Artist Spotlight: Jessica McLean
June 9, 2018 by admin
Filed under Music, Music Interviews
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| CD/Song Compilation – Designed to Dream Genre: Pop/Worship By Brad McBrayer |
| Imagine yourself sitting on the beach at night, warming by a fire, listening to a girl sing and play her guitar. The ocean waves are her only percussion – God in nature supplying rhythm. This is the feel one finds on “Designed to Dream”, a nine-song debut album from Jessica McLean. |
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A nice blend of fresh acoustic pop/folk tunes is unveiled on the record, and McLean shines throughout. The singer/songwriter has crafted a collection of songs from her own experiences and struggles that serve as a fabulous reflection of what it means to seek God’s will. She sings about God’s perfect timing (“Good Things Come”, singles waiting for a mate will love this one), God’s sufficiency (“All I Need”), and God’s acceptance (“Beautiful”, young ladies with self-image issues, this one’s for you). She sings from a heart of worship (“Again”), with a heart of thankfulness (“In the Light”), and out of a heart of frustration (“Run”, written as a teenager over a decade ago). The title song, though, is the bedrock of her album. As she sings – “You and I were designed to live our dreams, to believe all things are possible, and to live this life abundantly” – a vibrant underscore sets the tone for the message. It’s an encouragement to put away the past and live in the fullness of God’s love. McLean is an award-winning songwriter (in a VH-1 contest), but she’s really a triple threat. She displays instrumental talent, lyrical depth, and vocals that captivate the listener. Hearing Jessica sing brings to mind once-popular, Christian artist Susan Ashton or mainstream’s Alanis Morissette, although, stylistically she parallels more closely to the earthy sounds of Billboard chart siren, Jewel. While her voice is reminiscent of others, it is still individually distinct. McLean’s message, however, is a familiar one. It’s just sung in a new way. She wants to introduce listeners to Jesus and His love, and she desires to be open and honest and real in her music. In just her first studio-produced recording, Jessica is effective in transferring her realness to the disc. She’s just a girl with a guitar singing her message to the world. A deeper reality, though, is that she’s very good at it and worth notice. Her music would be at home on stage, over the airwaves, or on your personal iPod… and even seaside by the campfire. In any case, it’s clear that Jessica McLean just wants to touch lives through her music. Hopefully, her music will touch many. To learn more about this artist, visit: www.jessicamclean.com |
