A Diamond In The Rough

A little luck turns a songwriter’s dream into a reality

Singer/songwriter Daphne Willis may be the luckiest girl in the world. She’s on the eve of releasing her debut record, mounting a tour to support it and handling all the writers who suddenly want to know all about her, all because of a simple twist of fate.

Two years ago her self-released EP, Matter of Time, found its way onto a compilation played on some American Airlines flights. On one of those passenger lists was Vanguard Records president Kevin Welk, who happened to snap in his earbuds at the same moment Willis’ songs were airing. He was so impressed by her work and her husky, street-wise Norah Jones vocals that he tracked her down through her MySpace page to her hometown of Chicago and quickly laid a contract on the line.

It really was as easy as that. But even as she prepares for the tour, she still can’t believe it.

“I was actually studying secondary English education with a minor in Japanese studies at DePaul University. I was making EPs and I definitely wanted to [make music] as a career, but the music industry is so competitive and it’s really hard to make it and be able to support yourself,” she says in a tone as friendly as it is incredulous. “So it was always like a hobby for me. I put a lot of time into it, definitely, but not in the hopes of making it big. It was always just like an amazing hobby and my passion.”

At 22, with her debut full-length record, What to Say, being released on Vanguard in February, Willis is ready to show the world she’s more than what some have termed a “female Jack Johnson.” As a guitar player, she says the comparison isn’t totally undeserved since her EPs were largely folksy and acoustic. But on the new record she’s dabbling in sounds that once existed only in her record collection, which she says has opened her up to a whole new level of musicianship.

“It’s cool because it’s still very much me, but it was kind of like an eye opener,” she says. “When it all started off, I didn’t have as many resources. As I gained experience, we could add in horns and other things and take those experiences and develop a sound and make something I didn’t even know I could do before.”

It’s an unusual spot to be in for someone who has only been playing guitar for about four years, and writing songs for even less. But it’s not entirely unfamiliar, either. As the daughter of two parents who spent their college years as music majors, Willis has been exposed to different styles and genres her whole life. Like many people, she was raised on a lot of Beatles and Motown. But her father was also an avid and skilled banjo player, and she says the biggest influence on her soulful vocals is Lauryn Hill.

“The Lauryn Hill album [The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill]. I would listen to that over and over again and copy the inflections she did with her voice,” she says. “But I never took lessons or anything. It was just me growing up singing.”

The Hill influence is obvious, as is that of Norah Jones, another Willis favorite. But it’s what she does with these vastly different styles that will likely have the power to determine if Willis can stand out from the pack and develop a unique voice from the bits and pieces that shaped her craft.

“I wanted to have different songs that crossed over into different styles. One song has total jazz, one swings in the middle, then there’s a total rock song. But then there’s an underlying pop sound,” she says. “It’s kind of all over the place. I’m kind of all over the place.”

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