Singer Michelle Branch Reinvents Her Music, Again

17 January 2012

Michelle Branch performing in 2009.

MARIO RITTER: Welcome to EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English. I’m Mario Ritter. Today, we look at ways women are reinventing themselves and some of the things they do. We will learn about women who compete in the hard-hitting sport of American football. We hear about a different kind of store for girls.

But first, we tell about award-winning singer Michelle Branch. She has reinvented her musical style not once, but two times in the past ten years. Michelle Branch recently returned to the sound that made her famous. Christopher Cruise tells us more.

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Michelle Branch

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CHRISTOPHER CRUISE: Michelle Branch has been writing music since she was 14 years old. That was the same year she received a guitar for her birthday. Her big break came a year later when her best friend called with an urgent request.

MICHELLE BRANCH: “She called me, said ‘you have to get down here and bring a tape or meet this guy because he’s going to be leaving soon.’ [I] said, well I can’t get down there. She said, ‘do you have… just walk, ride your bike, anything.’ My neighbors had left their golf cart out in the driveway with the key in it. And so I took the golf cart and I went down and I was waiting as this guy was leaving. I was like ‘excuse me Mister, will you listen to my tape?’ And he was just horrified. But he - on the long drive home back from Arizona to L.A., he put it [the tape on] in the car and he ended up calling me.”