Keeley Valentino
"Keeley Valentino was born and raised in the beautiful Bay Area of northern California, with the exception of four years spent in the central valley of Bakersfield. While Marin County is where she calls home, it was in Bakersfield that Keeley’s love of music really began to take shape. Though always loving to sing and having a propensity for performance at a young age, in Bakersfield she discovered country music and a romance with story telling through song. Returning to Novato, California at the age of 12, she sang her way through high school in various choirs and ensembles and by the time college rolled around she felt sure music was to be her purpose in life. This passion led her to Nashville, where she attended Vanderbilt for four years of undergrad, actively involved in the all female a capella group The Swingin Dores, and all the while honing her own personal style. It was during this time that an evolution of sound took place, drawing her outside the lines of Country and into Folk and Soul. It was a chance meeting in a songwriting class that solidified this new direction, when her professor suggested she ask a fellow student, a proficient guitar player, to accompany her on an assignment. From that moment on Keeley and Stan Sonu were instantly bonded and he began giving a voice to a handful of songs she had written but had never been able to perform. Since 2002 they have been performing all over the country together and have an extended catalog of collaborative songs. Keeley just released her first full-length album in the fall of 2005 featuring several of these songs as well as Stan’s unique guitar playing. The record was produced by Nashville based musician and producer Matt Mangano and features the talents of several renowned musicians and engineers including Josh Robinson, Ben Shive, and Clay Cook.
Keeley draws all her inspiration from numerous personal events that have shaped her life including loss, loneliness, faith and healing. She is constantly trying to figure out the meaning of tragedies, the prospects of hope and the promises of redemption. She is continually humbled when her words are able to reach another and resonate.
Her influences are wide and varying, including everyone from the Dixie Chicks, Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, and Lori McKenna to Bruce Hornsby, Jackson Browne, Amy Grant, and Crosby, Stills, and Nash. This past year she has performed in the round at the prestigious Bluebird Café in Nashville as well as Angelico Hall in San Rafael, California and has sung background vocals for several local studio projects including Justin Thompson and Deon Taylor. The track “Conductor” off her recent CD was chosen to be featured on the local spotlight program of Nashville’s Progressive Radio station Lightening 100. This summer Keeley played in various locations across the US, including a gig opening for Ryan Cabrera at the KOST FM “Acoustic Night Under the Stars” in Los Angeles as well as a show at CB’s Gallery at CBGB’s in New York City."
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