Fresno Famous

You want to try your hand at being a music journalist? On the serious side? Here's your chance. Send me your info (name/e-mail addy/phone) and we'll see what we can do to hook you up with an interview with Bo Benton. We won't even give you a deadline (or payment, sorry).

Benton's music and face might be familiar. She's in the top 20 in the Fresno market right now (that's radio talk, baby) and she recently shot a video at 2039 downtown.

If you're interested, here's her bio:

"I'm a hybrid of yesterday and tomorrow…"

With natural talent, exquisiteness, and a fresh, hip hop and rock hybrid sound, Bo Benton not only has a tremendous voice that can capture audiences, but she is also gifted with the capability to write evocative lyrics possessing the ability to entice any listener. Born on the South side of Chicago into a music oriented family, in spring of 2009, Bo is set to release her debut album "Queen of the Night" with acclaimed record label Universal Music / Fontana after successfully releasing her first two singles "Bounce" and "Make that Move" independently.

Coming this fall is Bo's upcoming single "I Know You Want It," which was produced by Lil Ronnie (Bow Wow, Nelly, R. Kelly, T Pain), written by Lil Ronnie, Bo Benton and Pusher Deville, with KD aka Kevin Davis (Pink, Usher, NSYNC) as mixer. The upcoming maxi single for "I Know You Want It" will feature the song "Baller," where Bo Features Raekwon of the Wu Tang Clan. Her second release "Queen of the Night" was produced by Jason Edmonds (Michael Jackson, Jon B., Sisqo), Mark Tabb and Ansone, was written by Bo Benton and mixed by Rob Beaton (Devil Wears Prada, Batman Begins). According to Bo, "Queen of the Night is sure to be the 2008 girl power anthem, motivating women to rise above and live your own life."

Bo has two music videos completed and is in preproduction on the next. Sexy, fun, and full of magical color and animation, "Bounce" is the music video that took YouTube.com and MySpace.com by storm, beating out both Diddy and Jay-Z for the number one spot in December of 2006. The hot music video "Make that Move" was leaked on servers and viewed 3.6+ MILLION times. Both videos were directed by Todd Straus-Shulson AKA "Todd McWadd."

Bo takes her inspiration from diverse genres of music ranging from hip hop all the way through rock, 80s new wave, and of course, disco. This blend of influences explains why her sound is so distinctive and versatile. Her rich, soulful vocals are combined with lyrics that stir the imagination of today's youthful tastemakers as well as the grown and sexy.

Coined as "the female Jay-Z," Bo is a driving force in the changed music industry. She is the only female artist to be doing everything from producing, writing, singing to running her own successful music company – Bo also owns and is President of Gold Starr Entertainment.

Performing from Tokyo to Chicago and back to her home in Hollywood, at present, life revolves around her work. Whether writing, recording in the studio, producing, or performing internationally, she is constantly engaging in her #1 passion: music. Bo's music has a message – none of her songs are produced just for sound's sake. Bo shares, "My album is like a great movie, one that you will listen to over and over again."

www.myspace.com/bobenton