“Your Band Is Creamy”

By: Micah McClain

Velveeta Jones front woman Sondra Horseman doesn’t let being in a male-dominated profession stop her from making inroads in the music business.
“Being a female in the music industry is all what you make it,” the singer said with a charming smile on her face and a Marlboro cigarette in her hand.         Horseman and her electronic rock and blues band performed at the W.C. Handy Blues & Barbecue Festival in Henderson, Ky., last Saturday.
The band combined a harmonious mixture of meaningful lyrics with heavy bass and guitar melodies. The unique sound and Horseman’s gritty vocals captivated audience members and brought them to their feet.
During an interview with a Western Kentucky University Xposure Journalism Workshop student, Horseman discussed the challenges of being in the industry and how she juggles music with motherhood.
“When you have kids, it’s first priority,” she said. “I have to be a mother first, singer second.”
The brassy songstress began singing in small restaurants and hotels around Danville, Ky., at age 11, because of a passion for singing.
Later, Horseman began singing in local bars and nightclubs at the age of 17, hoping to be signed to a record label.
Although she has yet to be signed, Horseman has grown as an artist and performed with more than 23 different musicians.
She also has traveled across Tennessee and Kentucky with her band, which won the 2008 Regional Blues Challenge last year in Memphis.
Though spectators sometimes shout derogatory comments, Horseman said it’s very important to stay true to who she is.
“You have to be really good at what you do and very confident,” she said.
Horseman also tries to be the best mother she can be. It isn’t always to balance her music life with parenting her two 7 year olds, Gabrielle and Nathan, she said.
“But you have to make a choice. Singing is my pleasure, and children are my first pleasure. They come first.”

Sondra Horseman and her band, Velveeta Jones, don’t let the heat phase them as they entertain the crowd at the W.C. Handy Blues and Barbecue Festival in Henderson, Ky.

Albert Castiglia shows off his skills at the W.C. Handy Blues Festival in Henderson, Ky.

Katie Puttman, employee for J + B Barbecue and Catering,  takes a minute out of the blazing heat to cool down in front of the fan.

Sondra Horseman shows her maternal side to 7-year-old daughter, Gabby Kirkpatrick, during an interview with members of the with Xposure journalism workshop.

Kelly Smith (center) and her family don’t let anything stop them from enjoying the Blue’s and Barbecue Festival in Henderson, Ky.

Xposure workshop participant, Franey Miller, 14, duPont Manual High School, puts her interviewing skills to the test during the W.C. Handy Blues and Barbecue Festival in Henderson, Ky.