Biography
Rosie Vela gained her primary recognition through a career in fashion modeling, yet during the 1980s she also explored music and demonstrated considerable potential as a singer and songwriter, even though commercial breakthrough remained out of reach. Born in Galveston, Texas, she first touched the piano at age six and devoted eleven years to classical studies. As a teenager she relocated to Little Rock, where she was enrolled at the University of Arkansas when she sat for several fashion photographs. Those images reached a New York agent, prompting her eventual move to the city and the start of a full-time professional modeling career. Despite the demands of modeling work throughout the 1980s, she continued writing and performing on the side, ultimately signing with A&M in 1986. The label issued her debut album, Zazu, the same year; the record presented a jazzy brand of pop/rock shaped by the influence of Joni Mitchell and Steely Dan. Gary Katz, widely recognized for his productions with Steely Dan, helmed the sessions, which also featured former Steely Dan members Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. Vela later recorded Sun Across the Alter for A&M, yet sustained success as a singer and songwriter continued to evade her.
Albums