Amanda Abizaid
Encyclopedia
Amanda Jo Abizaid is an American Lebanese singer-songwriter, best known for her vocals on the theme song of the US TV series The 4400, Lifetimes Odd Girl Out and composed and sang the theme song in the movies 3 Below and 13th Alley. She also has acted in a small number of independent films.
, Elton John
, Crosby, Stills and Nash and The Beatles
.
She lived in Poughkeepsie, NY until moving to Great Falls, Virginia for Highschool. She later attended Corcoran School of Art in Georgetown and then transferred to The Catholic University of America to study drama and music, while pursuing a career in hairstyling. She later dropped out to pursue a career in modeling and worked as a runway model with designers such as Jacques Fath, Nina Ricci, Oscar De La Renta, Alberta Ferretti, Badgley Mischka, Chloe and Bill Blass. She traveled to Paris and Germany and modeled for London designer Zandra Rhodes
in the UK and then went back to live in Miami, Fl. This is when she met musician/songwriter Shane Soloski in the late 90's and they decided to move to Los Angeles to start her career in music and to form a band.
Their first gig was an open mic at Molly Malones where she met and played with Todd Sucherman
(drummer for Styx
). After several open mics around town, she and songwriter Shane Soloski formed a band called "Blue" which included musicians Eric Dover (guitarist for Alice Cooper
), Ron Dziubla (guitarist/saxophonist for Ricky Martin
), Brian Head (drummer for Foreigner
) , Mike Mennell (bassist for Tom Jones
) and Taylor Mills (singer for Brian Wilson
). They played a series of shows in Los Angeles at The Gig and The Mint before breaking up in 2001 just before releasing their first album. She then recorded and performed as a backup vocalist for Jennifer Stills and backup vocalist for Kathleen Bird York (Oscar nominated song "In The Deep"-Crash). Abizaid began recording many vocal sessions for several popular TV shows with writers Stephen Phillips and Tim P. from Bosshouse Music and two songs for the film Devious Beings in 2002 starring Patrick van Horn and Kevin Connolly as well. She was also the voice for Ally Sheedy
and Charisma Carpenter
on the TV show Strange Frequency starring Roger Daltrey
in 2001 singing a vocal recorded duet with Sebastian Bach
from the 80's band Skid Row. Due to the great success of Paramount's The 4400 New York Post
author Adam Buckman wrote on August 28, 2005 "I'd like to thank two singers- one named Sia and the other named Amanda Abizaid- for making TV all the more memorable this summer".
), Brian Head and Brian Tichy (drummer for Ozzy Osbourne
).Abizaid is getting back to her roots musically and has played many shows around the Los Angeles area at The Gig, The Mint and The Rainbow
and other acoustic venues such as Genghis Cohen, Tangier
and The Derby. She played at the Indiegrrl festival in the Blue Ridge Mountains, VA last year and remains an avid supporter of women in music. She was on a compilation CD last year of women around the world called Females On FIre.
She has also written and sang songs for several independent feature films and starred in the short film Facing The Lion. She is currently working with writer/director and established editor Joe Plonsky and will be starring and performing her music in the Sci Fi trilogy called "Vex".
Discography
Albums:
EPs/Singles:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1891130/
Early years
Amanda Abizaid was born in Beirut, Lebanon to an American mother and Mexican/Lebanese father. She traveled the middle east and Europe with her family before the age of ten when she moved with her mother and brother to the U.S. Having 4 older sisters who had formed a band, she developed a musical talent for harmonies. Her first exposure to music was middle eastern combined with the American influences in the late 70's of Alice CooperAlice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Crosby, Stills and Nash and The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
.
She lived in Poughkeepsie, NY until moving to Great Falls, Virginia for Highschool. She later attended Corcoran School of Art in Georgetown and then transferred to The Catholic University of America to study drama and music, while pursuing a career in hairstyling. She later dropped out to pursue a career in modeling and worked as a runway model with designers such as Jacques Fath, Nina Ricci, Oscar De La Renta, Alberta Ferretti, Badgley Mischka, Chloe and Bill Blass. She traveled to Paris and Germany and modeled for London designer Zandra Rhodes
Zandra Rhodes
Zandra Rhodes, CBE, RDI, is an English fashion designer.Zandra Rhodes was introduced to the world of fashion by her mother, who was a fitter in a Paris fashion house and a teacher at Medway College of Art, now the University for the Creative Arts. Rhodes studied first at Medway and then at the...
in the UK and then went back to live in Miami, Fl. This is when she met musician/songwriter Shane Soloski in the late 90's and they decided to move to Los Angeles to start her career in music and to form a band.
Their first gig was an open mic at Molly Malones where she met and played with Todd Sucherman
Todd Sucherman
Todd Sucherman is a drummer who is best known for playing with Styx since 1996.Sucherman grew up in a musical family and followed in his father's footsteps by playing the drums. His father, Arnold J. Sucherman, was a doctor by day and a drummer by night, playing in the house band at the famed Chez...
(drummer for Styx
Styx
In Greek mythology the Styx is the river that forms the boundary between the underworld and the world of the living, as well as a goddess and a nymph that represents the river.Styx may also refer to:-Popular culture:...
). After several open mics around town, she and songwriter Shane Soloski formed a band called "Blue" which included musicians Eric Dover (guitarist for Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
), Ron Dziubla (guitarist/saxophonist for Ricky Martin
Ricky Martin
Enrique "Ricky" Martín Morales , better known as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican and Spanish pop singer and actor who achieved prominence, first as a member of the Latin boy band Menudo, then as a solo artist since 1991.During his career he has sold more than 60 million album copies worldwide...
), Brian Head (drummer for Foreigner
Foreigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
) , Mike Mennell (bassist for Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
) and Taylor Mills (singer for Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
). They played a series of shows in Los Angeles at The Gig and The Mint before breaking up in 2001 just before releasing their first album. She then recorded and performed as a backup vocalist for Jennifer Stills and backup vocalist for Kathleen Bird York (Oscar nominated song "In The Deep"-Crash). Abizaid began recording many vocal sessions for several popular TV shows with writers Stephen Phillips and Tim P. from Bosshouse Music and two songs for the film Devious Beings in 2002 starring Patrick van Horn and Kevin Connolly as well. She was also the voice for Ally Sheedy
Ally Sheedy
Alexandra Elizabeth "Ally" Sheedy is an American film and stage actress, as well as the author of two books. She is best known for her roles in the Brat Pack films The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo's Fire.-Early life:...
and Charisma Carpenter
Charisma Carpenter
Charisma Lee Carpenter is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cordelia Chase in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel, for which she was nominated for four Saturn Awards. In her most recent film she starred opposite Sylvester Stallone and Jason...
on the TV show Strange Frequency starring Roger Daltrey
Roger Daltrey
Roger Harry Daltrey, CBE , is an English singer and actor, best known as the founder and lead singer of English rock band The Who. He has maintained a musical career as a solo artist and has also worked in the film industry, acting in a large number of films, theatre and television roles and also...
in 2001 singing a vocal recorded duet with Sebastian Bach
Sebastian Bach
Sebastian Bach is a Canadian heavy metal singer who achieved mainstream success as frontman of Skid Row from 1987 to 1996. Since his departure from Skid Row, he has had many television roles, acted within Broadway plays, and leads a successful solo career.-Early life:Bach was born Sebastian...
from the 80's band Skid Row. Due to the great success of Paramount's The 4400 New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
author Adam Buckman wrote on August 28, 2005 "I'd like to thank two singers- one named Sia and the other named Amanda Abizaid- for making TV all the more memorable this summer".
Solo Years
Now an established artist in Los Angeles, Abizaid has performed as a solo artist releasing a single, two EP's and one LP working with musicians Eric Dover, Ron Dziubla, Mike Mennell, Tom Gimbel (keyboardist/saxophonist for ForeignerForeigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
), Brian Head and Brian Tichy (drummer for Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
).Abizaid is getting back to her roots musically and has played many shows around the Los Angeles area at The Gig, The Mint and The Rainbow
The Rainbow
The Rainbow is a 1915 novel by British author D. H. Lawrence. It follows three generations of the Brangwen family living in Nottinghamshire, particularly focusing on the sexual dynamics of, and relations between, the characters....
and other acoustic venues such as Genghis Cohen, Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
and The Derby. She played at the Indiegrrl festival in the Blue Ridge Mountains, VA last year and remains an avid supporter of women in music. She was on a compilation CD last year of women around the world called Females On FIre.
She has also written and sang songs for several independent feature films and starred in the short film Facing The Lion. She is currently working with writer/director and established editor Joe Plonsky and will be starring and performing her music in the Sci Fi trilogy called "Vex".
Discography
- Indiegrrl CD Compilation 3 (2009) indiegrrlrecords.com
- Females On Fire CD Compilation 3 (2008) Warrior Girl Music
- "Paramounts, The 4400: Music From the Television Series (2007) featuring the theme song, "A Place In Time" Milan Records
Albums:
- The Great Plan, Vol. IIThe Great Plan, Vol. IIThe Great Plan, Volume II is Amanda Abizaid's first full-length album, released on September 28, 2005.-Track listing:# Corrupted# Win Win Situation# When Will You See# Facing The Lion# Black Ice# Safe House# The Great Plan# I Miss You...
(2006)
EPs/Singles:
- In The Loop
- Lebanon, Ata's Song (2005)
- High 5's/Undivided (2005)
- The Great Plan, Vol. IThe Great Plan, Vol. IThe Great Plan, Vol. I is an EP by Amanda Abizaid, and her first release.-Track listing:# Take It On Faith# Timeless# Yes I Do# Fairlon Suite# A High Price To Pay...
(2004)
External links
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1891130/