About Cari Cole

Vocal Coach & Artist Development Expert

Helping new music artists find their voice, craft their style and create successful music careers.

Every artist has a journey, but few have been able to successfully carve as many paths as Cari Cole. An award winning singer/songwriter, music producer, artist development expert, manager, celebrity voice coach and vocal therapist, Cole has made a name for herself as the go-to guru of contemporary singers; her studio provides a unique program that incorporates established vocal pedagogy with holistic approaches, and the creative freedom to experiment and explore personal musical style in a nurturing environment free of judgment, but gently tempered with a solid understanding of the current parameters of industry trends and expectations. It’s a winning combination that has put Cari Cole on speed dial at nearly every major and indie label, with a clientele of artists over the years signed to Universal, Def Jam, Sony, Warner Brothers, Atlantic, BMG, Virgin, Island, Reprise, Columbia, S-Curve, Elektra, Arista, Geffen, Dream/Works and Concord. Cari has worked with superstar rock legends such as Journey, Steely Dan’s Donald Fagen, and Courtney Love from Hole, to name but a few. She’s also ushered in new artists like 2009 Grammy winner Chrisette Michelle (Best Urban/Alternative Performance), singer/songwriter Diane Birch, and teen boy band Burnham, who opened for Justin Bieber on his 2010 tour.

An accomplished performer in her own right, there’s not a notable New York stage that Cari Cole hasn’t graced; from the notorious CBGB’s and Bluebird Café (Nashville), the legendary Bitter End, to Carnegie Hall, Town Hall, and The Apollo Theatre. Cari Cole was on the 2004 Grammy nominating ballot for Best Female Pop Vocal and a finalist in the Independent Music Awards (Best New Female Artist), Independent Acoustic Music Awards, and was an ASCAPlus Award winner for five consecutive years. Her CD, “The Circle of Fire,” inspired by the New York Times bestseller “The Four Agreements” by don Miguel Ruiz debuted live at Carnegie Hall and has touched the hearts and lives of thousands of adoring fans around the world. Reviewers have favorably compared Cole to iconic female singer/songwriters Joni Mitchell and Carole King. Cole’s song “Beautiful Life” made its way to the ultimate achievement, an entry on the Grammy nominations.

Cari Cole took to the coffeehouse circuit at 16 and soon after left her hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota making her way around the Northwest and Hawaii to finally move to New York City to attend music school and join a rock band. But the physical demands of singing with a rock band were taking an unacceptable toll on her voice. Over the next ten years, under the tutelage of Katie Agresta, Cari would have an epiphany that led to the development of what is now The Cole Technique; an advanced methodology that combines the work of vinyasa yoga, diaphragmatic breathing methods, operatic Bel Canto and no less than nine legendary master teachers into an unprecedented contemporary approach to vocal training. The Cole Technique moves beyond musicality and guides a singer into the natural state of pure physiology by utilizing alignment and bodywork to release tensions deep within the muscles of the vocal instrument and produces an open, healthy, unrestricted sound ideally suited to rock and pop music.

In 1987, Cari established Cari Cole Voice Studios, a singers’ oasis that has continued to evolve to meet the challenges of the ever-changing industry and now also offers an online Artist Development Program for talent outside the metro New York area, working with artists as far away as Australia, England, Scotland, Germany, and neighbors in Canada. Cole’s “Ultimate Performer” program takes it to the next level and helps the burgeoning artist discover their passion and their message by exploring their musical identity, finding their personal sound, and developing their craft through songwriting and recording.

While building her own career as a singer/songwriter, Cari wisely embraced social networking and emerging technology early on, applying it to develop her brand recognition and reach out to an increasingly wider audience. As an indie artist and celebrity voice coach nurturing the next generation, she has solidified her position as an expert in what the industry now calls “The New Music Business.”