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Amber Dotson Amber Dotson BiographyCapitol Records' Amber Dotson, who hails from Garland, Texas but for the last five years has called Nashville her home, is known for her powerhouse vocals that can wrap around any lyric and definitely make them her own. Dotson has a timeless country sound that follows in the footsteps of such country legends as Tammy Wynette, Reba McEntire, or Patty Loveless. However, Dotson has her own soulful country style that breathes new life into country’s standard anthems that spotlight a woman’s take on love, romance, and life’s daily struggles. Dotson’s music is unfussy and gimmick-free and goes straight to the lyrical content because of the strength of her smoky vocals. In other words, she’s the real deal.
Now Dotson is poised on the brink of stardom with her second single, “I Ain’t Your Mama,” from her forthcoming debut CD for the label. Sassy with a little bit of attitude, the song delivers a strong woman’s lyric with Dotson’s good-natured confidence. “The kitchen's all yours, mister you've got two hands. It's time for you to learn to work a pot and a pan.” “I Ain’t Your Mama,” is sure to connect with her many Country fans that she has amassed from her first-ever major tour -- the opening slot with George Strait, to her debut appearance on the Grand Ole Opry, and her first very successful appearance at the CMA Music Festival.
Amber is solidly making her mark on the Nashville music scene. And the University Press from Lamar University sums it up best when they glowed about Amber’s performance on the Strait tour, “Many may consider the Garland native to be ‘just another pretty girl singer,’ but she demonstrated quite well that she has something many of those pretty girl singers don’t have – a voice.” The beginning: “I remember my dad teaching me how to two-step, dancing around our pool table, listening to Merle Haggard, George Strait, Marty Robbins and Willie Nelson.”
Touring with George Strait: “I am such a fan. Touring with The Man was unbelievable. I got to unwrap this box of dreams every night. It would have been enough for me getting to cut my teeth on sold out arenas every night, but I also got to be on tour with THE ONE ARTIST that I would have chosen to go with if I had my choice. I won't ever forget the feeling I had getting to experience what I did with all those great folks. It gave me an awful big goal to kick through, but I'm not gonna stop until I get that high again.”
Her Capitol Records Debut Album: “I hope it relates to folks that have lived life a little bit. Love hurts and love heals. We fall in it even if we don't want to sometimes. Don't be scared to let your heart show through. It's the core of what we're all made of. Every crack, and every blossom makes us who we are. I know mine has taken a rollercoaster ride, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Life is good, we oughta live it as loud as we can. I'm looking forward to get everything rollin'. To be honest, I've already seen where my slot would be in the Walmart CD bin, and I wanna see it there.”
Her rocking new single “I Ain’t Your Mama”: “I like the playfulness of this new bride discovering that life isn't all wine and roses after the rice has been thrown, but I think they live happily ever after.”
Making Her Grand Ole Opry Debut: “That was an experience. My publicist picked me up so we would be sure to arrive on time to rehearse, but on the way there, we got pulled over by the cops, then she passed the exit, just to discover, when we were almost there, that I'd forgotten my stage clothes! Thankfully, my neighbor had a key to my house and rescued me by bringing my stuff to me. I thought, surely that's all that'll happen. I walked out, and sang my first song, “I Ain't Your Mama,” with shaky knees from looking down at “The Circle.” I told the audience I wanted to preserve this moment for my Mom and Dad since they couldn't be there, and proceeded to pull my camera out of my back pocket and take this great shot of the audience and me. Very Cool. I'll never forget that night.”
Winning Her First CMA Award .... for Bass Fishing! “That was soooo cool getting to fish with BASSMASTER Pro, Paul Elias. I've grown up fishing with my Dad, so I feel very comfortable with a rod and reel in my hand. It rained all day long, but I didn't care. I held that dang trophy over my head like they do at the Pro BASSMASTERS Tournaments. I was beside myself giddy. Needless to say, my Dad is very proud. As for the Award, it's resides on the mantle.”
Finding her voice: A devoted fan of Reba McEntire and Patty Loveless, she soon discovered another touchstone artist who has profoundly affected her. “I’d never really listened to Tammy Wynette or studied her style before I moved to Nashville, but once I really started listening to her, it all clicked. You can’t not believe every word she sings. You knew that she’d lived it. I’ve never consciously tried to imitate her, but after I’d lived life a little bit, my dad pointed it out to me when he said to me one day ‘Your voice Amber - there’s more soul in it now.’ Thank you Tammy.”
Songwriting: “When I got to Nashville and signed with Sony/Tree, I learned how to swim by being thrown into the river. You walk into the office and pass by these huge portraits of all these great songwriters, and by the time you get to the end of the hall, ‘Holy Cow, I’m supposed to write a song now?!’ But I learned and got better.”
Touring: "When I was told by my managers that George Strait wanted me to open his 2005 tour, I couldn't hold back the tears. Being a girl singer from Texas, you can only imagine how I felt. I couldn't have dreamed a bigger dream."
Condensed theory on songwriting: “Try to come up with something cool, make something rhyme with it, and hopefully touch someone else’s life.” Working woman: “I was working three jobs - one was delivering lost luggage from the airport. I still hate to carry luggage. I also worked at a computer company in an office with no windows, and I bartended and waited tables. My singing career was on a roller coaster ride the whole time, and I finally got to the point where I felt that maybe I was not supposed to be in this slow-as-a-hydraulic-worm music business. Maybe I’m just supposed to have a normal life and leave Nashville to some other singer. That’s when everything happened.”
That grit in her voice?: “I’m deathly allergic to cats, but I had a roommate in Nashville who had a cat. My voice got so bad that people were asking me, ‘How many cigarettes did you smoke today?’ I don’t smoke, but my voice was so gravelly that I finally went to the doctor and he told me my throat was totally inflamed. It was Kitty. Since then my voice has had that sound to it. When I told my managers, Erv Woolsey and Donny Kees, what was going on, Erv said, ‘I kinda like it. You’re going to have to get a cat on the bus.’” |
