Victoria Davitt (born October 17, 1978), better known by stage name Victoria Vox, is a singer, songwriter and musician specialising in the
ukulele
The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings.
The tone and volume of the instrumen ...
. A native of
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The county seat of Brown County, it is at the head of Green Bay (known locally as "the bay of Green Bay"), a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It is above sea lev ...
, Vox now resides in
Costa Mesa, California
Costa Mesa (; Spanish for "Table Coast") is a city in Orange County, California. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to an urban area including part of the South Coast Plaza–John Wa ...
when not on tour.
''
The Baltimore Sun
''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries.
Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...
'' notes her influences as including
The Cranberries
The Cranberries were an Irish rock band formed in Limerick, Ireland. Originally named the Cranberry Saw Us, the band were formed in 1989 by lead singer Niall Quinn, guitarist Noel Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan and drummer Fergal Lawler. Quinn was ...
,
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
,
Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper Thornton (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album ''She's So Unusual'' (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achi ...
,
Patty Griffin
Patricia Jean Griffin (born March 16, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician.Griffin, Patrici She is a vocalist and plays guitar and piano. She is known for her stripped-down songwriting style in the folk music genre. Her songs ha ...
,
Sting, and
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
. Other influences include
Laurie Anderson
Laurel Philips Anderson (born June 5, 1947), known as Laurie Anderson, is an American avant-garde artist, composer, musician, and film director whose work spans performance art, pop music, and multimedia projects. Initially trained in violin and ...
and
Chet Baker
Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool".
Baker earned much attention and ...
.
History
At age 16, Vox spent a year living in France, living with a French family and becoming fluent in the French language. She began playing the guitar at age 17, a year before entering the
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...
in
Boston, Massachusetts., where she lived in the same dorm as singer-songwriter
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer ( ; born October 16, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born and raised in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Mayer attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, but left and moved to Atlanta in 1997 with ...
who said he wrote the song ''Victoria'' from his 1999 EP
Inside Wants Out
''Inside Wants Out'' is the debut EP by American singer-songwriter John Mayer. Released by Mayer Music on September 24, 1999, the album was later re-released by Columbia Records on August 2, 2002, with the omission of "Neon 12:47 AM". Basic tracks ...
about her. While at Berklee, she recorded her first record collaboration, performing with a band in ''Victoria and the Ultra Pink Bicycle Incident''. In 2000, she graduated with honors from the Berklee College of Music with a degree in songwriting. After her graduation, she moved briefly to
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
. Shortly after, she moved to England where she released an acoustic record of emotional material entitled ''Still''.
After moving back to Green Bay in 2003, she committed herself to a career as a professional musician and in 2004 formed a group called Tres Femmes with singer/songwriters Kellie Lin Knott of
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
and Stolie of Chicago. They released a self-titled acoustic cd and toured nationally.
[Irwin, Tom. "A ukulele lady like you", '']Illinois Times
''Illinois Times'' is a weekly free newspaper (distributed every Thursday) based in Springfield, Illinois.
Founded in 1975, the newspaper was acquired in 1977 by Fletcher Farrar Sr., a Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is an American landmark and ...
'', March 9–15, 2006, vol. 31, no. 30. Vox began to add bass and ukulele to the group's music and in 2004 she recorded ''In Between'', an acoustic EP that began to experiment with more pop sounds than her previous work. Following this release, the ukulele became her primary instrument and fans requested an album focusing on the uke.
In 2006, after moving from Green Bay to
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, she released her first album of ukulele music through Obus Records. The album was entitled ''Victoria Vox and Her Jumping Flea'' because "jumping flea" is the literal translation of the Hawaiian word "ukulele". Though her professional, performance repertoire contains little traditional Hawaiian ukulele music, with the 2008 release of Chameleon, Vox gained renown for her use of the ukulele with pop music. Vox is featured in a short segment in the extras on the DVD release of
''Mighty Uke: The Amazing Comeback of a Musical Underdog'', a 2010 documentary on the ukulele.
Victoria Vox has toured the US, and plays over 125 performance dates annually, including ukulele festivals across the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, France, and England. She has been featured on
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
, and her song "America" from ''Jumping Flea'' was featured on the
A&E show ''
Random 1
''Random 1'' is a documentary-style reality television series that aired from November 2005 to January 2006 on the A&E cable network. In each episode, hosts John Chester and Andre Miller travel from town to town, in Miller's real-life, rickety pic ...
''.
Vox was the runner-up in the International Acoustic Music Awards for 'My Darlin' Beau' (''Jumping Flea''), and later won First place for 'C'est Noyé' ("Chameleon") in the same competition. She has been profiled in
Relix
''Relix'', originally and occasionally later ''Dead Relix'', is a magazine that focuses on live and improvisational music. The magazine was launched in 1974 as a handmade newsletter devoted to connecting people who recorded Grateful Dead concert ...
magazine's "On the Verge: 5 Artists You Should Know" section.
In December 2009, Victoria Vox performed
mouth trumpet in the "Meal or No Meal" segment on ''
The Jay Leno Show
''The Jay Leno Show'' is a talk show created and hosted by Jay Leno. Premiering on NBC on September 14, 2009, the program aired on weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ET/ PT through February 9, 2010. The program was modeled upon the format of a late ...
''. After being discovered by producers on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
.com, she auditioned over the phone, performing
Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...
's "
Poker Face". For ''The Jay Leno Show'', Vox performed a cover of
Europe's
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entire ...
"
The Final Countdown" despite her own preference for her original music. Vox was awarded a
gift certificate
A gift card also known as gift certificate in North America, or gift voucher or gift token in the UK is a prepaid stored-value money card, usually issued by a retailer or bank, to be used as an alternative to cash for purchases within a parti ...
for eight to the Japanese restaurant
Benihana for her performance in the segment, which included a solo performance of the "mouth trumpet" which she produces by singing through slightly parted lips, on the right side of her mouth.
Sony BMG
Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...
and
Austrian
Austrian may refer to:
* Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent
** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law
* Austrian German dialect
* Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...
artist
Valerie Sajdik recorded "Noyé" ("C'est Noyé" penned by Victoria Vox) on her 2010 release, Ich Bin Du Bist.
Other recent awards (2010–12) include six Washington Area Music Awards (Wammies) (for Folk – Contemporary Vocalist, Contemporary Album of the Year, and Fan Favorite) and the people's vote for the "Vox Pop" award for Adult Contemporary Album of the Year (''Exact Change'') in 10th Annual Independent Music Awards. She is also a member of
1% for the Planet.
Vox married musician Jack Maher in 2016 and the two perform as Jack & the Vox. Their honeymoon was spent on a tour of Belgium, Denmark, France, Great Britain and Ireland where they participated in the Grand Northern Ukulele Festival.
Instruments
While on tour in Hawaii in 2006, Vox was offered an endorsement with KoAloha Ukuleles of
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...
. She later became non-exclusive and accepted sponsorships by
Mya-Moe Ukuleles
Mya-Moe Ukuleles, LLC is an American ukulele manufacturing company established in 2008. The company's original headquarters and primary workshop were in White Salmon, Washington. The current headquarters and workshop are in Glenview, Illinois, jus ...
and
Petros.
[von Nagel, Amber, YouTube Sensations, ''Ukulele'' Fall 2013, Volume 1, Issue 3, p.58] In 2017, Vox signed an exclusive ukulele sponsorship with Kala Brand Music Ukulele Company, based in Petaluma, California (USA). Since 2020, Vox is again non-exclusive and plays Kala, Mya-Moe, Petros, Romero Creations, and Motu.
Discography
* 1999: ''Ultra Pink Bicycle Incident''
* 2003: ''Still''
* 2004: ''Tres Femmes''
* 2004: ''In Between (EP)'' (produced by Jon Tyler Starr)
* 2006: ''Victoria Vox and Her Jumping Flea'' (produced by Mike Tarantino and Paul Kim)
* 2008: ''Chameleon'' (produced by Mike Tarantino)
* 2008: ''Holiday Card (EP)'' (produced by Mike Tarantino and Paul Kim)
* 2009:
Square Pegs, Round HolesCompilation''
* 2010: ''Exact Change'' (produced by Mike Tarantino) - Adult Contemporary Album, Vox Populi Winner, Independent Music Awards
* 2010: "Colorful Heart" on
A Song Still RemainsCompilation'' (charity album for the Duchenne Foundation)
* 2011: ''Vox Ukulele Cello'' (produced by Victoria Vox) - 2011 Washington Area Music Awards, Folk Contemporary Album of the Year
* 2011: ''Goose Creek Songwriter Sessions. Single track.''
* 2012: ''Under the Covers'' (cover song album, produced by Steve Hamilton)
* 2013: ''Boombox Séance'' (side project band produced by Geoff Stanfield)
* 2013: ''Key'' (produced by Geoff Stanfield) - Adult Contemporary Album Nominee, Independent Music Awards
* 2015: ''When the Night Unravels'' (produced by Geoff Stanfield)
* 2017:''One World'' on
Ukulele SirensCompilation (charity album for ocean research and preservation)''
* 2018: ''Colorful Heart'' (produced by Victoria Vox and Hal Ratliff)
* 2022: ''Nirvana In REM'' (Inspired by the art of Fred Stonehouse)
References
External links
Victoria Voxofficial site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vox, Victoria
American women singer-songwriters
American ukulele players
Berklee College of Music alumni
1978 births
Living people
Musicians from Green Bay, Wisconsin
21st-century American singers
21st-century American women singers
Singer-songwriters from Wisconsin