MADISON - Writing poetry captivated Isabelle "Raine" Stern at an early age. Now she uses her poetry skills, along with her ability to sing and play the guitar, to write original songs and perform in five bands, including Monroe's Precocious.
"A lot of people know me as just a guitar player," Stern said. "My guitar followed my love for poetry."
Stern, 19, a 2015 New Glarus High School alumna, won the Wisconsin Original Artist Showcase Sept. 22 in Milwaukee. She's now gearing up to host a concert in the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas, in March.
"I thought there was no way I could win," Stern said. "There were some people looking up the competition on Facebook and then quitting. I didn't have any family in Milwaukee."
Stern uses the stage name "Raine," because her middle name is Lorraine. She was one of the few original artists who performed live in the showcase; many others played pre-recordings of their songs.
"Personally, I'm drawn to people who share their music and songwriting with me and doing everything live," she said. "I'm a good guitar player and I wanted to impress a few people with my guitar."
She won the showcase in September with her original song "Serenade Me."
Stern said the song, which she wrote for the contest in Milwaukee, is a guitar-focused and lyrically driven pop song with elements of jazz and blues.
"It's the story about the tension between two people and one of those people has feelings for the other, but the person is not sure if the other is interested," she said.
Stern's passion for music comes from many different avenues. Her father played bass in college. Stern grew up listening to The Police, Rush, Led Zeppelin and older jazz and blues musicians like Cole Porter, Ella Fitzgerald and Etta James.
"I think my love for music really spawned from poetry," Stern said.
After seeing guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan perform, Stern said she was hooked on playing the guitar.
She plays in five bands - Precocious in Monroe; New Image (Janesville, Rockford); Purple Veins, a Prince tribute band (Madison); Clyde Stubblefield All-Stars (Madison); and the Madtown Get Down, a funk party band based in Madison.
She started writing acoustic-based pop, Indian and folk songs last year. After graduating from New Glarus in 2015, Stern went to the University of Wisconsin-Madison for one semester. Then her mother moved to Iowa.
"I was living on my own, playing in three bands with no car," she said. "I was really stressed out with my situation. I wanted to make music my life."
She opted to drop out of college and devote her life to music. Stern also works as a guitar instructor in Madison.
"It's my main income," she said. "I wanted to stay in the Madison area and work on my craft."
She's in the process of writing a set of original songs to perform at South by Southwest.
"It's a huge opportunity to network and get my name out there," Stern said. "I would love to write music that means something to me that other people enjoy. I want to do well at it so I can tour and perform for people who want to hear my music. If I could do that, I would be happy. Even though I'm happy, I'm never satisfied. Some people say, 'If I do this, I have arrived.' I'm never satisfied and feel like I have arrived."
Stern is working on expanding her profile in the music industry. She has a Facebook page and is planning on starting a YouTube channel. She wants to ensure that after the music festival in Texas, she's ready to expand her music platform.
"I want to be accessible," she said. "Not everyone has Facebook."
"A lot of people know me as just a guitar player," Stern said. "My guitar followed my love for poetry."
Stern, 19, a 2015 New Glarus High School alumna, won the Wisconsin Original Artist Showcase Sept. 22 in Milwaukee. She's now gearing up to host a concert in the South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas, in March.
"I thought there was no way I could win," Stern said. "There were some people looking up the competition on Facebook and then quitting. I didn't have any family in Milwaukee."
Stern uses the stage name "Raine," because her middle name is Lorraine. She was one of the few original artists who performed live in the showcase; many others played pre-recordings of their songs.
"Personally, I'm drawn to people who share their music and songwriting with me and doing everything live," she said. "I'm a good guitar player and I wanted to impress a few people with my guitar."
She won the showcase in September with her original song "Serenade Me."
Stern said the song, which she wrote for the contest in Milwaukee, is a guitar-focused and lyrically driven pop song with elements of jazz and blues.
"It's the story about the tension between two people and one of those people has feelings for the other, but the person is not sure if the other is interested," she said.
Stern's passion for music comes from many different avenues. Her father played bass in college. Stern grew up listening to The Police, Rush, Led Zeppelin and older jazz and blues musicians like Cole Porter, Ella Fitzgerald and Etta James.
"I think my love for music really spawned from poetry," Stern said.
After seeing guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan perform, Stern said she was hooked on playing the guitar.
She plays in five bands - Precocious in Monroe; New Image (Janesville, Rockford); Purple Veins, a Prince tribute band (Madison); Clyde Stubblefield All-Stars (Madison); and the Madtown Get Down, a funk party band based in Madison.
She started writing acoustic-based pop, Indian and folk songs last year. After graduating from New Glarus in 2015, Stern went to the University of Wisconsin-Madison for one semester. Then her mother moved to Iowa.
"I was living on my own, playing in three bands with no car," she said. "I was really stressed out with my situation. I wanted to make music my life."
She opted to drop out of college and devote her life to music. Stern also works as a guitar instructor in Madison.
"It's my main income," she said. "I wanted to stay in the Madison area and work on my craft."
She's in the process of writing a set of original songs to perform at South by Southwest.
"It's a huge opportunity to network and get my name out there," Stern said. "I would love to write music that means something to me that other people enjoy. I want to do well at it so I can tour and perform for people who want to hear my music. If I could do that, I would be happy. Even though I'm happy, I'm never satisfied. Some people say, 'If I do this, I have arrived.' I'm never satisfied and feel like I have arrived."
Stern is working on expanding her profile in the music industry. She has a Facebook page and is planning on starting a YouTube channel. She wants to ensure that after the music festival in Texas, she's ready to expand her music platform.
"I want to be accessible," she said. "Not everyone has Facebook."