She might only be 16, but Hannah Gill’s voice carries a world of experience in every note. That’s all the more surprising when her only public performances have been in high school musicals in her hometown of Easton, MD, and talent shows. But she’d sung around the house from an early age and “my parents exposed me to a lot of music. I love folk music and plenty of ragtime, jazz, especially Ella Fitzgerald as well as a bunch of acoustic music – the Avett Brothers, artists like that. Real artists.”
As soon as producer and musician Brad Hammonds heard her, he understood that Gill was something very special.
“She came in to record a couple of songs. She opened her mouth and began singing. I turned to my partner, producer Reed Taylor and said, ‘This is crazy. She’s so good.’”
That day the pair laid down two tracks, takes on Kimbra’s “Two Way Street” and Christina Perri’s “Distance,” both on the EP.
“I love the way “Two Way Street” flows,” Gill explains. “And the lyrics for “Distance” have always grabbed at me.”
Hammonds knew he needed more from her – as soon as possible. As someone with a long track record in music, already renowned as a guitarist and composer through his own three albums, he understood what he was hearing. This wasn’t someone raw who needed to be developed. Hannah Gill was completely the real thing, arriving fully-formed.
“She’s so mature,” he says. “She’s an old soul, both as a vocalist and as a person. She’s comfortable with herself. That’s hard to find with anyone.”
Soon four more tracks were in the can, Gill accompanied by Hammonds, along with a spare group of double bass, drums and trumpet. An ideal accompaniment for someone with the kind of vocal sophistication that conveys deep emotion without resorting to histrionics.
When he listened back to the songs, Hammonds signed her to his label, Greene Street Music, the first artist he’d wanted there.
Read more: https://www.storyamp.com/dispatch/5216/9NBloqWFV_ud81-exbeu2A
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