Lacey Caroline Steinel is not your average ILRie from New Jersey. She’s on her to way to becoming a rock star. So far, she’s been pretty successful in juggling her schoolwork, membership in the Cornell Forensic Society and The Class Notes a capella group, and position as president of the A Capella Advisory Council with her professional career as a solo singer/songwriter. But how did she get started?
Music has always played a huge role in Lacey’s life. “Without music, I’d be a completely different person,” she says. “Every action I took in high school, whether it was joining a club, taking a class, after school priorities, circulated around my musical pursuits. When I turned 14, all I wanted for my birthday was an acoustic guitar. Four months later, I had written and recorded my first acoustic CD, consisting of 4 original songs, recorded in a friend’s basement.”
But Lacey has already accomplished more than most aspiring singers. “My previous band was The Best Week Ever,” says Lacey. “We self-recorded and released a bunch of singles, one that was titled ‘Suitcases’. This song was entered into a contest with Ourstage.com, [and won] the grand prize– opening at Meadowlands Stadium for Bon Jovi on his Circle Tour. That was the craziest experience of my life, playing in Giants Stadium for around 5,000 people. The other opening act was Gavin Degraw and being able to hang out with him was also incredible.”
Although she loved working with her band, Lacey’s solo career has taken precedence. “I really wanted to… continue writing under my own name, Lacey Caroline,” she says of her departure from The Best Week Ever. “I travel to NYC a lot to do work with my managers, as well as spend most of my academic breaks in the studio working on writing and recording new music…. I spent the 2010 winter break recording new songs at The House of Loud Studio with Dan Korneff (Paramore, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Breaking Benjamin). I’ve been working with a lot of really great people, so I’m excited to move forward on my own because it really allows me to write and explore music I’ve been writing independently for the past few years.”
Just the Facts:
Tell me more about The Best Week Ever. What awesome stuff did you do besides open for Bon Jovi?
- went on two separate east coast tours
- won Sirius Radio’s CosmoGirl Contest
- chosen as IdobiRadio.com’s Number 2 Unsigned Band of 2009
- chosen as Purevolume.com’s Number 2 Unsigned Band of 2010
- our single “Unforgettable” occupied the number 1 spot on Top Download at Purevolume.com for multiple consecutive months
- a spot in the Top 10 Most Played Artist at Purevolume.com for the past multiple consecutive months
What’s your favorite music?
I love listening to/singing all types of music from classical to jazz to rock to hip-hop; however, my favorite music has always been pop punk/rock. I grew up listening to Blink 182, The Starting Line, New Found Glory, Jimmy Eat World, etc.
What are your plans for the future?
I’m currently a first semester senior (I transferred into ILR in Spring ’10). My plans are to graduate and then fully pursue my musical opportunities. I’ve met with several reputable management firms and record labels and over the summer and I look forward to recording my first professional record under my own name (Lacey Caroline) and hopefully, releasing a few singles later.
Aside from my musical aspirations, I’ve always wanted to go to law school. I’d be able to live my dreams as a singer/songwriter, and then eventually retire as an entertainment lawyer, using my handy ILR skills to negotiate and bargain artist contracts.
What is your proudest accomplishment?
My proudest accomplishment to date would most likely be singing at Giants Stadium, while opening for Bon Jovi. It’s crazy to think back and remember walking into the new stadium, staring at the thousands of seats and thinking to myself, “This can’t be real… This can’t really be happening right now.” It’s probably my proudest accomplishment because when you’re a musician, and you spend hours writing music, then recording it, then going back and listening to it, only to decide that you don’t like it and want to change it, to have over a million people vote on your product, to be a winning song and gain that recognition, it’s definitely something to be proud of.
Thoughts on Nelly for Slope Day:
Nelly’s the man. I think it’ll be really cool hearing the older songs that we all know and love. Sometimes with newer artists, I’m not always on top of the curve with what new songs are popular and I think Nelly is someone that everyone knows and can enjoy.
Best part about going to Cornell:
The people by far. From the professors to the students, I’ve met some of the most amazing people, I have the most amazing friends, and the experiences that are associated with such fascinating people are priceless.