rozzi crane Story: Chloe LuthringShausen Photo: Viviana Contreras
“I don’t have a record label, but I’ll start one if you can be on it,” said superstar Adam Levine, moments after hearing the soulful, powerful voice of Rozzi Crane singing “Barracuda” by Heart in a YouTube video sent to him by his manager. Those words are what any aspiring musician dreams to hear, but for Rozzi Crane, that dream came true. So where did this dream begin? Born in San Francisco, Crane fell in love with music at an early age. Crane remembers the moment she wanted to pursue a career in music. At six years old, she sang Jewel’s “Sensitive” in a first grade talent show. Growing up in San Francisco has allowed Crane to pursue her creative interests and a career in music. “A lot of parents from where I grew up were like casual hippies who cared about art and built an environment for their kids that emphasized the importance of supporting creativity,” recalls Crane. She also credits the Bay Area for influencing the soul in her singing voice. Crane thanks one person in particular from home for bringing out that soul in her music— her high school voice teacher, Amber Morris. Crane says, “Amber was the one who introduced me to soul music in a way I hadn’t known before and that sticks with me today and continues to affect the way I sing.” Along with her voice teacher, Crane also looked up to Amy Winehouse, the female icon of soul, ever since she was 14 years old. “When I heard Amy, it was like an explosion because she combined my two favorite genres— soul and pop— in a way that really worked,” says Crane. Even though Adam Levine first heard Crane sing in a YouTube video, she did not plan to be discovered on the Internet. Crane honed her skills by attending the University of Southern California as part of their Popular Music Program. While attending class, Crane caught the attention of Phantom Planet’s Jacques Brautbar, who was auditing the class. Brautbar asked Crane to write a song with him and his manager, who also happens to be Adam Levine’s manager, immediately became interested in Crane’s unique voice. He looked her up on YouTube and found the Heart cover video that would later be sent to Levine. Like the saying goes and the rest is history.
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Adam Levine quickly contacted Crane, asking her to be the first artist to sign to his new record label: 222 Records. “I feel very fortunate that I get to work with him,” says Crane. “He’s a very smart guy with very good instincts and he keeps excellent company. I love the community I have gotten to know through him.” With Adam Levine as her mentor and a degree in song writing and music, Crane is on her way to becoming the next big thing. She recently released her debut EP, Space which features four songs including her hit single “Psycho” and a duet with Adam Levine titled “Painkiller.” Crane admits that every song she writes is inspired by her life. “I find it hard to write a song if I am not feeling something personally,” claims Crane. “There are some things I would never have been able to get over if I couldn’t write songs about them.” When asked what the inspiration was behind the songs on the EP, Crane says she “wanted these first songs on the EP to be about strength, confidence, and power,” and the four songs she picked “really conveyed that vibe.” Even though the EP is just a snippet of a full-length album to come, she still had the incredible opportunity to work with talented people while recording, such as Ryan Tedder, Ester Dean, Lindsay Ray, and two of her good friends Brian Green and Sam Wilkes. One of her most memorable experiences so far as a musician was when she had the opportunity to sing with Maroon 5 on “Come Away to the Water” for the Hunger Games soundtrack. “I remember talking with Adam on the phone about the song we were doing for this huge movie between classes at USC,” recalls Crane. “That was definitely a moment where my life felt like it was completely different than it was before.” However, Crane’s list of achievements does not end with a song in a huge box office movie. Quickly after being signed to 222 Records, Crane began her whirlwind of extraordinary accomplishments. She sang her upbeat hit “Psycho” on NBC’s The Voice in front of all of the judges, a live audience, and millions of viewers at home. With a camera broadcasting her performance to millions of viewers across the country—