Francesca Battistelli will perform in Colorado Springs’ World Arena with MercyMe’s Roadshow on Sunday, March 21. No tickets required. $10 at the door. Doors at 4:30 p.m. Show 6 p.m. Photo special to The Denver Post
Francesca Battistelli seemed destined to make her living on Broadway. Her parents, Mike and Kate Battistelli, met while working on the national tour of “The King and I,” starring Yul Brynner, and their love of theater naturally flowed to their daughter.
Francesca grew up listening to Broadway show tunes, while taking dance and training for musical theater. But as a teenager living in Orlando, Fla., Francesca found her passion in the music side of entertainment. She began playing guitar and started an all-girl pop trio called Bella that toured various House of Blues and Hard Rock venues in the south.
“It was a fun couple of years,” Francesca said of the group that blended her singing and dancing talents. “I learned a lot, and it was a great experience.”
While enrolled at the University of Central Florida, Battistelli kept her fingers in the music while earning a bachelor’s degree in English.
“I put out an independent record (“Just a Breath”) and played any coffeehouse that would have me,” she said with a chuckle. “Then right after college, I moved to Nashville, and all these doors started opening for me, and I was able to walk right through them.”
By the time Battistelli turned 24 this year, her debut album “My Paper Heart” had garnered a Grammy nomination and five Dove Award nominations, including female vocalist of the year and new artist of the year, along with her songs, “I’m Letting Go,” “Free to Be Me” and “It’s Your Life” being used on television series including ABC’s “Extreme Makeover” and NBC’s “The Biggest Loser.” And she points to her theater background as crucial to her success.
“A lot of artists who write songs and sing aren’t so comfortable on stage,” she explained. “I’m just so blessed that I had that early experience on the stage. It has helped me be more comfortable and be myself when I perform.”
Free to be — herself. And to use herself for musical inspiration. Her song “Free to Be Me” came about after she backed into another car.
“I was driving home after that and I started to write this chorus, and when I got home, I was like, ‘Hey this is actually pretty good.’ It’s about accepting yourself for who you are, rather than being too concerned about being perfect,” she explained. “God just wants us to come to him as we are. It’s good for me to hear that myself.”
Battistelli calls her music uplifting “soulful pop” with influences of jazz and blues artists along with Broadway great Stephen Sondheim.
“I set the bar pretty high,” she said, adding her influences also include Stevie Wonder, Nichole Nordeman, John Mayer and Sara Bareilles.
Hitting that bar seems to be an easy chore for Battistelli, who has experienced the Grammy and Dove award celebrations firsthand. And the differences between the two award shows?
“The Grammy Awards were great. Being there with Ringo Starr and Beyonce … It was real neat to see the performances and meet people in the music industry. Whereas the Doves are for our industry. I would say, it’s not as competitive as the Grammys. It’s more like family.”
A family that has embraced the young singer/songwriter, who is sure to bring more honors to her Christian music brethren and genre.
The Rock & Worship Roadshow
MercyMe, David Crowder Band, Family Force 5, Francesca Battistelli, Fee, Remedy Drive and Sidewalk Prophets. $10 at the door, general admission, no ticket required. Doors at 4:30 p.m., show 6 p.m.
