Patio Jams will feature an extra dose of excitement on Thursday as Hurricane Productions will be announcing the artist for the 2014 Homecoming Concert. The event will take place at noon and will feature snow cones, food from Buffalo Wild Wings and a performance by the local band B.Miles.
Senior Brenna Miles, the lead singer, will be performing alongside her five bandmates. A student at the Frost School of Music, Miles has been professionally performing as a singer-songwriter since she was 15.
Her professional experience includes composing and performing the song “Mistletoe,” on the Disney Holiday Magic 2009 album. She has also performed on stage with Keith Urban at the Starry Night Concert held at the University of California Los Angeles in 2010.
Miles describes herself as an “R&B-ish singer-songwriter along the lines of Lana Del Rey and Amy Winehouse.”
When it comes to songwriting, words come first, she said. According to Miles, although music speaks, language speaks louder, and most people can relate better to strong lyrics.
Miles said she covers themes in her own life that she feels most people can relate to, and, as she puts it, “misery loves miserable company.”
Over the summer, Miles recorded an EP in New York City that will combine her soulful, R&B vocals with driving beats and a “dirty Western” vibe.
She is currently working on a new song, “Nine Matches.” This song is a down-tempo tune with Lorde-like beat-and-synth-pad-heavy rhythms, which pair nicely with Miles’ dancing, vocal melody. If nothing else, Miles has a great voice. Clearly influenced by her idol, Amy Winehouse, both her pitch and tonal dexterity and precision are impressive.
After graduation, Miles plans to head back west to continue to pursue a musical career.
“The dream is big and the dream is happening,” she said.