Music and Me

Hi!! My name is Jennelle Ashaé Horton, and I am an undergraduate Music and Dance double Major at Converse University, and also a part of the Acrobatics and Tumbling team. Music and the arts have been in my life for as long as I can remember. I grew up in Rock Hill/Clover/Lake Wylie area. As a child, I sang in church, performed in a group called the Clover Choristers, and played the violin. 

In middle school, I started playing the flute and ukulele. I would take private lessons for the flute because those fingerings would always trip me up. In the summers, my sister Jenaé and I would participate in a program called ST-ARTS (Special Talent in the Arts) at Withrop University. This program was a great outlet for young kids like us, who were passionate about the arts. This is where I found my love for music, playing the ukulele, and singing. 

In high school, I dove more and more into singing and acting. I joined this choir called the Cover Choraliers. We sang, we danced, we acted; anything you can think of, we did. This wasn't your typical high school choir. We worked endless hours perfecting, and even though it was tiring sometimes, the end result always paid off.

Charlotte's Web (Me as a spider)

Clover Choristers 

Me Junior Year(Chiffon) || Cydni and I Senior Year at Spaghetti Supper

I enjoy everything in the arts world and could talk about it for days, and I would love to share my passions with you.

Something I am enjoying right now is my favorite musical ever, Shrek the Musical, mainly because of Sutton Foster. She is an amazing actress and singer. My favorite song is "Morning Person" because of how complex and humorous it is. Sutton Foster first began her career at the age of 15, when she was a contestant on a competitive show called Star Search. After graduating, she then attended Carnegie Mellon University for a year but then left to pursue a theatrical career full-time. I would love to see her in a Broadway show someday. Here is the YouTube link to the song, if you have never heard it before, Morning Person.

Music is very special to me, but the one I hold closest is classical music. I enjoy singing classical music. I love the variety of challenges that come with it as well. I began singing classical music in high school and haven't been able to stop ever since then! A song that I love is called La Diva de L'Empire, composed by Erik Satie. This song is in French, but when translated, it means, "The Scarlet of the Empire". The song is about a young female singer who captivates her audiences with a carefully crafted image of innocence, but beneath her sweet smile and modest gestures lies a calculated performance, as she knowingly arouses and controls the admiration of the fashionable men who idolize her. I sang this song in my Junior year. My high school voice lesson teacher sang this song when she was in college, so for her to give this song to me felt like a fever dream! At the end of my senior year, she also gave me the soprano book with this song in it. Here is the video of her fabulous singing. Brandi Icard: La Diva de L'Empire

Even though I do enjoy music, there is a genre that I can't seem to get into. I hope I'm not stepping on any toes, but...metal music. It is a bit too screamy for my personal comfort and makes my throat sore and itchy when I do hear it. The male band Suicide Silence, I am not a big fan of. I am sure that their music has meaning, just like any other artist out there, but to me, it just sounds like yelling + yelling = AHHHHH. A song example of this AHHHHH feeling is You Only Live Once. I have never quite been a fan of this style of singing, but I am down to take song recommendations for sure to help me not have such a strong stereotype. But to wrap up, my journey with music has come a long way, and I am excited to see what I do in my future! 

Please enjoy this video of my singing!!