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Brettina

Brettina grew up in a show business family. Her mother is the gospel singer Leona Coakley-Spring. Her uncles are Theo and Kirk Coakley of the funk, disco, and R&B band T-Connection. Others in her family are actors and musicians too. She was destined for a show business career. She was born in the Bahamas in Nassau, the capital city. She began singing in early childhood. She spent several years of her childhood in Chicago, where she continued singing, acted in local theater, and appeared in national television commercials. Her mother brought her and her brothers back to the Bahamas during her school years, to make sure she didn't lose touch with her island-nation homeland. After a brief struggle to adapt to the strict school discipline, she thrived, regained her Bahamian accent, and won the Miss Bahamas Talented Teen competition. Her family returned to the United States before she finished school, settling in Seattle, where she made the transition back to US school culture. She continued her education at the University of Washington, where she studied cross-cultural communications and arts. For some years she was unable to visit the Bahamas, and over time she lost her accent. She became homesick, which was the inspiration for several of her songs. She moved to the Los Angeles area to pursue an entertainment career. She is a jazz singer, performing mainly in Los Angeles and Seattle. As an actor, she has performed in television advertisements. With her exotic beauty, she has also worked as a print model. With her birthplace, years of school, and family in the Bahamas, it feels like home. With her years in Seattle, and many family and friends there, that feels like home too. And living in metropolitan Los Angeles, that's home now. With that background, maybe it's best if she calls all three places "home". Her recent release "Brettina" (Floating Bridge Media) is a well produced recording displaying the various facets of Brettina's polished voice. Having written most of the lyrics, she adds a personal touch to the songs, inviting the audience into her world.


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276
Album Review

Brettina: Brettina

Read "Brettina" reviewed by James Nadal


Blending efficiency and clarity into a self titled debut, Brettina projects herself as a vocalist with a defined focus on her music. Having written seven of the ten selections, her compositions reveal articulated nostalgia, laced with subtle personal drama. She sings as if relishing the role of messenger for people and places she left behind. Brettina hails from the Bahamas, and defines herself as an island girl, while musically branching out into metropolitan arrangements with strong jazz ...

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231

Recording

Brettina: New Sound of Jazz

Brettina: New Sound of Jazz

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

What defines a female jazz vocalist today? Is it someone whose albums feature at least three American Songbook standards? Must the singer be backed by well-known jazz musicians? What about her sound? Does she have to be bluesy? Or is this checklist outdated? There's probably no concrete answer to these questions. I do know that I'm tired of hearing the same songs over and over again, no matter how good the singer's voice. For me, the singer known simply as ...

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Brettina

Floating Bridge Media
2010

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