Raised in the back woods of the Ozark mountains, Anastasia spent most of her childhood wandering through the wilderness exploring the the sounds & rhythms of her natural surroundings. Thus, the beginning of her fascination with sound, voice, percussion & dance. She began performing at age 7 & continued throughout high school. She moved to Los Angeles at 19, where she collaborated on various recording projects before joining a rock band & toured throughout southern California...
Raised in the back woods of the Ozark mountains, Anastasia spent most of her childhood wandering through the wilderness exploring the the sounds & rhythms of her natural surroundings. Thus, the beginning of her fascination with sound, voice, percussion & dance. She began performing at age 7 & continued throughout high school. She moved to Los Angeles at 19, where she collaborated on various recording projects before joining a rock band & toured throughout southern California & the southwest U.S. Being extremely versitile, she covers many genres of music: R&R, R&B, Jazz, Country, Originals & beyond. Her vocal abilities are so multifaceted that it’s difficult to put her into just one musical category.
“I wanted to perform all kinds of music & I wanted to strip everything back to the essential basics. There is something pure & authentic in music performed with the essentials: a voice, guitar or piano & percussion to accompany it. That thought was the inspiration behind the CD project. I'm thrilled that it’s been so well received. So many people request that I sing their favorite cover tunes that making a series of "Slip Beneath the Covers" CDs was the logical next step.”
Notable events:
From 2011-Present:
Formed "Butterfly Breakdown" in Portland, OR
Ranked Portland's #1 Indie/Blues/Rock Group for 4 years in a row by ReverbNation
2015: Nominated "Best Indie Rock Artists of the Year" by Women in Charge Radio, Atlanta, GA
2014: Selected to be sponsored by Breedlove Guitars
2013: Released "A Little Water" EP
2012: Released "Live from Maui" Live CD
2008: Anastasia & Nils open for Cyndi Lauper at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. Upon request by the Grammy award winning Diva herself, they perform with Cyndi during the show. Check Anastasia's website for photos.
2007: Anastasia tours NYC in August.
"Slip Beneath the Covers" Vol. 1 is recorded between August & October then released in December.
2006:
Anastasia Gilliam the VooDoo Suns were recognized by the Hawaii Academy of Recording Arts as:
• Most Promising New Artists
• Best Group
• Best Songwriters
• Best Producers of the Year
Their debut CD release “Songs from the Haleakala Kitchen” was nominated for the Hawaiian Na Hoku Hanohano Award for:
• BEST ORIGINAL ROCK ALBUM
• BEST ORIGINAL SONG ("Invisible")
• FAVORITE ENTERTAINERS OF THE YEAR by Borders Books & Music.
2005:
She was voted 1st runner up as “BEST MUSICIAN on MAUI by the readers of Maui Time Weekly Magazine.”
VooDoo Suns voted "BEST BAND ON MAUI"
She & Nils opened up for “Collective Soul” & “Pat Benetar” at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center.
2003:
Anastasia began volunteering her spare time to MANA'O RADIO. She supported the station through fund raisers & produced a 4 hour radio variety show as guest celebrity DJ on the first Saturday of each month.
From 1991-2001:
Anastasia moved to Maui & formed the highly-acclaimed alternative rock band “The Missionaries”. They extensively toured the Hawaiian club circuit for 7 years. In that time they won recognition from MTV’s independent band contest & received mention in “VANITY FAIR” magazine in an interview with screenwriter JOE ESTHERHAUS. Appearing on the “Tonight Show” with JAY LENO, DENNIS RODMAN talked about the time that he & EDDIE VEDDER of “PEARL JAM” joined the Missionaries on stage at a Lahaina night club. Rodman wrote about that experience in his book, “As Bad As I Want To Be”.
In the summer of 1996 the Missionaries recorded & produced an all-original CD. That year they performed on stage with HOOTIE & the BLOWFISH. Anastasia landed in singer’s heaven when she was invited on stage to sing a cappella with “LADYSMITH BLACK MOMBAZO”. From 1998 to the present, she has continued her session work and has recorded several independent CD projects. She’s opened for a diverse range of shows including “YES” and RANDY TRAVIS.
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