Notes on a Starlet: Donna Benedicto

I meet with Donna Benedicto (@donna_b4u) at a trendy café on Main Street, 49th Parallel. I immediately understand why she chose this particular place. It is buzzing with energy and creativity. Behind a sea of laptop screens there are countless faces crumpled with the concentration that comes from creating. Whether it be writing, poetry, music, art or just plain homework.

Donna breezes in and appears right at home in this electrically inspiring environment. “The donuts are fantastic,” she tells me, and I am tempted, but not before I find out everything about the prodigy seated in front of me. Donna Benedicto has been a big name in Vancouver’s cover band scene for the past few years. Her face is familiar to many as she lights up stages across the city with her soulful vocals. Her work spans across all musical genres and she recently launched an acting career. A beautiful and talented woman like Donna represents the flourishing music scene in the city that is the envy of the country. Not only is she imbibing the Vancouver performing arts scene, she is also transforming it with her unique personality. I speak at length with Donna to trace the adventurous journey that brought her to this solid standing.

Tell us a little about your background. How did singing and acting take roots during your childhood?

I was born in Vancouver and grew up in Richmond in a Filipino family. My parents were first generation Filipinos. My elementary school was mostly white so fitting in was very hard. I figured that to be noticed or to make friends I would have to be more outgoing and better at doing things. I went to Hugh Boyd Secondary in Richmond. I was so focused on wanting to be socially accepted that schoolwork took a major backseat. I did just enough to pass tests. I would never do homework. It’s funny because when I meet people who went to Hugh Boyd they don’t remember me at all. That’s because in grades 10, 11 and 12 I was never there. I would skip all the time. I would call in and pretend to be my mom (in an impeccable Filipina accent) “Donna cannot come into school today because she is sick today!” That was high school for me. I was just trying to fit in and be cool, which I completely regret now because I didn’t learn anything.

What about music? Did you learn about music at school?

In school I was so insecure that I didn’t acknowledge liking music. I sang my first song at 4, in church and I can remember thinking I sounded different from the other kids. Thinking I could hold a tune a little bit better and that I didn’t sound too much like a kid. I sang in church until the age of about 11. After that I was too cool for it. Like way too cool. They wouldn’t let me sing the cool songs that I wanted to sing! Back then I wanted to sing Mariah Carey. They wanted to hear hymns and I didn’t want to sing hymns. Throughout high school I didn’t even take drama. That’s why when people meet me now they’re like “You’re a singer? What?!” or “You’re an actor?!” People who I grew up with say, “Okay I can see why you’re an actor, you’re pretty animated.” But most people are like “Where did that even come from?” It’s very strange.

This happens to people who are exploring passions. You daydream and you end up thinking about the same thing over and over again. When I would daydream it would always be about singing and performing. But I thought that all little girls thought of doing that stuff. Then I started modelling. I had a friend who is a really good photographer. Usually when girls start to model they take stupid pictures with creepy photographers but he was a working pro. We had one shoot together and I got amazing pictures out of it. Modelling is a form of performance for the camera. So I was like yeah I can do that! I kept on daydreaming about the singing though. Then there was a point in my life in my mid-twenties where I was doing nothing. I was managing a very successful bar in Richmond called the Flying Beaver. I was doing well but it was my 9 to 5. It was work. I was answering emails, running around managing girls, working 12-hour shifts and doing numbers. I could do it but it wasn’t my thing. It wasn’t helping me grow. So with all the money I earned and the free time I had, I’d go party. Party hard! Have three-day binges and do all kinds of drugs. All because I was lost. Modelling was fun, you got pictures out of it but I’m not 5’6, you know. Realistically I was not going to get big jobs doing runway. I did catalogue and all that but… 

There must be a market for girls who look like you, right?

There is, especially now.  Modeling market is really diverse these days there’s a lot to work with. But back then it was mostly for Import models.  Like on the car sort of stuff and I wasn’t into that. I don’t have the fake tits that the market wants. So that wasn’t something that I thought I could realistically pursue.

To see you as a model makes a lot of girls out there feel beautiful because they identify with you.

Thank you! Yeah, they must be like “She’s normal! And her boobs are normal!”

Exactly! Coming back to how you got into singing…

Yes, I didn’t know what I was doing with myself. I was getting depressed and partying even more. I sang a snippet to a song that came on the radio in front of the guy I was dating at the time and some of his friends. He said to me, “You sound pretty good. You need a hobby. Go take some lessons or something. Why don’t you go do something with yourself?” If you sing two sentences over and over again for a long time, you can be good at singing that part of the song. But if you asked me to sing the whole song I probably couldn’t do it then. That is the kind of singer I was. I was a shower singer. I’d sing snippets. After that incident I looked into taking singing lessons seriously.

I found Brennan Barrett online. He is a really good teacher. He tells you to come in with a song and then teaches you how to sing it, how to pronounce and how to act. After a year of lessons, my boss at the bar heard I was taking lessons. He made me sing for his staff party. They gave me a lot of support at the bar. They even gave me a show on Sunday nights, every month, because it proved to be good for business. The first show packed the house. I went from being able to sing maybe 3 songs all the way through to doing 17 songs for a night. I even had a breakdown. It was a really big lesson. You just gotta do it and see what happens. What I was proud of was that I actually didn’t come off as nervous  I can fake it. I was like “Hi everybody!” and looked so happy to be there. I got away with not sounding that great at the start because I appeared so comfortable, and later I got better! I was also able to style myself. When I was nineteen I went to Blanche MacDonald Centre for Makeup Artistry to learn to do my own makeup and hair. I started getting gigs to acoustic shows. I could look really nice and perform really nice even though I just sounded okay. But then I just got better and better.

Does getting a gig have a lot to do with how you present yourself?

A lot! You could book a really good musician who can probably sing their own songs that nobody knows, in their sweatpants, who sound really good or you can get me and I will make sure I look styled, be personable and say Hi to everybody. For me it was always about the audience. I sing other people’s songs. There is nothing that I own other than to make sure everyone has a good time. That is what got me booked.

Do you eventually want to be able to do your own songs?

My niche is “I’ll sing whatever you want me to the best of my abilities”. People have been on me to write. I guess I could. But I have sung enough of other people’s songs to know what is good and what is bad. I wouldn’t have reached the level of singing that I am at now if I was writing my own songs at the same time. Writing is a whole another ballgame. My interest right now is performing. I am too self-conscious to enjoy it yet. I am trying to make a living from performing because that is the energy I’m after. I wouldn’t perform something of mine unless I really liked it.

Who inspired you to sing?

I was in love with Beyoncé when she was in Destiny’s Child and the usual Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston. R&B and soul is what I grew up with. A lot of people say that is what I sound good on. I like the energy of rock songs too; it is so big and strong.

I watched a clip of you online doing jazz…

I have always liked Ella Fitzgerald and Billy Holiday and all that stuff. I didn’t know I was capable of singing jazz. After a year and a half of singing acoustic I got a house gig at the Cellar downtown. It was for a cover band. We performed every Thursday. It was my first time with a real band. I had little creative control over what songs they wanted to do. They wanted songs for the young crowd, like Ke$ha. I grew a lot there. They hired me because I told them I would work really hard.  I promised to look really hot every week and to be really nice to everybody. I sang for about a year there. My band members David Padden, Philip Laessoe and Jason Bonnell mentored and supported me greatly.

The band that I play with now at the Roxy, Troys R Us, mentors me strongly as well  Everyone in that band are amazing professional singers and musicians. Always pushing me to improve, I learn every time I play with them. The first guitarist that I did acoustic shows with – Ruel Morales and the first deejay I ever worked with Eric Carver, have both inspired me a lot too.

Has your family been supportive?

Like most Filipino parents, my parents wanted me to be a nurse, a dental assistant or hygienist. But once I did a show they were really encouraging because they could see how hard I was working. I would practice 8 hours a day, everyday, starting a couple of months before the show.

Out of all the venues in Vancouver where you have performed, which is your favourite?

I did a show for High On Life Entertainment Group. They are these fun professional group of guys who are taking over the city with crazy events and parties. They come up with an event idea and then go over the top with it. They did a circus party that I was part of.  I was dressed as a ringmaster. They had a contortionist and people hanging from the ceiling. I hosted the event and had a vocal set with the deejay, Ryker Gamble, DJ Ramble. It was for more than a thousand people. I loved the energy.

Fanclub is a really great place to play. It sounds ethereal in there. I did jazz there. It is more of a sit down energy, where you can really sing. Even though it is a big place it is a little more intimate. I also love singing at the Roxy. The band is great and so is the management. The stage is big. They just want you to have a good time and party. Once in a while I’ll book the casinos. Starlight is a good stage. The crowd is a little bit more mature so you have to do a lot of classics. They love to dance there. And if there are any Filipinos they just run up to the stage and they’re like (in Filipino accent) “Okayyy! You’re Filipino!”  

Who do you like to listen to?

Unfortunately the music I have to listen to now is the music that I have to learn to sing. I love Little Dragon, they are electro-indie. The Black Keys and their raw sounds. Sweet stuff like Ray Lamontagne. Julia Stone. Beachouse- super mellow indie stuff. Beyoncé- all her albums. And the hip hop guys- Jay Z, 2 Pac. I like everything.

How would you describe the performing arts community in Vancouver? Is it difficult to crack?

When it comes to cover bands we all know each other. It is a small city. Everybody subs for everybody. It is a little hard to get into. A lot of new singers want to make songs different which makes it difficult for bands to work with them when they are always trying to change things. It is a little difficult to get your foot through the door but once you get some recognition it is smooth sailing.

As an artist what do you like about Vancouver and what do you dislike?

What I like about Vancouver is the diversity. There are lots of different artists here. There is a lot of variety. What I don’t like, I’d say, is that sometimes there is a lack of support from the community. The Vancouver vibe is kinda flakey. People say they’ll go to something and then not show up. Everyone I have met from Toronto and Calgary is punctual, and shows up. I am really lucky that I have a good support group but I have seen it happen to other bands where money is paid and no one shows up.  Vancouver is an insecure city. People don’t like anything unless everybody else likes it first. But it’s funny how when you have a big event and you post pictures online later, people see it and are like “That was really cool!” Then the next time they make it. It’s a subconscious if everyone else likes it then we’ll like it mentality.

Tell us about some of the cool projects you are currently working on.

I did a F as in Frank photoshoot in the summer. I am working on a couple of photoshoot ideas with stylists and photographers. I was an associate producer on a short film. I have been acting for about a year. So far I have booked 5 commercials. I was on Untold Stories of the E.R. as a principal actor. I just started going out for TV and film. I got my second gig for Almost Human. I also helped produce a short film with some very talented people. One of the leads in it just booked a pilot. Jason Cermak directed it. Acting gives me the same sort of high that I get when I am on stage. Longevitywise acting is where I want to go.

Do you have to make sure you put yourself in acting environments to meet the right people?

I met a lot of people through my acting class and my acting coach Shea Hampton. Anastasia Bandy is another acting coach of mine who is great. When I had to sing songs I didn’t like at the Cellar, I took acting classes from her to act like I like the songs! That’s how I got into acting.

Let’s talk about styling. I remember when I saw you at the Roxy you were wearing a fabulous leather skirt.

I love leather skirts. When in doubt always wear leather. It’s hot! It took me a while to develop style because I was pretty insecure growing up. Some of my girlfriends were like “Name brand this and name brand that!” and I was like “Oh my god this is so expensive!” I can’t justify paying $150 on a shirt. What if I get tired of it in a month? I try to go to thrift stores. I am pretty picky about what I find. I go online to find out what the trendiest girls are doing then I go out and find it myself. I’m also lucky to know talented stylists who have helped me come up with some looks. A great stylist Crystal (aka Styleme Louey) styled my last shoot with Alex Barredo, who is my favourite photographer. Jolie Couture does couture gowns and I will be doing a shoot with her in March. Her gowns are so beautiful. Styling for shows is all about getting some basic trendy pieces and putting them together with your old shit. Mix match, mix match!

What are your other aspirations? Where do you see yourself heading?

I would like to somehow incorporate singing and acting together but I hate musicals! It would be cool to play a singer on a show. I would love to have a part in a feature film. I hope to be there one day. I would love to be a series regular. I will go anywhere where this high will take me. Most people who are successful in acting are generally good, grounded people and that is my aspiration. As for the music, I would like to have 3 songs that I am proud of, whether they blow up or not. And I want to make a music video! But I have to write a good song first (laughs).

Is it easier in the entertainment industry now than it was 5-10 years ago?

Yes, because of social media. Anyone can create exposure or at least get feedback. You can get people interested by posting pictures and putting your personality up there.

There is also a lot more diversity now in acting than there used to be.

Definitely. I have only been working for a year. I used to think there is probably not much work out there for an Asian girl like me but now they don’t care. They’ll hire whom ever. Sometimes I will walk into an audition and see beautiful 5’7 white girls that look like they should be on TV. Sometimes I don’t get a call back and sometimes I do. From my experience if they like you and you fit their look then they bring you in. You have to be real. You have to be genuine. The people who are hiring you are doing their job. It is part of a project. Just be happy to be there and be nice to everybody. You can’t take anything personally.

What advice would you give to young performers in the city?

Work your ass off. Practice everyday. Sometimes when artists perform they think it is all about them. They close their eyes and perform. Make it about the performance! Practice in the mirror. Videotape yourself. Try different genres. Take the time to style yourself. Be entertaining!

Do you remember going to a really good concert and thinking, this is what performance should look like?

I saw Lenny Kravitz in concert. He was so happy to get the love from the audience. He went 7 songs over time because he didn’t want to stop playing. He even walked into the crowd. He had genuine appreciation for his audience. That was super inspiring for me. That is a grounded and humble person. A person who seeks recognition for their hard work and not for their ego. That is who I want to be.