Although raised in Nashville, Erisy Watt has a voice and musical style that is a million miles away from much of what is churned out of Music City these days. Watt instead veers more toward the soulful, jazzy, folk sound of the likes of Norah Jones and, on โPaints in the Skyโ, her debut album, she has created a thing of beauty, a veritable treat for the ears.
Now based in Portland, Oregon, Watt spends a big chunk of her year away from her home helping to lead environmental studies groups for university students in remote regions of Nepal, Thailand and Indonesia. It is these travels, alongside early musical influences such as Billie Holiday, Brazilian bossanova artists and 1960s folk singers that have played a large part in shaping her songwriting.