Singer-songwriter Sonia Leigh, 32, grew up in Florida, but she proudly calls herself an Atlanta native.
At 17, she moved to Georgia with just few items, including her guitar, and was soon playing at venues such as Eddie’s Attic. Throughout the years, she’s brought her mix of blues, country and rock to Smith’s Olde Bar, the Park Tavern and the Dixie Tavern. But this Friday and Saturday, she’ll make her way to a slightly bigger stage -- the Verizon Amphitheatre in Alpharetta -- where she’ll open for the Zac Brown Band. Never one to forget her roots, she’ll return Sunday to kick off 99X’s Unplugged in the Park summer series at the Park Tavern.
Leigh, who's been friends with Brown from playing in the same local circles, recently signed to Brown’s Southern Ground Artist label. Her debut album, “1978 December,” is set to come out later this summer. She talked with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution this week about her music.
Q: Tell us about some of your musical influences.
A: A lot of different kinds of music have inspired me throughout my life. I grew up listening to Willie Nelson, Alabama, Wanda Jackson, George Strait. Then I started to get a little older and started getting influenced by southern rock, the Steve Miller Band, Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin. Then in my early 20s I started listening to the blues and that's when I met Sean Costello and started listening to old school blues. But I respect and love all kinds of music.
Everything that I’ve listened to throughout my life has influenced my writing style and music style. Even when you don’t know that you are being influenced by music, you are. You can be in an elevator, on hold on the phone or playing Nintendo. It’s everywhere even you’re not aware.
Q: What does your new album say about who you are to old fans as well as new listeners?
A: There are a lot of different sides to me. I think this record definitely shows the different parts of me and my life. The title track for my new album is "1978 December" and that's just about being gone and working so hard being on the road. It's about not really getting to see your family or being home much. Sometimes you can kind of forget what it's like to be with your family. That song is a very good representation of what a lot of musicians go through and sacrifice to play music. And in "Ain't Dead Yet," I touch upon Sean Costello's death.
Q: There’s a song on your new album called “My Name is Money.” How did that tune come about?
A: I've been in Atlanta a long time, hustling around on the music scenes, and obviously the musicians left aren't the wealthiest. I really didn't have the nicest wardrobe for shows and when I signed with Southern Ground, Zac kind of told me I needed to go buy some clothes. His wife and I went shopping and that day, I could pretty much pick out what I wanted. It was kind of a situation I really hadn't ever been in and I just started thinking about how you feel when you have money and when you don't have money, and how powerful it is on the entire world. When I came home, I immediately picked up the guitar and pretty much wrote that song in about 15 minutes. I was just thinking if money could talk, what would it say?
Weekend shows
Sonia Leigh opens for the Zac Brown Band Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. at Verizon Amphitheatre, 2200 Encore Park, Alpharetta. Tickets are $26 to $50 at www.ticketmaster.com. She will also perform Sunday at 99X’s Unplugged in the Park at the Park Tavern at Piedmont Park. Free.
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