16 Quotes by Gretchen Parlato

It's like, whenever I do any kind of cover, if it's a jazz piece or pop cover, I want to honor the original and make sure that the bulk and the juice of what makes that so great is there, but take it to a different place.

If I could sing like a Chaka Khan, an Aretha, a Kim Burrell, if I could do all these amazing runs and belt it out, I would. I've attempted that, and it's not something anyone would want to hear.

You want to have a feeling when you sing that you just love singing; you love the feeling of singing, and you love this feeling of this voice coming out of your body into this world. It's about really getting that most beautiful, pure, centered tone, thinking about the story of each song and the lyrics, and connecting your own life to that story.

You always have to be ready. When I'm washing dishes, I have to have a towel ready so I can dry my hands and push the record button on my phone.

It's really fun to get into that process of creating an album and telling a story. I really love it.

For me, the best way to be as an artist is to be completely yourself, letting that vulnerability come through.

The meditative, calm sound is a reflection of my personality. I've got a silly and a crazy side, but it makes sense the music would come across that way. I do yoga every day and try to keep a sense of peace and calm in my life. I don't have a lot of frantic energy.

I always used to say I'm definitely not a straight-ahead jazz singer, because then there's people who would hear what I do and say, 'Is it jazz? I don't know...' Whatever it is, it really comes down to creating music that makes people feel something.

Having artist parents, they knew the importance of exposing me and my sister to all types of music and art and making art part of our every day. it was just always there.