The Daily Eastern News - Campus
Date: 4/2/2001

Eastern graduate, Charlotte Martin, to speak today on RCA record deal
By Brandi Volk

Charleston native and former Eastern graduate Charlotte Martin will
return to her alma mater today where she will give a performance and
also speak of her experiences within the music business.

The discussion/performance will be held at 11 a.m. in the alumni lounge
in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union. The audience will have
the opportunity to ask Martin questions following the event.

Martin, a 1998 graduate who majored in opera, said every person who
gets signed has a different story.

"I got started playing for record companies immediately," she said.

In February, Martin signed a record deal with RCA. She had performed at
only a couple of shows before she was spotted by the record company.
Before then, she had done showcases for Electra, Island, Epic and RCA.

Martin, who has been writing songs for two and a half years now, moved
to Chicago after graduating from Eastern. She lived in Chicago for a
brief period of time before realizing it was not the place to start a
career in music.

"The place to be is L.A. or New York," she said. Martin moved to Los
Angeles where she has been living for a year and a half now.

"L.A. seemed much scarier than New York," Martin said. "L.A. is very
entertaining."

After moving to an apartment in Los Angeles, Martin said she rented a
piano and spent most of her time writing songs and playing her piano
day in and day out. She started formally studying piano and classic
voice when she was seven years old. Her parents also have a background
in music. Her mother, Becky Martin, graduated from Southern Illinois
University with a degree in music education. Her father, Joseph Martin,
is a professor of oboe at Eastern and the assistant chair of the music
department.

Martin said she hopes her record with RCA will be out by early spring
2003. She currently has a deal with the Indy label, Bongload. She will
work with producer Tom Rothrock when she returns to the studio.

This summer she will tour with the music band Beck, sponsored by the
House of Blues. Martin said she plans on taking her time while making
her record for RCA.

Martin said her favorite band is The Cure.

She said although she has a long way to go, her life is her inspiration.

"My music doesn't inspire me; my life inspires my music. Music and
writing is an expression of what I do day to day," Martin said.

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