![\"vanessa_carlton01\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/vanessa_carlton01.jpg\")
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Vanessa Carlton<\/strong> released her debut album, Be Not Nobody<\/i>, in 2002. She was marketed (and pegged) as a precious pop star. That guise didn’t fit her well, though; she’s a much more serious artist than your run-of-the-mill pop tart. And though it took a few years (plus a few albums and a few record labels) to find a creative footing that felt right, the Pennsylvania-born pianist\/vocalist eventually achieved the degree of independence necessary to express her musical vision. Vanessa Carlton brings that vision \u2013 in the form of live versions of songs from her latest album, Liberman<\/i> \u2013 to her 2016 tour.<\/p>\n Though she earned eight nominations for various music awards (Billboard<\/em>, American Music, Teen Choice and Grammy) in the space of just over a year, she was uncomfortable with the way she was promoted in those early years. \u201cI guess it kind of worked, but…I wasn’t very good at it,\u201d she says. Though she admits to having played along for awhile (\u201cI wasn’t a ‘passenger’ in the situation\u201d), Carlton finally \u201cpart[ed] ways with that system,\u201d and instead sought a \u201cdifferent approach to making music.\u201d<\/p>\n That new approach commenced with the making of 2010’s Rabbits on the Run<\/i>. Carlton recorded and finished the album, only then presenting it to a label for release. She employed a similar strategy for 2015’s Liberman<\/i>. \u201cI sat down with my manager; we had a meeting,\u201d she recalls. \u201cAnd we decided to pitch it to a few labels that we really liked, but without any name on the record.\u201d That way, the music would be considered on its own strengths, without the baggage of its creator’s reputation.<\/p>\n Their eventual choice, Dine Alone Records \u201creally understood the album,\u201d Carlton says. And she didn’t have to deal with record executives telling her how the songs should sound. \u201cI like to do an album without any sort of committee making decisions about the project,\u201d she says. Carlton hastens to add that Liberman<\/i> is \u201cstill a real collaboration among a handful of amazing artists. That’s<\/i> the kind of committee I want to work with.\u201d<\/p>\n Though a hallmark of Vanessa Carlton’s music is its lyrical honesty and emotional intensity, she doesn’t buy the argument that one needs to suffer for his or her art. \u201cLiberman<\/i> is very much about projecting certain philosophies, essential ideas that make you realize that you’re part of something bigger,\u201d she says. \u201cI don’t think it stems from any pain when I was writing it.\u201d But she quickly dismisses the idea that \u201cOh, I’m going to get some amazing work done now, because what I’m dealing with is sooo<\/i> dark!\u201d<\/p>\n Carlton’s early years included learning piano under the tutelage of her mom, a music teacher. \u201cThe music I was raised on totally informed some of the patterns that I like to play now. They’re woven into my approach to writing music,\u201d she says. She also studied for several years at New York’s School of American Ballet; that influenced her music too: \u201cI have a waltz on each album, and I think that’s definitely from my dance background.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"vanessa_carlton\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/vanessa_carlton.jpg\")
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