Ellee Duke
Ellee Duke, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is a prolific singer-songwriter who collaborates with seasoned music writers in Nashville, Tennessee. Originally from Draper, Utah, she aspires to make music a career.
Deseret News describes Ellee as “a passionate, precocious, singer-songwriter from Utah who is so serious about her craft that she said no to American Idol. Having been invited to Hollywood and a national stage, after much deliberation, she declined the offer.
On her official website, Ellee said, “Since I was born, I’ve probably sang more than I’ve talked. When I was 6 years old, I saved up every penny I had to buy a genuine Barbie karaoke machine. From then on, at every family party, I would make my family listen to my take on NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, and Hilary Duff.”
Ellee started taking piano lessons at five, voice lessons at nine, guitar lessons at 12, songwriting at 13, more voice lessons at 14, recording at 15, with trips to Nashville by the time she was 17. She has written more than 100 songs, many of which you can hear on iTunes, YouTube or her website. She has written songs in hotel rooms and bathroom stalls and school locker rooms and gyms and classrooms and church and restaurants and just lying on the grass in the back yard. She has been filling notebooks with lyrics since she was a girl, which she has stored in three boxes.
She told Deseret News, “I just want to share my music with the world. Music has a way of touching people and making them feel things that help them get through life.” When a high school classmate was diagnosed with cancer, Ellee composed and recorded an original song called “I Came to Win” on piano in two hours and later played the song for her sick friend in her hospital room. By the end of the song, there was not a dry eye in the room. When a friend’s mother passed away, she wrote “From the Other Side,” which was played on FM100’s “Sounds of Sunday.”
Ellee Duke has opened for pianist Paul Cardall and singer-songwriter, Peter Breinholt. She is working on honing her sound and message as an artist. She realizes that there will be trials and setbacks along the way, but she also understands that “your trials become your tragedies or your triumphs.” She says, “I think my music is like fine dining Chinese food; a perfect mix of sweet and spicy all in one bite.” She recently worked with Stone Angel Music and executive producer, Paul Cardall, on a project called “Worth of Souls” and recorded a song called “Lift Me Out.”
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