"It's Magic": A Conversation with Stella Cole

Interview by Imani Dominique Busby

Photography provided by Montreal Jazz Festival

In an era dominated by fast-paced trends and digital pop, Stella Cole stands out as a voice of timeless elegance. With a deep love for the Great American Songbook and classic Hollywood musicals, she has captivated millions by reimagining beloved standards through a fresh yet nostalgic lens. As she prepared to take the stage at the renowned Montreal Jazz Festival and release her upcoming album It’s Magic, Stella sat down with us to share her journey and the heartfelt storytelling that defines her artistry.

Can you please tell us a bit about yourself and your introduction to making music?

Yeah, absolutely. I sing a lot of songs from the Great American Songbook. I mostly sing jazz standards and music from the 1940s and 1950s, whether that is musical theater songs or jazz standards. They actually have a lot of crossover.

I grew up on old movies, so that is how I got into this music. Movies like The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins, Singin’ in the Rain, and The Wizard of Oz were all my favorite movies as a kid and are still my favorite movies today. 

That is how I discovered this music, and we are about to perform it at the Montreal Jazz Festival tonight. So yeah, very excited about it!

You mentioned the Great American Songbook and classic films such as The Wizard of Oz and Singin’ in the Rain. What do you think it was about these old Hollywood musicals and movies that resonated with you so deeply growing up, and still today?

I'm not really sure what it was. Honestly, I think I connected with them on a pretty profound level very early. When I was two years old, I watched The Wizard of Oz for the first time. My parents always tell me this story, and I always tell it too. 

Two-year-olds are not known for sitting still through an entire movie, but apparently that is exactly what I did. Just eyes wide open, immediately in love. After that, I asked to watch it every single day for over a year. Seriously, just obsessed. I had a Wizard of Oz birthday party when I was three. I'm not even sure why I loved it so much. I think something about it just spoke to my soul. That sounds cheesy, but I think the music was something I immediately fell in love with, and the dreaminess of the Technicolor film and the worlds they created were very attractive to me. These movies are just magic.

I know that what I like about them today as an adult is the timeless music and the comforting quality they have. The nostalgia, I think, is the reason I still love these movies so much.

I feel like that nostalgia and comforting sense is probably what a lot of us are drawn to in your music. It adds such a unique and beautiful element to your work. 
I first learned about you through social media and I've been a fan ever since. In a way, you've used viral media to almost revive pre-digital music. What was that experience like for you, going viral and getting so many responses to what you're putting out into the world?

It has been amazing. I started posting videos during the pandemic, so during COVID in late 2020 and early 2021 was when I really started my online presence. I was doing it for fun and out of boredom because I was a college student during COVID, and I missed singing. I missed performing. I was in acting school at the time and had taken a semester off because I did not want to pay for Zoom acting classes. I did not want my family to have to spend money on that. So I just did not really have a lot to do, and I was not expecting at all the response that I got.

I always tell people, this thing that I am doing right now, I did not even really know it could be a career. I had no idea that so many people love this music! I always thought it was this weird, little niche hobby that I had. Realizing that so many millions of people around the world connect to it, and that it has a global fan base, and that it can connect me to so many people, was the most exciting and surprising thing in the world.

But yeah, it has been just overwhelming. The people who follow me online are overwhelmingly positive, and it seems to bring people comfort, like you said, and some joy and nostalgia. So yeah, it has been wonderful!

Yeah, that is wonderful! Have you heard any responses or feedback from artists whose styles are similar to yours, but maybe from an earlier generation?

Yeah, for sure! The first person who ever reposted one of my videos, who is a musician or singer or public figure, was James Taylor, which was amazing. I grew up on his music and I am just obsessed with him as a singer and as a person. He has such Mr. Rogers vibes, just the most comforting music ever. He posted a video of me singing Moon River, which later became a single on my first album. That was such a full circle moment!

After that, Michael Bublé noticed me, and so did David Foster and Meghan Trainor. It has been insane to get recognition from those people.

You spoke a little about Moon River. That cover, among many of your others, is so well-crafted. What is your approach to reinterpreting these well-loved, classic songs while also adding your unique touch?

Thank you, that is very sweet. I think the way I approach singing is from an acting perspective more than a musical one. I just go on my instincts based on what the lyrics of the song mean to me. I only sing songs that feel so close to me, that they feel like they could have been written about my own life, even though they were written seventy or eighty years ago.

So I think just telling that story naturally influences the choices I make for the arrangement, the tempo, the dynamics, and the way I sing the song. It is always storytelling first for me.

Would you say that your upbringing and education in theater have impacted the way you compose and perform your songs?

Yeah, definitely! A lot of my biggest inspirations are Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, and Julie Andrews. Those are all singers I grew up on. They are not just singers, they are actors and dancers too. Judy Garland was an amazing dancer, just a full performer all around.

I always try to stand on stage and tell a story to the audience when I sing, not just sing pretty. I think that definitely comes from my acting background. That is how you really connect to people, by feeling the emotions of the song yourself. When you do that, you can connect with the audience and they will feel those emotions too. So yeah, that is definitely my acting training applied to singing this music.

Is there anything you can share about the creative process behind your new single, "Till There Was You"?

It was arranged by the wonderful musician, pianist, and arranger who worked on my Christmas EP and my last record. His name is Alan Broadbent. He’s amazing. He’s worked with Barbra Streisand and won a Grammy working with Natalie Cole and Michael Bublé. He’s worked with all kinds of people. Just a total legend and I was so happy to work with him again.

Speaking again about emotion, when Alan and I talked about how we wanted the strings to sound, I knew I wanted a string orchestra because that is what old movies sound like to me. That is what I wanted this album to feel like, very old Hollywood vibes. When I talked to Alan about the arrangements, it was always story first. I told him how each part of the song made me feel, and he wrote the arrangements based on that. You can really hear that in the song and across the whole record. The orchestra and I are very in sync dynamically, and I think that is because my emotional choices were influencing them.

It was so much fun to record live with these amazing string players and feed off their energy while they were feeding off mine. That kind of thing does not happen in studios much anymore. So much of pop music is made digitally. That was a really special part of the creative process, for sure.

Yeah, that is really incredible. And congratulations! He sounds like such a wonderful person to collaborate with.

Thanks! I am very lucky. Definitely.

How do you feel about playing Jazz Fest in Montreal? Have you been to Montreal before? Have you had a chance to explore the city? How are you feeling about the upcoming performance?

I am thrilled to be here. I have not had a chance to explore the city at all, unfortunately. It is my first time here but we arrived and went straight to soundcheck, and then I had about an hour at the hotel before heading to the venue.

But I am so thrilled to be here. I love Canada so much. Montreal Jazz Fest is such a historic and huge jazz festival. It is a really big deal! I am honestly honored to be playing here. It is one of the first jazz festivals I have ever played. To be performing at the largest jazz festival in a city I have never even been to is such a great feeling. I am super excited!

I am so happy to hear it, and I am sure everything will go incredibly well! If a listener could only hear one song from your catalogue, what would you recommend and why?

I think right now I would recommend Till There Was You. I am not just saying that because it is the newest single, but I think this new album sounds like something I have always dreamed of making. I am actually really proud of it! I have been pretty critical of my earlier recordings, but this one I feel really proud of.

I think it has the Hollywood magic, the nostalgia, and the charm I have been going for. Because this is my second album and my third project, I have learned a lot. Till There Was You is from The Music Man, so it shows my musical theater background. But Alan is very jazz-influenced, so it has that influence too. And it is a love song, which is my favorite kind of song to sing!

What is the message or theme that you want your listeners to take away from your work, whether from this song or any of your past releases?

I think that sense of calm I keep talking about. The world is so chaotic, and media is so fast. Everyone has shortened attention spans, and everything moves so quickly.

This music was written during a time of global chaos in the 1940s. I hope it provides people with peace and levity right now. I hope it helps counteract all that speed and distraction. I also want to introduce new audiences to this genre. I think a lot of people my age are not familiar with these songs, and they should be! I hope people discover them through me.

Wonderful. Kind of on this theme of introducing our generation to the Great American Songbook, if you could have dinner with any artist from that era, who would it be and what would you ask them?

I think probably Judy Garland, just because there is so much. She had such a full and interesting life, sometimes tragic, but I think people focus too much on the tragedy. I would love to hear her story in her own words. I think I would just ask her, “Tell me everything.” I want to know what her life and career were really like. I would love to hear any story she would tell!

For our last question, do you have any upcoming songs, videos, or shows that people should keep an eye out for?

Yes! I have an album coming out on August 22. It is called It’s Magic. It is my major label debut with Decca Records under Universal Music Group, which is all very exciting! I have another single coming out at the end of next month. The album is available for pre-order on all platforms, and the vinyl is available too. That is definitely what I am most excited about right now!

Congratulations, that is so exciting! I will definitely be keeping an eye out for it. Thank you so much for making time to speak with me, and congratulations again on Jazz Fest. I am sure it will go so well. I really appreciate you speaking with me.

Thank you so much! I really appreciate it. It was so nice to meet you, and I am looking forward to reading the article!

Woman in a black dress with white patterns sitting on a beige carpet.
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