Wellington Bullings knew from the get-go she wanted to be a singer. Most kids “sing” when they are little, whether putting nonsensical phrases to melodies or doing their best to bang out whatever songs they may have picked up from the radio. The Front Range-based Bullings began “writing” songs when she was 9, an exercise that set her on a path to pursue music not only as a performer, but a teacher.
Bullings will perform Saturday in the iNDIGO Room at iAM MUSIC; opening the show is local band Nu Bass Theory.
Performing as a trio, joining vocalist Bullings are John Stenger on piano and Tim Wendel on guitar.
That path Bullings set herself on was driven by curiosity, passion and musical thrill; once she hit double-digits, she was pretty sure about her future, and that future included higher education at a top-notch music school.
“I went to Berklee College of Music and studied songwriting and jazz vocal performance, and I continued to be excited and curious about this path, and I started teaching and obviously performing and recording. Yeah, I just continue to do that to this day, and will probably never stop,” Bullings said. “Once something makes me happy and I’m passionate about it, that’s it, its done. So, for me, I didn’t make that clear decision until I was in my teens, which usually happens, as then you become a little bit more self-assured, and you start to realize ‘OK, this is what I want to continue learning about, and this is the path I want to go down.”
If you go
WHAT: Funk, jazz, soul, R&B with Wellington Bullings and Nu Bass Theory.
WHEN: 7 p.m. Saturday.
WHERE: The iNDIGO Room at iAM MJUSIC, 1315 Main Ave.
TICKETS: Free.
MORE INFORMATION: Visit https://bit.ly/3SrMBPH.
Influenced by modern artists like Lianne La Havas, Yabba, Hiatus Kaiyote and Norah Jones, or more classic artists such as Stevie Wonder or Ella Fitzgerald, hers is a sound that’s laid-back, smooth and soulful. You’d file her 2020 recording debut “Because I Want To” under soul and 21st Century R&B, but she’ll admit, she’s a jazz fanatic and a student of the style; it’s a genre she discovered and fell in love with after randomly picking up a used record from one of the greats.
“I discovered jazz by picking up a Billie Holiday record at a garage sale, and I just took a chance on it, it looked like it would be cool, and I checked it out and immediately I fell in love. And then I just started going down that rabbit hole of discovering different jazz artists, and I discovered Sarah Vaughan and all of the greats. And I was hooked at that point, and then I wanted to study jazz,” Bullings said. “The music that I create is not necessarily just jazz, you know. There are many other styles of music, but I would say that that’s kind of where I’m rooted and that’s where I was trained the most, and so my sensibility as a musician is very much in jazz.”
Bullings is currently living the best of both worlds as a teacher and performer. She described Berklee as a “driven and passionate environment” loaded with like-minded people, and that drive and passion carry over to her mission as performer and professor. She continues give voice lessons around the Front Range as well as virtually, and also performing regular gigs. Both important, she’s found a solid steadiness between the two.
“I know that there are people that teach, but they don’t perform. I happen to do both,” she said. “Sometimes, it can feel like it’s a juggling act, but I do try to balance both, and both are important to me.”
This performance is presented by the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance and the newly founded Colorado Arts Alliance for Health Equity, aka Moving Ahead. This organization promotes arts and artists statewide by hosting free performances with some of Colorado’s up-and-coming musicians, all in an effort to health care agencies, artists, educational institutions and policymakers to grow and improve their communities.
Bryant Liggett is a freelance writer and KDUR station manager. Reach him at liggett_b@fortlewis.edu.
