ABOUT JULIA
My name is Julia Francis, and my journey of creative expression, healing and awakening has always been guided by my voice.
One day when I was 8 years old, I was playing in the woods behind my house (my safe place where I could experiment with my voice in solitude), and I came upon a dying bird on the path. I hovered over her, watching her breathe laboriously, and began to sing to her. Somehow I knew intuitively that she needed encouragement as she transitioned to the other world. My only thought was to give her love through my voice. In that moment, I felt the overwhelming presence of the trees above me, swaying and shushing, telling me that I was sharing my true gift. For the first time, I felt truly heard. But by what, by whom?
Soon after, I developed a vocal ’tic’: humming to myself in short bursts that came upon me without my control - quiet, insistent, a satisfying release. The sounds came when I was around other people, and I couldn’t hide them. This concerned my parents and they took me to a doctor who told me to ‘stop doing that’. Easier said than done. I felt shame and weakness, not being able to control it, and figured there was something wrong with me. The only time I felt truly free was when I was singing.
When it was time to choose an education and career path, I never questioned becoming a professional performer and singer. I studied the vocal arts and learned to master emotional awareness through the artistry of song. It wasn’t until my 30’s, during my first sound healing treatment (with tuning forks) that I suddenly remembered my childhood vocal tic and realized that I had been self-soothing and regulating my nervous system - that my body and spirit knew instinctively what I needed to do to release the anxious and stressful energies that I absorbed so easily from other people. Finally, I felt empowered in my body, and I began to trust my voice as an infinitely intelligent and healing mechanism.
As a singer-songwriter and touring recording artist, I would often receive feedback from audiences that my voice made them feel transformed. This reaction made me hungry to share my journey, and teach others what I had learned - that our voices can heal ourselves and each other.
The first time I heard crystal singing bowls, I knew immediately that I had found my true partners in song, more than my guitar, more than the piano. When I started singing with them, I had the experience of being completely in touch with every cell of my body while at the same time, being connected to everything and everyone across time and space.
As I began experimenting with them, I received dreams and messages from my ancestors to cross the sea and visit ancient sacred sites in Scotland and Ireland and beyond. And once there, standing on the cliffs and staring out at the Wild Atlantic Ocean, I heard voices on the wind. Without understanding what was happening, I was initiated into an ancient tradition of collaborating with and celebrating those long gone, through song. Now I know that when we sing, we can honor and transcend our grief to become one with all beings that have ever lived. Our breath is sacred, our vibrations are medicine. We heal each other by sharing our songs. I am honored to share this work with you, and to support the exquisite uniqueness of your own voice. What does it long to tell you?
MY MUSIC PATH
A born singer, Julia Francis during her time has moved through the worlds of classical choral works and musical theater to jazz, blues and rock and roll. A professionally trained actor and author (her novel Victory Garden garnered grants and awards including a month residency at the vaunted Vermont Studio Center), Francis fell into corporate marketing by accident after college and discovered a way to support herself and fund her art. The ear-trained, self-taught guitarist produced and toured two albums nationally: Five Challenges to Flight (2005) and Lucky Penny (2008) featuring Vinnie Colaiuta (Joni Mitchell, Frank Zappa), Victor DeLorenzo (Violent Femmes), Ben Smith and Andy Stoller (Heart).
A change in priorities led Francis to focus on family, leaving the bright lights temporarily behind. Someone born with music in their soul never really walks away, and she continued to write and arrange in her home studio. In 2017 Francis returned to live music, building a band that wins over crowds with their in-the-pocket, authentic blues-rock every time they step on stage.
Her 2020 EP, When You Get What You Want was written in her home studio in South Seattle. When the time came to track the record, Francis turned to acclaimed producer Steve Fisk (Nirvana, Ben Gibbard, Car Seat Headrest) and mastering engineer Rachel Field (Pearl Jam, Thunderpussy). In December 2019 they settled into Seattle’s Avast Recording for a three-day session, playing live in one big room and cutting most of it in single takes. Joining Francis in the studio were Darren Loucas (guitar), Mark Lutwak (keys), Mike Peterson (drums), and Rebecca Young (bass). Carrie Akre (Hammerbox) contributed vocals on “Drawers”, and Tendai ‘Baba’ Maraire (Shabazz Palaces) played congas on the title track. Her first new music following a decade-long hiatus, When You Get What You Want surges and swells, shimmering with the ghosts of Laurel Canyon. A collection of songs that explore the ways we can rid ourselves of the conditioning that keeps us from following our bliss, this is a record that speaks directly to the listener. “I hope these songs make people feel seen”, explains Francis. "My aim is transformation.”
Julia's next musical project came soon after in a full-length live album, released in September 2021. And just like listening to literal thunder and lightning, to hear Julia Francis Live at the Royal Room is to understand a study of dualism. On its face, the raucous record is two halves. The LP’s first five songs come from a session in February 2020 and are played live in front of an audience pre-pandemic. It came in a time when no one really yet knew the words “Corona Virus.” The sonic electricity surges throughout the room. But the LP’s final four songs were recorded on the same stage in September 2020, six months after everyone knew what COVID-19 meant. Francis summons spells to fill the room again. For Francis, rock ‘n’ roll is both a lifestyle and a way to a larger sense of spirituality.
“When I hear Julia Francis sing I can’t help but think of the murky, howling, blistering place of the great old jump singers, like Big Mama Thornton, Bessie Smith, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, colliding with rock and rollers like Grace Slick, Janis Joplin, and Susan Tedeschi. There’s a mind-clearing blow to Julia’s voice that does just what music should: it takes you out of yourself.” –Iaan Hughes, Music Director 91.3 KBCS
“Francis’s style of singing, which is deliberate, dynamic, and brandishing a slightly jagged edge similar to 1970s icon Janis Joplin, feels apt, given the very 1970s free-thinking mindset of the music itself.” – American Songwriter
“Brassy, bold, and boisterous, Francis thinks of blues as a powerful tool to heal and unite. After a decade-long hiatus to focus on family, she’s back with a blast and authentic blues-rock.” – Elmore Magazine
“With painterly lyrics, wistful melodies, and that marvelous rich diamond of a voice, Julia had the style and grace to go fearlessly into whatever musical house we were building at the moment. Miss Francis delivers! I know, I was there.” –Victor DeLorenzo, Violent Femmes founding drummer
“The best blues musicians roar most fiercely in a live setting. That live muscle partially explains why “Cinderella”, the blistering new single from Julia Francis, is so damned kick-you-in-the-teeth great.” - Artist Home
“As she “gets intimate in her mind,” Julia Francis radiates confidence, self-love, and truth. Like Janis Joplin, she’s learned to make the feeling work for her.” - Audiofemme
“The sheer force of her voice is quite remarkable, but Francis’ true power comes from her ability to engage and uplift.” - South Seattle Emerald
