From Student Union to Music Stage

A few years back, from a dorm room at Temple University in Philadelphia, sophomore student and aspiring singer Shareese Renee Ballard called her childhood friend Santi White. White was a songwriter and guitarist living in New York and working as an A&R assistant for Epic Records.

Ballard, known by her fans as Res (pronounced Reese), started singing for White over the telephone. The songwriter was impressed by her old friend's vocals, and Res was soon on her way to New York to record a demo of Santi's original compositions.

"We went over the songs together; I sang and Santi played the guitar," Res remembers. "She had just started writing songs at the time and so I went to New York where she hooked me up with my manager."

Subsequent to the recording session, several music labels including Epic Records approached Res with offers. She hesitated, waiting for the right deal. She finally signed with MCA in 1999 - at the age of 21. She packed her bags for New York and soon recorded her debut album, "How Do I."

Born and raised in the Philly suburbs, Res, now in her mid-20s, attended an all-girls Catholic school from kindergarten through her senior year of high school. A classically trained vocalist, she began singing Italian arias at the age of 14 and continued with her formal training until she was 19.

"For the first six months, all I sang were scales - I never sang a song," she said. "I remember when I was 12, I wanted to make a record. But the way that I actually got my record deal had to do with me being bored at school one day and calling my friend."

Prior to signing with MCA, Res knew of the music industry only what she saw on MTV, heard on the radio and read in magazines: Fame. Fortune. A catered life. But the reality of a career in music presented itself almost immediately.

"Just like everybody else, I bought records, I watched MTV and I thought it was a life of signing autographs, a life of glitz and glamour," she recalled. "A part of it is, but people don't see the time you put in at the studio, the time for interviews.

"What people can't see is that it's a job like any other job in this world. It can come with the same s**t - long hours, bosses or employees you may not like, and hanging in the studio nonstop. Right now I hate the studio and I can't wait for the next thing, which is performing on stage."

Complementing Res' fiery vocal style, "How Do I" features the talents of drum 'n' bass innovator Doc, and hip-hop beat originator A Kid Called Roots. The album melds dissonant musical styles from reggae, rock and hip-hop to folk and electronica.

"A lot of people have asked me what I'm trying to accomplish with my music, and right now I'm having fun and enjoying myself," Res explained. "I'm enjoying my life and I'm lucky that I am accomplishing what I am. I love my band; they're all dope and we've been playing really well from the jump."

As a black artist, Res hopes to continue defeating stereotypes common in the music industry - primarily, that all black artists are hip-hop or R&B.
"The industry has to label everything in order to sell it," she said. "There is all this talk of black artists who are doing something other than R&B, but the truth is black artists have been playing different types of music since I was young. Look at people like Tina Turner - she was singing rock."