Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kori Jennings. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Kori, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
My entire life I thought I was going to be a performer. When I was accepted to college (Baldwin Wallace University – Conservatory) I was told I needed to fully focus on opera so that’s what I did. I am an over and when they asked me to focus, I did! I gave up my love of musical theatre and pop music and drank the opera punch. Decades of dedicating myself to my craft, to perfection, to foreign languages, to excellence! In 2008 I started my doctoral work at Louisiana State University. On top of my classes, lessons, and performing opportunities I was also a graduate assistant which meant I taught diction classes and private lessons. That helped me so much financially, but going to school is expensive and I needed another job so I started teaching private voice lessons a few night’s a week to young people aged 11 – 18 at a local performing arts academy. I will be forever grateful for that job. As I was learning more about vocal technique I had to change my language, really formed my own language, to make it accessible to younger singers. The bonus was that I was immersed again in music that I love, but had denied myself for so long. I started working on my own voice to learn how to belt (I hate that term, but everyone knows it) and to be a healthy singer with contemporary music style demands. This job made my brain work in new ways and it was that job that made me realize I really loved being a teacher. When my coursework was over and I was writing my dissertation I became adjunct faculty at a university a few states away. I would get up at the crack of dawn one day a week, drive 3 hours, teach 8-10 lessons and a studio class and then return home the same day. I learned so many wonderful and not so wonderful things about the world of academia. That job helped me realize university life wasn’t my path. I am not made for that world. I want to focus on what I love…teaching! Teaching is what I was meant to do! I do love performing, but teaching makes me feel alive in a way I’ve never felt before. So now I had to figure out what was right for me! I knew I wanted to be in New York because it was always a dream of mine and that’s where the action was. I knew I could find students with various styles and I could apply all of my education and really help contemporary singers make the sounds audiences craved, but ensuring my singers were healthy and could sing 8 shows a week.
As I was growing up in the classical world many people who surrounded me looked down on other styles of singing. Those thoughts always made me feel uncomfortable, but now I knew there was a way I could incorporate the two. I don’t think I’m the only one out here doing this, but I knew it was my path and I’m good at what I do. Every day is different and I love it! I go from teaching MT to Ariana Grande to Purcell and then to Janis Joplin. It’s a crazy life and I love every minute of it!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA and I started singing to annoy my sister. As all little sisters do, I saw my sister (who is a beautiful singer) up on that stage in high school and I wanted to be like her. I was also a pianist so I would play for my high school choir and then stand up and sing a solo or a group number. I got the best of both worlds and had an incredible teacher who mentored me brilliantly. I briefly thought in high school that I would major in music, but my main instrument would be piano. But I have ridiculously small hands and can barely reach an octave so my teacher suggested voice as my main instrument with a minor in piano. I auditioned at 2 schools. The first offered me a full scholarship and the lead in every opera right after my audition. I quickly turned them down because I thought if they were going to offer that to an incoming freshman it made me nervous about what my education would look like. I happily accepted an offer from Baldin-Wallace University – Conservatory who gave me some money, but they also worked me hard and I learned a lot! Not all of it was good, but important life lessons were learned and that was just as important.
I think what sets me apart from other teachers is that I was not born a good singer. Some people just have it and are natural singers. I have messed up in every way you can as a singer and I’m so grateful for it because it’s turned me into the teacher that I am. I love technique and I love to solve a problem. I am uber detail oriented, but I work to make sure we’re having fun while learning. There are a lot of people who don’t like. Singing should be serious and perfect. What I have found is that results are better and come more quickly when the atmosphere is lighter. I’m serious when needed, but get much better and consistent results with this approach. It has taken me years to find the right balance, but I’ve found a lot of success with my approach.
What sets me apart from others? That’s a tough questions because there are so many talented teachers out there. I try not to compare myself with anyone and focus on what I do. I believe my technique is solid and has worked for so many, but what sets me apart is just being me. I’ve had some amazing teachers, but I’ve also had teachers who were cruel. You’ll find that a lot in the classical world. I actually had a professor tell me one time that he was mad at me because he never made me cry. Such a ridiculous thing for one human to say to another. I vowed I would never be like that. I pride myself on my studio being a safe space. Singing is incredibly personal and how will my students sing progress if they don’t feel safe?Diversity, equity, and inclusion are vital to me and I will always focus on it. The LGBTQIA+ community is under attack and if there is anything I can do as an ally to help, I will.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
The pandemic! Didn’t we all have to pivot during the pandemic? March of 2020 changed my business forever because when the world shut down, not only did my students lose their performing jobs, but also their side hustles. Moral was low, everyone was scared, and we didn’t know how long it was going to last. I was sad for about 2 weeks because I really felt like before the pandemic happened I was finally hitting my stride. My studio was full, students were booking dream jobs, and I felt fulfilled. After that, I went into action. I lowered my prices and started teaching fully online. I wanted them to stay busy and continue their training, but I also knew money was an issue. This was just about keeping them singing and doing what they loved. I had already been teaching online lessons for several years with former students who had moved out of state, but wanted to continue studying with me so this was a change that was pretty seamless for me. I kept my students busy with lessons, picking new audition cuts and getting all of those on video so they could keep up with the new world of online submissions. We had online studio classes which really helped all of us during that time. It felt normal and a little less lonely. I am so grateful that I was able to keep doing good work, but more importantly be there as a constant for my students during a very scary time!
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
My business is different because it’s just me and I rent a studio when I need to, but I needed to make sure I could pay the bills when I first moved here. My joke that I said all the time was that I was the only nanny with a doctorate. I’m sure I wasn’t, but it did make me laugh a little. For the first two years as I was building my business I took care of 2 of the most fabulous kids (who aren’t kids anymore) after school. It was the perfect situation because I could teach in the morning/early afternoon and then go and pick them up from school. I’d take them to activities, help with homework, and make dinner for them. After I was done, I could go back to the studio for more lessons or just head home. After the first year, I could have made it without the nanny job, but barely, so I kept it up for one more year until I had so many students that I had to give up the nanny gig to focus on my studio. I will be forever grateful to my NYC family. It was everything I needed in those first 2 years and I love with them with my whole heart!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jenningsvocalstudionyc.com
- Instagram: @jenningsvocalstudionyc
- Facebook: Jennings Vocal Studio NYC