself, writer/producer Tony Hinton, and writer/producer Mario
Moore. Now that she is recording her new project, she is more ready
than ever to share her talents with the masses!
Ingrid: Tell me something new and fresh that
Center Stage can bring to light about you?
Sheri: I think a really important factor is the
understanding that the business I am in isn’t a singing business.
It’s about the art of music. It’s always important to keep the
artistry in tact and stay true as musicians. When you are in an
industry that is run by numbers, supply and demand, understanding
and knowing the business side is important. Before, I had people
handle the business side for me and I focused on being the artist.
However, now I have learned you have to handle the business side
while staying true to the artist end as well. My background is jazz,
and I have always been a business person. I just had people in place
to keep the machine oiled. The new thing is people will now see me
in the business meetings. They will see a business Sheri as well as
an artist.
Ingrid: What inspired you to become the
artist/writer you are today?
Sheri: Life inspires me. I’ve been through a lot
in my young age. Three deaths in my immediate family, and I still
have a strong supportive family that allows me to mold my gift.
Whether it is my story or not, it’s still “real”. I have been
through enough that I try to reach the heart through my own
experiences whether it’s been heart break or the loss of a loved
one. I want to touch people that way.
Ingrid: What drives you everyday when you wake
up to do what you do?
Sheri: Definitely Jehovah God first, family, and
then I think it’s really important to pray about being blessed with
talent. One of the things that drive me to want to succeed is
because we have been given a talent to use. Whether it is painting
or carpentry in the Bible, people provided for themselves through
their talents. My way of showing reverence and appreciation to God
for my talents is to go about using it to provide for me and my
family. My mother was a singer with a well-known jazz musician. She
gave up her opportunity to pursue her stardom so that she could
raise us. She waited until her youngest, me, was old enough to
understand the level of commitment and travel that it took to
succeed in this business. Once she did that and began to record her
first album, she was killed in a car accident.
Ingrid: Tell me something about you
that you want young girls to know to be
inspired stay true to self and follow
their dreams?
Sheri: I think it’s important for
young women to understand individuality.
If you are not fortunate to have both
parents in the home, you have to seek
knowledge and cling to someone in the
home that is in that roll-whether it is
a mom or father only or even a
grandparent. You have to have a strong
sense of spirituality. In the bible God,
teaches that He is the one teaching you
to benefit yourself. Without that
teaching, you can try to do it yourself,
but you will just keep bumping your
head. Who can know us better than God?
You don’t find it in a man, the teacher
in school or even your parents. You find
it first in God. I have overcome so many
personal tragedies. I think it’s
important to embrace and to remain true
to the emotional beings we were created
to be. |
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A lot of times
it is so easy for us to allow people to say,
“You are making that bigger than it is” or “You
are being too emotional”. As women, we have been
given the emotional ability to have nurturing
power and to be resilient in that. That’s why we
are able to bounce back from adversity. We were
created to be the emotional stability for our
mates, kids, our homes and more. It’s not that
men don’t have the emotional capacity. We were
created to uplift our homes. That’s the beauty
of that resilience. If we weren’t emotional, we
would break every time something happens. I am
really big on that. We tend to be put down for
being emotional, but it’s our emotion that
allows us to multitask. It’s not always about
the “bottom line” with everything. If you always
take that route on everything, you miss the
beauty in between experiences. You’re not weak
because you have the capacity to cry. The
strength comes when you are able to keep going
and uplift others around you because of your
emotional power as a woman.
Ingrid: What
was it like working with Tamia?
Sheri: Oh wow, working with Tamia is
encouraging, fun and inspirational. She
strengthens me as being a strong family oriented
woman and an entrepreneur spirit. She doesn’t
hesitate to impart knowledge on the business
side. She reminds me of myself in some ways. She
doesn’t always let people know the inner
workings of her. It’s been a blessing to me to
come to truly know her and work with her. I’ve
learned so much about being a woman and a
performer.
Ingrid: What was it like working with R Kelly?
Sheri: I call Mr. Kelly “Papa”. I do that not in
the frame of reference like “papa daddy”, it’s
because Mr. Kelly is so sweet. He takes care of
you. For example, I was having dinner at his
house and although he was being served his
plate, he got up and served me my plate and
asked me what I wanted to drink and cleared my
plate following. If we all went out, he would
drive, come open the door, take my purse as I
was getting out to help ensure I got out safety.
I call him Papa because he is very protective
and such a gentleman. He really has respect for
others. The man is a beast in music/writing. He
is on call for music 24 hours. No joke. He will
come in any hour and record a hit. That is how
much of a beast he is in the studio. He has such
a way of showing you respect. He would tell me
he admired me as an artist. That’s why I call
him my mentor. He took me under his wing and
allowed me to see what he does. You can’t pay
for something like that. It’s the same with Tamia. To be able to meat the family and see the
other side as well, it’s humbling to work for
them. They don’t put you beneath them like “I’m
the star”. They truly respect you and uplift
you. When I got my job to sing background for
Tamia, when she came in although I am a
professional, once she starts singing she can
lull you into a trance. You start skipping words
because you are in awe. Her voice is so crisp
and clear. They make me really appreciate that I
really have a part to use my gift along with
them.
Ingrid: What is important to you as a woman then
entertainer?
Sheri: I come from a long history of women that
have done this music thing. It was explained to
me that we have a long line of musicians in our
family. They taught from generation to
generation our strong family line of music. My
mother was taught by her mother, her mother was
taught by her mother (my grandmother) and so on.
Knowing that I come from a family that was
grounded in music from the heart is important to
me. My ancestors provided for our family with
genuine music from the heart, and I strive to
continue that for my generation and generations
to come.
Ingrid: What is a “real” perspective on you?
Sheri: When I come off the road, I still sing
with The Higher Ground band at Level 88 in
Nashville. Sometimes people question when I
travel and sing with stars as big as Tamia and R
Kelly, why I still come home and perform in a
club with a band. I tell them I am not
performing with a band at a club. I am
performing with family. They were one of the
first bands I performed with. You can’t get
“Hollywood” with family. To be in the studio
with people like Tamia, R Kelly and Young Buck,
and they embrace you genuinely to use your gift.
What makes Sheri Sheri is because I love people.
The second greatest commandment is to love your
neighbor as you love yourself. I want people to
know that they can talk to me. It’s important to
share so people can see a starting point for
themselves. If I don’t give it back to someone
else, then the truth is I wouldn’t be where I am
today because that’s what others did for me.
People hoard the truth, and that doesn’t work.
That’s why I want to do workshops for our youth
especially to show them there is so much more
out there than just hanging out in the
neighborhood. It doesn’t have to be only music
based just something to let them know there is
more out there for them.
Ingrid: You have a blank sheet of paper to
express yourself “free style”.
What would you
say to the world so we can feel the real essence
of you?
Sheri: LET’S GET IT!!!
I am sure you have been just as inspired by
Sheri as I have and continue to be. I feel like
I have met a sister in spirit and our paths have
crossed to do some amazing and grand things
together. Sheri wanted me to be sure to share
with you all that she loves to hear from her
fans. Log on to
www.myspace.com/sherihauck
while
www.sherihauck.com
is under construction. She has some big things
working for her website that will be launched
soon. Take some time to reach out to Sheri. She
does try to answer all her emails personally,
even friend requests her Myspace page. It may
take a minute for her to reply to everyone from
city to city, but she takes time to do this for
her fans. She loves comments so keep them
coming. Stay tuned to Center Stage Magazine in
future issues to hear more about Sheri and her
upcoming projects as she releases her gifts ever
so abundantly upon others.
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