Photo interview: Texas musician Vanessa Peters

by Zach Lewis of Zlew.net

Welcome to the second installment of the ZLew.net photo interview. Like the interview with Shanti Michelle, the concept of this photo interview is a simple one: A photo shoot, along with a simple and short interview with a local artist; for this entry, I present to you the lovely and talented Vanessa Peters.

Zach: Name, Rank, and Serial Number?

Vanessa: Vanessa Peters, General, 916ITTX

Zach: How long would you say you have been a musician?

Vanessa: In my mind I have been a musician all of my life. As far as other people, or the public, are concerned, I have been performing since 2002.

Zach: Anytime I think of Vanessa Peters, I think of Italy. Many of your stories at your live shows include Italy, many of your YouTube videos (this video is not from Italy, but was picked for the recording quality) are from there, and your touring schedule is always packed with shows on the boot. Can you explain the Italian connection?

Vanessa: I was a student there in 2000 in a university study abroad program. Since I graduated from college at age 20, I thought it would be fun to see the world and travel. I ended up moving back to Italy for a year. While I was there I met the guys who ended up becoming my band and now it is my home for half of the year. I even have a job there working for the study abroad center.

Zach: On the subject of traveling and touring, your tour schedule is more packed and more spread out over all of the country and the world than any local musician I can think of. How many miles did you put on your car last year?

Vanessa: About 30,000 or so. My car is three years old, and has around 90,000 miles on it.

Zach: What has been your favorite destination so far?

Vanessa: In the U.S., I love going to Brooklyn, Minneapolis, and Chicago. The most beautiful places I have been to were West Virginia and Eastern Tennessee.

Zach: One of the things I struggle with is trying to define someone’s sound or style. I think “folk” and “indie” are overused and most times don’t do justice or accurately describe any given music. How would you characterize your style and sound?

Vanessa: I always fall back on singer/songwriter. Genres something that I really struggle with as well, but “singer songwriter” seems to be a good catch all. Folk Rock, or Alternative Country also accurately describe my music.

Zach: You said you graduated at 20 and started at just 16 years old; where did you go to school, and what did you study?

Vanessa: I went to A&M, and got my degree in Literature/Creative Writing with minors in Latin and History.

Zach: If you could only keep one of your possessions, what would it be?

Vanessa: My guitar.

Zach: If you could only listen to one album, what would it be?

Vanessa: You Were Here, by Sarah Harmer.

Zach: How do you want to be remembered-

Vanessa: as a kind person and as a songwriter.

If you get the opportunity, check out Vanessa and her band, Vanessa Peters and Ice Cream on Mondays. You can get a taste of her music on her MySpace or on YouTube. "Drowning in Amsterdam" and "Little Films" are two of my favorites. If you want to see her live, she will be in in Texas for a few more weeks before she starts globetrotting and putting more miles on her poor car.