At the age of 3, Terry Gresham’s mother overheard him singing a commercial jingle at the dinner table. Thinking it was rude to sing while eating, his mother told him to stop. Luckily, he didn’t listen.
A native of Buffalo, NY, the R&B/Soul singer, songwriter and producer has been captivating audiences since his first public performance in church at the age of 5. Though Terry Gresham’s musical roots are in the church, interestingly enough, he doesn’t come from a musical family. Many are surprised to know that such a talented yet sultry and powerful voice was never trained; it was truly a gift. Terry found his passion for singing by age 13, and quickly became a regular at talent shows, concerts, weddings and other events in and around Buffalo, establishing a reputation for belting out smooth, soulful tunes. With performance experience in hand, Terry looked to enhance his abilities even further. Influenced by a number of artists, including Stevie Wonder, Luther Vandross, Donny Hathaway, Brian McKnight and Marvin Gaye, he quickly realized that these great vocalists were also gifted writers. Terry was encouraged to expand his talents and hone in on his songwriting abilities, something he’d begun at 15 years old.
Before long, Terry was consistently jotting down melodies in his head, turning them into songs. One of his first songs was recorded by Grammy Award winning producer Stevie J, formerly head of “The Hitmen,” a team of Bad Boy Records producers. Other songs were recorded and produced by Marcus Bell (Faith Evans) and Malik Williams. But it wasn’t until a chance meeting with 12th Note Productions head Felix Mwangi that the groundwork was laid for Terry’s debut CD. The two immediately began recording songs Terry wrote, but midway through the recording of the project, there was another chance conversation with author and poet Tracey Michae’l Lewis. Tracey was writing her debut novel, while Terry was recording his debut CD. What started as a conversation offering best wishes on completing their respective projects, eventually turned into joining forces and releasing a novel accompanied by a music CD.
In 2004, Terry formed his own record label, 347 Music Group, and released his debut album, “To Sasha... From Langston,” the soundtrack to the novel “The Gospel According to Sasha Renee”, by Tracey Michae’l Lewis. The CD chronicles the life of the two main characters in the novel, Sasha Billingsley and Langston Germaine. In an interesting twist, the CD is one of the first full-length novel soundtracks written and recorded entirely by one artist. The CD’s first single, “Still In Love With You,” is gaining international acclaim, with airplay in the Unites States, Europe, Japan and Australia, to name a few. According to Christos Kioni of Positive Vibes Radio, “Terry Gresham sings with passion from his inner being.” With powerful yet soulful, captivating and sultry vocals, Terry’s music can simply be described in three words: pure soul music.
Recently, many others have begun to take notice of Terry’s exceptional writing ability. Terry’s songs have been recorded by a number of artists, including soul powerhouse Lori Dow and crooner Leon Beal.
Now a resident of Atlanta, GA, Terry is passionate about making music that touches the soul. “Be it on stage or in the studio, I want the listener to know that I’ve put 200% into what they hear.” Terry’s sound is refreshing, simply put. The singer/songwriter is quickly gaining critical acclaim as well. In 2006, Terry was nominated Best R&B Male Solo Artist at the Music Hype Online Awards, and was nominated Best R&B Male Vocalist at the New England Urban Music Awards.
With a mission to create soul music that transcends time and tells thought-provoking stories, along with a growing resume of artists looking to record his songs, Terry Gresham’s star is clearly on the rise.
Read more...