Stephanie Staples has spent half her life captivating audiences with her rich, dynamic, and soothing voice. Passionate and expressive, Stephanie has the keen ability to connect with a wide variety of audiences. Her strong stage presence and down to earth nature enables her to communicate, entertain, and inspire.
Stephanie has been involved in music ever since she was a little girl, first participating in musical theatre and studying vocal performance under the direction of three different vocal coaches. She began singing professionally at age thirteen, appearing at music festivals, conferences, churches and other venues.
A gifted songwriter, Stephanie has recorded four self-produced albums. The first, Breathe on Me—an easy-listening acoustic album with soul-searching lyrics—was released in 2001 and again in 2003 to include two additional songs. Her second project, Face to Face was released in 2006, and Journey Home followed in 2007.
Over the years, Stephanie has been privileged to work with (and learn from) some of the best musicians in the business, including Grammy Award-winning guitarist Bill Hatcher (Henry Mancini, Luciano Pavarotti), Mike Pachelli, and Ronnie Ciago. Hatcher has been a consistent contributor on all four of Stephanie’s projects, including her latest release, Sing Over Me.
Each of Stephanie’s albums has a unique sound but all portray the same quality: genuineness. Over the years many listeners have commented that her albums are “soothing” and “an experience.” This quality can’t be faked—Stephanie has faced the darkness, having passed through suffering and hard times, and she pours the full depth of her experiences into her music, taking the listener on a journey with her through the dark times—yet always in the presence of true peace and redemption.
Sing Over Me (2010), is an eclectic album, with each song having a distinct flavor, prominently featuring Latin, organic, and classical elements along with creative percussion and strings (cello, violin, upright bass). This diversity of sound centers upon a single theme—that of learning to accept life’s uncertainties and discovering peace.
Stephanie has traveled across the United States and all the way to China to share her music. Her long list of credits include festivals, retreats, universities, schools (elementary, middle, and high schools), churches, conferences, campus ministries, multiple centers for disadvantaged youth/inner city ministries, military bases, and shelters for the homeless.
She has performed before 20,000 at New Zealand’s Parachute Music Festival, joining Third Day’s Mac Powell for a powerful rendition of the duet, “God of Wonders,” has made many trips to Brooklyn, New York to minister at Teen Challenge, an organization founded by David Wilkerson to help the addicted, and has opened for a variety of artists including Third Day, Tammy Trent, Newsong, and Jaci Valasquez.
Her passion to encourage and bring light and joy to people has been a motivating force in continuing her musical journey for over a decade.