 At the wonderful age of 34 Michelle Wiggins, with stage name Michelle Garvey, has been affectionately nick named "The Voice". She is well-known in Barbadian music circles for her powerful voice and jazz-like interpretations. She has performed professionally since 1998 and although mostly known for singing Jazz, Michelle can perform most Genres including Soul, Reggae, or R & B. She is also a prolific song writer.
Michelle is a 1996 Graduate of Saint Augustines College, North Carolina where she gained a BS. in Physical Education and Health. She was nominated Valedictorian by her graduating class.
Her musical experience is wide and varied. In 1996, Michelle won the National Independence Cultural Show singing a self-penned composition entitled Barbados Let's Celebrate. In 1997, she was adjudged 3rd Place winner in the 1997 Barbados Song Contest, again with a self-penned composition called Beautiful Caribbean.
Michelle is the former Lead Vocalist of the Almond International Orchestra, the standing orchestra for the Almond Beach Resort hotel chain. She is a featured artiste on four tracks of one of the hotel's promotional CDs. Michelle has also appeared as the featured artiste at Night of the Divas concert during the 2000 Barbados Jazz Festival.
On the international scene, Michelle has performed in London, England where she sang for over 20,000 people and also in Ghana, Africa, where she was a featured act at the 2001 Pan African Festival.
In her singing and song writing, Michelle is passionate and true to herself and heritage. With her captivating voice, she brings you right into her performance - leaving you thrilled and wanting more. Michelle’s next step is to record her many songs; giving her audience much more of herself than ever before.
Currently, Michelle performs every Friday Night at one of the world's most prestigious hotels, Barbados' own Sandy Lane Hotel. There she performs Jazz in the famous Monkey Bar.
Michelle Garvey: What you didn’t know… |
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| Q: |
Are you where you’ve always wanted to be in your musical career? |
| A: |
No. I wish I were further along at this time. |
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| Q: |
What is your greatest professional challenge? |
| A: |
Currently it is time management. I am very much involved in the family business and have other family responsibilities. Prioritizing is a major factor, fortunately writing and singing music is progressively and speedily getting higher on the list. |
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| Q: |
Who is your favourite artiste(s) and why? |
| A: |
Stevie Wonder. I love his soulful style of music and his natural ability to write and sing. He seems so genuine and I connect emotionally with his music. He’s a living legend to me. |
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| Q: |
What’s your favourite pastime? |
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Movies and any kind of live entertainment. |
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What’s your favourite meal? |
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Pizza and Popcorn; I can’t put one over the other. |
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| Q: |
On Saturday nights where are you likely to be? |
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Hanging out with friends. |
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| Q: |
What upsets you most in the music industry? |
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Some entertainers’ acceptance of mediocre treatment e.g. unacceptable payment and inadequate facilities to prepare for a performance, just to name a few. |
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| Q: |
What is your guiding philosophy? |
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Put God first and don’t do it unless you can give 100% of yourself. |
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| Q: |
What is your major accomplishment to date? |
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Motherhood - The birth of my son. |
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| Q: |
When you look to the future what do you see? |
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I am a very emotional person and I believe in miracles. I want to reach my audience and touch people emotionally with the hope that in some way they can reflect/identify or even learn from the message or experience I am singing/writing about. |
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| Q: |
Where did the nickname “The Voice” come from |
| A: |
Can’t put my finger on it but the local journalists said I had a very powerful voice and began referring to me as “The Voice” in performance reviews which were published. |
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