Singing in Second Life can be a nightmare for some people. Not Lark Bowen. The songstress took time out of her busy schedule for a chat with me about her career and her very early beginnings.
Interview with Lark Bowen
Mack: First off the bat, tell me about "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas". What made you pick a song from that as a 3 year old performing on your landing in your house?
Lark: Oh heavens! I just knew that was going to come up. Ok, so here is the story. My family held this big event every Christmas Eve morning where all of the extended family and friends were invited to a Christmas Eve breakfast at my Grandmother's home. We believed it was a great chance to see everyone and catch up. It would start at 7 am and go to like noon and had all the Southern delicacies, i.e. eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy, fruit, pastries, and ... fried rabbit…smh...So... that is the setting.So I was two months shy of my third birthday and I sang You are my Sunshine for my family, so they decided to make my singing part of the tradition. So the next year, I was not yet four and the movie Annie had come out. Everyone thought they would hear me sing Tomorrow from Annie. My mother made me a red velvet dress with layers of white lace. I stood on the Landing of her staircase with everyone looking at me and I reached down and hiked up my skirt and sang the opening number to The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. You see, my father knew I loved Dolly Parton and I had NO idea what that movie/musical was about so my father had no qualms in letting me watch it. So when I was done, my mother was mortified, my father was grinning, my Grandfather was laughing so hard he fell over in his chair. Suffice to say, people were either dying of laugher or so embarassed they didn't know what to say. A paramedic trip and some oxygen later, it became a family tale.
Mack: So you nearly killed a relative with your song choice. That's probably down to your innocence of youth. So when did you decide to make singing a career choice? Did you do singing in choirs or church after that?
Lark: Oh yes! Growing up, my father was a member of a Southern Gospel music group. So as I grew up, I would sing in church, I sang in choirs at school from grade six to my senior year. Per the recommendation of a teacher, I was given lessons starting at age 14 and then when I was 17, I auditioned for scholarships to college. I was fortunate enough to go to college on a scholarship for Vocal Performance. So while there, I did shows, musicals, plays, and of course had hours and hours and hours of practice each week along with lessons from my professor who was just amazing. Unfortunately, I did not pursue music after graduation because I was offered an amazing job working at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, so my life turned away from music.
Mack: Thats pretty cool! So when did you come back to the musical fold? Did you do any professional work or work in clubs or social events?
Lark: Actually, no. Surprisingly enough. Before going to college, I actually had stage fright that continued over to my first recital in college. I literally had to be Pushed out onto the stage because doing solo performances gave me anxiety. Through time and my work at Disney, I got over that. So by my senior year, I had learned to walk out like I owned that stage. Oddly enough, due to time away from the stage, my old anxieties took hold again. I wouldn't even get up and do karaoke in RL because I just couldn't. Luckily, in SL, when I was hanging out with friends, we'd sometimes just sing over voice. One day, these two people, Ry Foxdale and Agusto Napoli were there and heard me. Agusto is a live musician and he had Ry talk to me because, well this is SL and you know, a guy messaging you saying, you have a great voice might not come off in a good way. So she told me they thought I should be performing. I explained it would be fun, but I didn't know how or what was needed. Agusto set me up and in 2015, I returned to music by singing in SL. It was like coming home.
Mack: So did you come to SL to sing or were you already in SL?
Lark: I was already in Second Life.... oddly enough because I saw this episode on Law & Order SVU about SL. Yeah... Great recommendation huh? But I explored, experienced, had a blast, and just stayed. Finding out about live music became a cherry on top of an amazing sundae.
Mack:Yeah odd way to find out about SL for sure. So how would you describe your singing style?
Lark:Oh, boy, kind of a hard one. I guess I'm eclectic. I love to sing everything from classical to hard rock, country to r&b. I sing things that make me feel something and that is what I want to do for others. I want to sing things that will touch their hearts and make them feel something. So my style is more... emotional, I guess. I want to take people on a journey and tell people's stories through song.
Mack: Do you have any inspirations? Anyone you look up to in the music world?
Lark: Yeah... first my father. He didn't sing, but played guitar, bass, and banjo. My uncle was the singer and sang in Honky Tonks around Kentucky and Tennessee. They didn't make it big, but they loved what they did and that inspired me. And also when it comes to making you feel something, I look at singers like Adele, Sarah Brightman, Sarah McLachlan, Queen, Lorreta Lynn, Patsy Cline, Garth Brooks, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston... I could go on. The ones that made us laugh, cry, smile, and remember.
Mack: Where can people find you in SL? Do you have a group or a regular haunt that people can see you perform at?
Lark: So I have a group in SL - 'lil miss songbird. I probably should have named that better. In SL, I'm currently singing at Snowy Owl every other Monday at 6pm slt. Soon, I'll be getting back to The Aquarium. And I do random shows all the time. I have something big coming up in the Summer I can't wait to do.
Mack: So I heard something about a classical recital, can you expand on that?
Lark: Absolutely! So I once sang O Mio Bambino Caro and it shocked people because they didn't know I was classically trained. So I was asked if I would be willing to do that. I'm preparing for that right now. I have selected the pieces for the show. It will have arias from Mozart, French art songs from Debussy and Faure, German lieder songs by Schubert, and some contemporary pieces from John Alden Carpenter just to name a few. More details to follow so stay tuned!
Mack: Is there anything else you want to share with our readers?
Lark: If you have ever thought of performing in SL and that is your dream and you don't know where to start, hit me up. I have offered Agusto and Ry to repay them time and time again but they declined. I was asked to pay it forward and that is what I do. When someone wants to do this, I help them the way I was helped.
Additional Information
Group: 'lil miss songbird (secondlife:///app/group/165d1625-b104-35cc-e0b3-4ec1465fc005/about)
Calendar: http://tinyurl.com/lark-performance
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/larky.bowen.1
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