Julie Roberts

For what seemed like an eternity, blue-eyed country soul singer Julie Roberts sat just a few feet away from the man who could make all of her dreams come true. But she never uttered a word to him about it. After moving to Nashville and graduating from Belmont University, Roberts took a job at Mercury Records to support herself while pursuing her goal of becoming a country singer. Unbeknownst to any of her co-workers, she spent her free time honing her songwriting skills and performing at various clubs around Music City. She spent her days as the assistant to Luke Lewis, Chairman of Universal Music Group Nashville, and her nights as a prot�g� of renowned producer Brent Rowan. She was always careful the two worlds never collided. "I needed to work and I was scared I was going to get fired if Luke knew," she says. "I knew my desire to be a singer was there, but I needed to be a devoted employee to him." But as Roberts learned, you can't keep fate a secret for long. In 2003, Rowan met with Lewis to play some new songs from several artists in whom Lewis had expressed an interest. At the end of the session, Rowan played a few demos he had recorded with Roberts. Lewis said, "I want to know who this is. I want to meet this girl." Rowan said, "It's the girl right down the hall. It's your assistant." So after an often-difficult journey that spanned several states and many years, Roberts was able to take those seemingly insurmountable final steps -- from her assistant desk to Lewis' office -- to ink a record deal that would turn her fantasy into an immediate reality. (And yes, she quit her day job in August 2003.) Lewis was immediately sold on the music of Roberts -- an appealing blend of country and blues that both embraces country's heritage and reveals a fresh, contemporary sound. Roberts' music is where art and commerce meet. The stunning blonde, whose striking good looks are being compared to Faith Hill's, is mainstream country's answer to Norah Jones and Bonnie Raitt. Her emotion-soaked, sensuous debut CD is a stark contrast to the pop-country music that's so prevalent now. The music of Julie Roberts is raw and real, honest yet optimistic. "I just look for lyrics that are real," she says. "That's the basis for all my songs. The lyrics have to mean something to me. When I listen for a song, I have got to know someone who has lived it or I have to have lived it myself, because I become that character for three minutes. I want every song to hit someone in some way, because they hit me." more at http://julieroberts.com