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The Mid-Week Beat: Rachel Wong – Here’s to the Indies!

rachel_wong_9This week on the Mid-Week Beat, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, we want to say how thankful we are for all the incredible independent musicians out there. We are thankful that these musicians continue to get out there and  make great original music despite all the hardships that go into trying to build a music career.

If you are an independent artist, don’t get discouraged if you haven’t achieved “success” in the industry sense of the word. You are doing something that most folks don’t get an opportunity to do: pursuing your dream. You do what you love, often times while working day jobs, raising kids and enduring all the other stresses of daily life.

Independent musicians’ undying perseverance is something to be admired. Many nights are spent loading gear in and out of venues, waiting around for hours during soundchecks, sometimes to only play to a handful of people. But if they weren’t out there persevering, music fans would never be fortunate enough to discover the musical gems that sometimes appear out of nowhere. Chances are your favorite artists had many years of hard work behind them before they got the recognition they deserved.

Case in point, Brown Paper Tickets’ own Rachel Wong. When Rachel isn’t working wonders with our digital marketing, she’s often found playing her unique brand of acoustic pop in local coffee shops, at community festivals or, sometimes, on TV!

Influenced by the late Michael Jackson, John Mayer, Lauryn Hill, James Morrison and Sara Bareilles, Rachel mixes a soulful vocal style with beautiful pop melodies. Her music is infused with self-determined passion and her unique perspective as an Asian American woman. This determination has helped her garner international recognition as tracks off of her debut album Curtain Fall can now be heard on radio stations in Canada and the Philippines.

Rachel beat out over 3,000 bands in the US to secure her top 12 finalist spot for Ford’s Gimme the Gig II Contest. As part of the contest, she was able to showcase her original music in front of Grammy-award winning producer Don Was and renowned sound engineer Krish Sharma for a KTLA TV feature.


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Meet the BPT Team: Rachel Wong Releases Album on iTunes and Spotify

mk2We’d like to introduce our Campaign Leader and Community Wrangler, Rachel Wong.

In case you couldn’t tell from what she’s holding in her hand, in addition to being the voice of Brown Paper Tickets on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube and Foursquare, as well as holding the keys to Brown Paper Tickets’ social media and digital marketing strategy, Rachel’s heart is also on display through her music. Take a listen to her latest single, “Center Stage,” here.

Rachel is a self-taught musician, with a natural ear for music, and a passionate drive for expression that resonates and connects her to her fans. Wong was selected from more than 3,000 artists across the US as a Top-12 finalist in Ford’s “Gimme the Gig II” contest in Los Angeles in August 2012. Influenced by Michael Jackson, John Mayer and Lauryn Hill, Wong’s acoustic, soulful pop sound has been compared to “Sara Bareilles, but on the guitar.”

BKaBffGCMAIXqY2WhiteShirtTracks from Rachel’s first album and single, Curtain Fall, can now be heard on radio stations in Canada and the Phillipines. Letters to You, her second album to be released on iTunes and Spotify May 28, is a 10-track musical journey from the pop anthem production of “Center Stage” to the island-flavored “Beach Bum Living.” Album tracks feature her soothing, powerful vocals and catchy songs, accentuated by the sincere warmth of her lyrics. A music video to for “Center Stage” will be released on You Tube shortly after the “Letters to You” album release show in Portland on June 29, and you are invited to attend!

Rachel wants to let you know that one of her good friends, Tess Henley, will be having her album release party just three days later, at Seattle’s Columbia City Theater. Pick up tickets for that show right over here.

As the world’s first home for independent musicians like Rachel and Tess, Brown Paper Tickets hosts album release parties and performances by some of the world’s best artists before they are “discovered” by the rest of the world, and sometimes after they are discovered, simply because they love the warmth, the 5% donations of profits from every ticket sold, and the down-to-earth, local vibe of Brown Paper Tickets. Why not take a look at the events in your city and see which local live events appeal to you?

We sat down with Rachel to ask her a couple of questions so that you could get to know her a little bit better. Enjoy!
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