MEET THE TEAM
Wendy Colonna
Founder, CEO, Artist, Facilitator
Wendy’s passionate about the powerful ways in which music brings people together. Whether it’s globetrotting on tour, releasing original music, writing for ads or coaching creatives, she’s committed to building bridges of meaning and connection between artists and audiences.
She is an ADDY and Ad-Week recognized songwriter, acclaimed for her iconic “Building” commercial for Coca-Cola. Over the past 20 years, Wendy has recorded eight albums and has been called “ethereal” by the New York Times and “a gifted singer-songwriter” by the Wall Street Journal.
Wendy’s been interviewed by the Huffington post about her songwriting and is an occasional contributing writer to lifestyle magazines like Mantra and Thrive. Wendy was a 2014 SXSW panelist in covering “Why You Matter to Brands/Why Brands Matter to You.”
Over the years, she’s had the joy of collaborating with a variety of people including TEDx organizers, KPOP composers, corporate team-building professionals, conference chairs and ad executives.
Wendy lives with her family in Central Texas. She’s a wife, birth-mama to a spirited toddler and bonus-mom to three vibrant creatives. A few of her favorite things are yoga, bees, Alice Walker’s writing, punk rock, hula-hooping, tribe building, Preston Sturges’ films and sustainability.
Gina Chavez
Artist, Facilitator
Gina Chavez is a wife, philanthropist and an award-winning independent musician. She is a proud native Austinite and a 12-time Austin Music Award winner, including 2019 Best Female Vocals and 2015 Austin Musician of the Year. Her NPR Tiny Desk concert has more than a million views and her hour-long PBS special is available nationwide. Gina’s music is deeply personal. Her passionate collection of bilingual songs takes audiences on a journey to discover her Latin roots through music as she shares her story of life in Texas as a married, queer Catholic.
Gina tours internationally as a cultural ambassador with the U.S. State Department and runs Niñas Arriba, a college fund she co-founded with her wife for young women in gang-dominated El Salvador. She is featured alongside Oprah, Beyonce, Mahalia Jackson, Dolly Parton and many more in Southern Living’s new book celebrating “100 extraordinary women who have left their indelible mark on the South and beyond.” Her first all-Spanish language album, La Que Manda (The Woman in Charge), is now available everywhere.
Gina Chavez :: New Album La Que Manda out now! Listen
12-Time Austin Music Award Winner
“Her voice stops you in your tracks” – NPR
Terrany “Tee Double” Johnson
Producer, Artist, Facilitator
“The top 5 influential black entrepreneurs every Austinite should know about!”- Culturemap.com
“For Austin, multitalented Hip Hop artist Terrany Johnson, also known as Tee-Double, is the city’s version of music royalty” – TODO Magazine
To borrow a line from Jay-Z, local rhyme-sayer Tee Double is not a businessman; he’s a business, man.- Austin Powell, Austin Chronicle
Tee-Double is nothing if not prolific. The local hip-hop kingpin has released at least one LP per year for as long as anyone can remember. – Thomas Fawcett, Austin Chronicle
Tee-Double was named The Cultural Ambassador of Austin,Texas Hip Hop by Insite Magazine
Shall We Begin …. Associate member of The Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association
March 2020 Tee Double private recording studio Teetopia Studios in Austin,Texas was featured on the top studio gear site REVERB.COM Show Us Your Space feature!
Erin Ivey
Artist, Facilitator
Erin Ivey is a critically acclaimed singer-songwriter based in Austin, Texas. She’s been called, “a songwriter of the first order” (Daily News) with a “rare & deeply affecting voice” (KUTX).
In 2020, Texas Music Magazine named Erin’s album Broken Gold one of 20 “albums that defined Texas music over 2 decades.” Her work has earned numerous Top 10 & Album of the Year awards & been featured in movie soundtracks, commercials, & TV shows.
A regular Critics’ Pick at SXSW, Erin has performed around the world in backyards, concert halls, boardrooms, ships at sea – & currently, online – in a diverse arrangement of solo & band scenarios.
A new album is due this Fall, which the Austin Chronicle calls, “deeply moving, beyond a genre, backed by a subtly fabulous band.”
In addition to music, Erin is a specialist in project management methodology. She worked at Apple & Trilogy software, & has consulted at Caterpillar, Coca-Cola, & Clorox. She holds a PMP certification & a Six Sigma Green Belt.
Learn more about Erin & her upcoming album at ErinIvey.com.
Dave Madden
Artist, Facilitator
Dave Madden, an alum of both Berklee College of Music and TED Talks, has been voted Best Music Arranger at the AMP Austin Music Industry Awards, Top 10 Best Keyboards by the Austin Chronicle’s Music Poll, and Best Austin Record of 2010 by INsite Magazine. A voting member for the Grammy’s, Dave is the rare combination of accomplished songwriter and masterful multi-instrumentalist.
Dave equally enjoys creating his own music and collaborating with others. He has been hired to perform with a diverse range of world-class artists, from reggae-pop favorite Michael Franti to legendary rock icon Steve Miller, from platinum-selling band Fastball to Mark Mothersbaugh, co-founder of Devo.
Madden has scored music for TV commercials, winning contracts for companies such as AT&T. His music was featured in a promotional video for the Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau. And one of Dave’s many studio recordings was licensed for the feature-length movie, “Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List” (2015) starring Victoria Justice.
As a musical facilitator, Dave has experience working with companies big and small, academia and faith-based institutions. Dave has crafted soaring anthems to be sung and shouted by 30,000 people at venues like the Alamodome in San Antonio, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, and the US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. He has facilitated small groups of elite student athletes at Temple University in Philadelphia and worked with software engineers at Cirrus Logic in Austin, TX.
Says celebrated producer Stephen Doster, “Dave Madden plays with confidence, versatility, and musicality. In other words, Dave plays like he means it!”
SaulPaul
Artist, Facilitator
SaulPaul is a GRAMMY nominated Musician with a Message. He has also presented 2 TEDx Talks, performed at the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and been featured on America’s Got Talent. His life story of transitioning from tragedy to triumph has been told on screen via the documentary Tower to Tower as well as via his memoir Be The Change.
Not only is SaulPaul an award winning winning musician, he is a well celebrated humanitarian. In 2017, SaulPaul was named Austinite of the Year and in 2018 he was awarded the Texas Civil Rights Project Rising Star Award. In 2019, his company SaulPaul Productions was named a Top 5 Best Community Minded Company by the Austin Young Chamber. And in 2020 he was awarded the Beacon of Hope award by the Texas House of Representatives.
Because SaulPaul has always recognized an inherent responsibility to give back, SaulPaul founded the SaulPaul Foundation. The SaulPaul Foundation is as a launchpad for young people and a platform for community members to serve as community leaders through acts of kindness, volunteerism and philanthropy. Partnering with organizations like Dell, Adobe, Storable and others, the SaulPaul Foundation has empowered multitudes of young people to discover their place in the workforce.
Noëlle Hampton
Producer, Artist
Noëlle Hampton is a force in the world of all things music, including a very diverse catalog of addictive songs, years of performing, teaching, mentoring and production. She currently is the lead singer/writer/producer in her band, The Belle Sounds, formed with her husband/musical partner.
The Belle Sounds have made a name for themselves as seductive Alt-Pop aficionados creating lush soundscapes intertwined with effervescent harmonies and beautiful lyricism. They stand out in their own unique sonic space with effortless melodies and hooks, floating guitars and underlying synth soundscapes. They were recently included in a “Best of Austin Music 2020” list and were previously named one of Austin’s “Best New Bands” by the Austin Chronicle Music Poll. The City of Austin even proclaimed April 13, 2017 officially “The Belle Sounds Day.” Peter Blackstock wrote, “The Belle Sounds have become one of Austin’s best pop bands” (Austin 360).
She has opened for Bob Dylan, Sarah Mclachlan, Richard Thompson, Jewel, Chris Isaak, Train, Wilco, Pat Benatar and so many others. Noëlle brings her years of experience of playing and writing in multiple genres from Americana, rock and alternative/indie pop to her production style.
During the difficult year of 2020, Noëlle wrote and produced 12 singles for The Belle Sounds, releasing one each month, along with multiple music videos. She has a constantly creative mind, always ready to jump into the next opportunity. She is currently working on their next release, an EP due out in early summer 2021.
Noëlle and her husband Andre have had songs places in movies, television and created the score for some short films. She has a sharp mind for marketing/ branding as well, studying graphic design in college, her father and sister in
advertising and personal experience working for Saul Bass in Los Angeles.
Most of all, Noëlle Hampton brings love, compassion and kindness to everything she does.
BettySoo
Artist, Facilitator
“BettySoo may well have the most gorgeous voice in Texas …if not in all contemporary folk – its purity and strength can be downright devastating.” – ACOUSTIC GUITAR
BettySoo’s vocal prowess is a thing of wonder. A world-class instrument of deft phrasing and purity, a voice that knows when to hold back and when to dive in. At her own live shows, taking a verse onstage with friends or singing harmonies in sessions with Austin’s finest, BettySoo sings with consummate loveliness and self-assurance. A voice that knows the roots of American music inside and out; coming from a most unexpected place – a diminutive Korean-American with a deceptively girl-next-door demeanor.
“Truly remarkable. BettySoo’s sharp, often self-deprecating humor skillfully wove the songs together. Her clear, evocative voice and poignant lyrics recall Patty Griffin and Joni Mitchell, and did I mention she’s a hell of a guitar player?”
– NO DEPRESSION, live concert review
Touring the unforgiving circuit of listening rooms, clubs and festivals, BettySoo has mastered the art of performance. A funny anecdote sets up a song of heartbreak and need; a witty rejoinder belies the dark truths that underpin much of her work.
“Beautiful, heart-wrenching songwriting that is also edgy and unwavering.”
– KUT, Austin
“Exceptionally well written and arranged songs with a confidence that speaks volumes.”
– AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN
They call it the live music capital of the world. Austin, Texas, is a city where the musical bar is set high. Since exploding on the Austin scene a decade ago, BettySoo has carved out an enviable niche among the very best the city has to offer.
Mark Addison
Producer, Artist
Mark Addison is a veteran performing artist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and award-winning producer with a diverse list of credits.
His boutique Austin recording studio, The Aerie, sits on 4 acres in southeast Travis County and features a vintage 1979 24 Quad Eight Pacifica 24 input console and a wide array of toys.
Formerly of EMI recording artists The Borrowers, Mark has had songs covered by Cher, Gene Simmons, Joan Baez, Edwin McCain and others.
Mark co-founded Tips Concerts on the property that houses his recording studio and home.
Ginger Leigh
Artist, Facilitator
Ginger Leigh is a fierce entertainer, a multi-preneur and a connector who is fearlessly committed to her performances, her skills, her businesses and the people they serve. In the complex world in which we live, Ginger Leigh manages to gracefully pull from her natural abilities to be a creative host to many skill sets and unapologetically and powerfully delivers her many assets with ease! Being The Musician, The Interior Designer, The Actress, The Writer and believe it or not, the Rock Star Genealogist takes drive and an unending love of being alive in today’s incredibly exciting time!
Ginger is a purpose-led achiever. She is class and crass rolled up in one dedicated woman. She leads with humor and unstoppable passion. She transforms the mood, the situation, turning lead into gold, sadness into joy and humor. She transforms a space into a place where someone loves to be. She transforms a broken family history and makes a wholeness out of it. Ginger Leigh is a spacial and social alchemist; taking things to their next level with positive vibes, a variety of music styles, laughter, color, family and connectedness.
“Tenth disc in two decades-plus, Hey Funky You isn’t your typical ATX singer-songwriter fare. The big Beck bomp of her opening title track gives way to a sui generis mix of originals and covers of songs from Sarah McLachlan, Chris Thile & Gary Louris, and a pair of Concrete Blonde Bloodletting offerings. Think ZZ Ward for the Triple-A set.”
– Raoul Hernandez, Austin Chronicle