If her follow up is anything like her debut, IвЂ™ll be sure to pick up a copy of it to add it to my collection.Д¬heck out ElleвЂ™s Facebook page to keep up with her music. Her debut album, вЂњPerfectly ImperfectвЂќ, was one of the only female R&B albums that I purchased that year.Д¬urrently working on her sophomore album, she recently released a single titled вЂњDonвЂ™t Wanna DanceвЂќ featuring A$AP Ferg. The fifthВ act I was able to catch was Elle Varner anВ R&B artist who emerged during the early 2010s, whose single вЂњRefillвЂќ charted in March 2012. Each of the acts performed short sets to give the audience a sampling of what their music was all about. Live, I decided to watch the various acts performing on the main stage of the convention center. On the second day of the BET Experience at L.A. вЂњSometimes, IвЂ™ll just be humming a tune off the top of my head and it will turn into something bigger.вЂќ Such was the case with the song, вЂњRefill.CLICK HERE TO SEE THE OTHER PERFORMANCES THAT I CAUGHT DURING THE BET EXPERIENCE AT L.A. вЂњI keep my phone on-hand so I can record whatever sound or phrase comes to me because I never know when itвЂ™s coming or where itвЂ™s coming from,вЂќ she says of her creative process. Like many songwriters whoвЂ™ve come before her, Elle admits that ideas reveal themselves in different forms, at different times and places. Crafting the album also proved to be a full-circle moment for the 22-year-old singer/songwriter as she enlisted the help of her parents вЂ“ Jimmy Varner and Mikelyn Roderick вЂ“ both of whom contributed their production and vocal arrangement talents and pushed Elle toward, and beyond, the bounds of her creativity. With the release of her debut album, Perfectly Imperfect (MBK Entertainment/RCA Records), which she wrote and co-produced, itвЂ™s evident that her early experiences have served her well. Shortly thereafter, Elle was discovered by MBK Entertainment, honed her skills even further and eventually became one of the first artists featured in BETвЂ™s Music Matters campaign for 2010. вЂњTo be recognized for my talent in a program that only selects 24 students per class, out of thousands, was like, вЂWow!вЂ™ I knew that I had really stepped up to the plate,вЂќ says Elle. Earning a coveted spot in New York UniversityвЂ™s Clive Davis Program of Recorded Music was further proof that she was headed in the right direction. Estelle headlined the show which featured performances from Bridget Kelly, Luke James, Stacy Barthe and Elle Varner, and was hosted by Rocsi, Terrence J and Angie Martinez. Live, I decided to watch the various acts performing on the main stage of the. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE OTHER PERFORMANCES THAT I CAUGHT DURING THE BET EXPERIENCE AT L.A. The song, which she played with one string on the guitar, scored the top prize at a local talent show. R&B was alive and well last night in NYC as the BET Music Matters Tour hit the stage of famed venue Irving Plaza. Elle Varner BET Experience: Music Matters 6/29/14 PHOTOS J/ Leave a Comment. Everything from me comes from the most basic point of musical understanding.вЂќДЄt 11, she joined the Amazing Grace Conservatory and by 15, she penned her first song, entitled, вЂњThankful,вЂќ while studying at the Academy of Music at Hamilton High School. Sometimes, when you know too much about an instrument, you can get lost in that. вЂњI wasnвЂ™t very disciplined about practicing when I was younger, which I think was a blessing in disguise,вЂќ notes Elle, who eventually taught herself to play the guitar and now plays вЂњdrums, guitar, a little bass, a little piano and flute.

Soon after, she had a short-lived moment with the flute, followed by formal piano lessons. That was the spark that ignited her drive to pursue the arts.

Born in Los Angeles proper and raised throughout southern CaliforniaвЂ™s city limits, Elle, now a resident of Brooklyn, recalls the first time she really heard her own voice вЂ“ she was nine years old and singing in her churchвЂ™s youth choir.

Elle varner music matters