Bailey Outerbridge is a 16-year-old Bermudian born beauty with one heck of a voice! On the occasion of her just-released debut recording and music video, “Circus”, we ask the singer-songwriter phenom about her talent and what it was like to make a video in Bermuda with her cousin Bayard Outerbridge.
When did you first know you could sing?
I have always known that I love singing, but had never thought much of it until my 4th grade talent show, which was the first time I had ever preformed on-stage. I really loved performing and from then on I got much more involved in singing and songwriting.
You also play the piano. When did you start playing?
I began taking classical lessons when I was around 7 years old, but I switched to contemporary lessons in middle school, to help with songwriting.
When did you write “Circus”?
I wrote Circus when I was about 13.
Wow, that young, is it your first recording?
Yes, “Circus” was my first recording in a professional studio, but I spent some time fooling around and recording in my neighbor’s basement recording studio when I was younger.
Where did you record “Circus”?
We recorded at Anthony Krizon’s studio, Sonic Boom in New Jersey.
Has a record label been after you?
Not at the moment. I wish!
What’s it like making a real recording in a professional studio?
It was about a two-day process in the studio for me. The way we did it was I recorded my rough vocals with piano, and then we added a “click track” for drums, which is a computer-generated artificial drum track.
After we had established a beat, then we really started to discuss the song and try to get a sense for what feel I wanted the song to portray. After that, Anthony Krizon, the producer of both “Circus” and “Drop of Poison”, added guitar. Once we polished what we had, the last step in the studio is for me to record my final vocals, which is usually pretty intimidating! I get about 3 or 4 takes of singing the song all the way through so that Anthony can patch the best-sounding pieces together for the end result. After all that was done, the song was sent to Felix Krish for bass and Andy Newmark for drums. The final step was for the song to be sent to Alan Silverman to be mastered.
Whose idea was it to make a music video?
I believe Bayard brought up the idea with my dad (Andrew Outerbridge) who
then asked me. I was pretty excited about the idea!
Your cousin Bayard (Outerbridge) produced and co-directed the “Circus” video. Is this the first time you have worked with him? What is he up to these days?
It’s the first time I’ve worked with him, and I really loved it. I don’t get to see him a lot, so I loved spending time with him during the shoot, even though we were working. Right now he’s in Los Angeles, working and studying at the American Film Institute.
The video is awesome! How long did it take to make?
The video took about 3 days to film. Most days we needed to get up around 5 in the morning to get certain shots and we usually wrapped things up by around 8 or 9 at night. After the filming, Bayard and (co-director) Andrew Kirkpatrick having been spending from August until now editing the video, and they did a great job!
Did you even imagine it would turn out so well?
No, I didn’t! I was really, really happy with the end result and I can’t thank everyone who was involved enough for helping it get to the level that it did!
I love the ruins as a location. Who thought of that?
My uncle, Graeme Outerbridge, thought of it. He is a photographer, and he takes a lot of pictures up there, so he brought it up when we were discussing locations. We went and checked it out and decided it was perfect!
How often do you get to come to Bermuda?
Not as often as I would like to! I go every summer, usually for a week or two in early June right after I get out of school.
Any thoughts on college?
I’m a junior now so I will be graduating in June of next year. I’ve just started the college process, which is exciting but very scary! I’m not really sure yet where I want to go. Somewhere with a good music program would be nice!
What can we expect next from Bailey Outerbridge?
I just finished recording a new song for Bermuda’s Ride the Wave 2 CD. It’s called “All a Blur” and it is going to be coming out in early May!
That’s exciting! You’ll have to keep us posted when it’s released. Anything else you want to tell us about yourself and your singing career?
Just that I’m very excited to keep on playing and performing! And thank you so much!!
Photo by Adriana Van Manen
