TACOMA COMES OUT FOR VICCI, RALLIES FOR REED RILEY >>>
Tacoma's Vicci Martinez became a household name last year as she competed on NBC-TV's The Voice. She spent the next several months in Los Angeles prepping material for Vicci, her debut for Universal Republic (due in June). Along the way she found time to drop in on the Grammys and Leno.
But Sunday night she got back to her roots, taking the stage at Jazzbones for the first time since she unveiled her "Road Warrior" meets Pat Benatar stylo with Cee Lo.
The occasion: A benefit for Reed Riley, the man who got her on the path to stardom more than a decade ago. Riley - her manager of eight years and the subject of Martinez's signature ballad "Heart of Gold" - was on hand. But he recently suffered a heart attack and is scheduled for open-heart surgery.
"I have to sing tonight, so I'm going to try to not to cry," Martinez declared early on. "Reed has been a big rock in my life, and he's been one of my biggest supporters since I started, the first guy who had a little bit of pull in this town to really believe and support me."
The Vicci Martinez Army was out in full force, with fans wrapped around the block before doors opened shortly after 6 p.m. And a packed house witnessed a modified version of the band - Heart drummer Ben Smith filled in for the absent Darin Watkins - as it romped through fan favorites and few fresh, new cuts, including "Hold Me, Darlin',""Kiss" and "Let Go." A sample of Martinez and company in action below.
But before the show, Tacoma's rising star took a few minutes to tell us what she's been up to in the City of Angels.
What to expect from Vicci: Expect her to branch out by injecting synth, strings and even a little drum machine into her previously rootsy sound.
"I think most people when they hear it at first kind of go, ‘Oh, whoah. This has synthesizers. And this sounds like it could be at a dance club.' It's kind of crazy. And then there's some bluesy soul influenced stuff in there, too.
"I've been playing for years, and you just evolve. There's always gonna be people that critique and can be negative about things. But all I can say is I'm evolving and I want to continue to evolve. I'm never gonna put myself in any category. I'm just going to do what I love."
Superstar in training:
"People do recognize me. I didn't realize how many people actually do watch The Voice. It's so funny because I always get recognized when I'm in my sweats and I just worked out and look like I just woke up. But, whatever. I don't care. That's what I love about Tacoma. You get to wear your sweats wherever the hell you want."
Going Hollywood:
The old Vicci rocked rocked saggy jeans, over-sized t-shirts and bare feet on stage. The new Vicci rocks skinny jeans, makeup and - gasp - Florentini and Baker.
Say it ain't so, Vicci!
"I've been a tomboy my whole life - always wearing oversized stuff. I want to be comfortable, whatever. But (the makeover) kind of happened on the show. We started wearing our own clothes, and the stylists on the show just kind of took us to this other level.
"I'll admit, I've always been bad with style and makeup and whatever the hell. I don't care about it. But if somebody's going to help me out, cool, I'll do it."