Biography

Valerie grew up in rural Birdsboro, PA, but always had her sights set on bigger and better things. She always jokes that she practically came out of the womb singing and knew at a very early age that music would be a significant part of her life. As a kid, she listened to The Beatles, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, and Aerosmith (her mom's favorite bands), which were a definite influence on her appreciation of music. She began singing in choirs at age 6, playing piano at age 7, and playing flute at age 8. Involvement in numerous music groups throughout her entire primary, intermediate, and high school years soon followed.

Her passion for music led to her decision to study music in college, where she received formal training in music theory, ear training, sight singing, and composition. This is when she picked up a guitar for the first time and fell in love with it. She also discovered her natural talent for songwriting shortly afterwards. After four years of hard work, she completed her Bachelor's of Music in Music Education from Elizabethtown College in 2005. She was even awarded the Theodore Presser Scholarship for outstanding achievement as a music major her junior year!

After graduation, she spent a few years teaching general/vocal music in the elementary schools, but decided teaching was not for her. So, she read everything and anything she could about the music business and jumped full-force into pursuing a career in music. After competing at the 2007 American Model and Talent Competition in Orlando, FL, she was awarded 3rd place in the singer/songwriter category. She also had her single "Can't Imagine" accepted by Indie Express to be on their Volume 1 CD in March 2008. This CD was distributed at Canadian Music Week as well as to press and radio stations in Australia! She has been featured in local eastern PA newspapers and radio stations such as The PA Musician, The Reading Eagle, Ticket Magazine (Montgomery Newspapers), Berks-Mont News, and WCHE 1520 AM.

Valerie Nicole writes and sings her own original pop/rock material and plays acoustic guitar and keyboard. She has been touring eastern PA and NJ since January 2008, including special showcases at Musikfest, Millennium Music Conference, and SS Cape May. She now performs with a back-up band. Her most recent album "From the Heart" was released on January 9th, 2009, which has opened up several opportunities for Valerie. She was also nominated in the Best Female Vocalist category for the 717 Music Awards held in Harrisburg, PA in June 2009 and again in January 2010.

Future projects in 2010 include recording several new songs, tv/film licensing opportunities, getting into the college market, new web design and marketing plan, and college/local radio airplay.

PAST BOOKINGS:

Alpenhof Restaurant and Guesthouse - Reading, PA
Alphabet Lounge - New York, NY
American MusicFest - Harrisburg, PA
Auburn Road Vinyards - Pilesgrove, NJ
Bertie's Inn - Reading, PA
The Bitter End - New York, NY
Bixler's Lodge - Reading, PA
Blandon Lion's Club - Blandon, PA
Boyertown Farmer's Market - Boyertown, PA
Boyertown Hard Bean Cafe - Boyertown, PA
Bube's Brewery - Mount Joy, PA
Cabana's - Cape May, NJ
Cape May Singer Songwriter - Cape May, NJ
Carley's Ristorante and Piano Bar - Harrisburg, PA
Carney's - Cape May, NJ
Chile Pepper Food Fest - Bowers, PA
Chambers 19 - Doylestown, PA
Churchill Inc. - Pottstown, PA
Cornerstone Coffeehouse - Camp Hill, PA
Covatta's Brinton Lodge - Douglassville, PA
Crave Coffee and Gelato - Womelsdorf, PA
Crocodile Rock Cafe - Allentown, PA
Crossroads Coffee House - Roxborough/Manayunk, PA
Dawson Street Pub - Philadelphia (Manayunk), PA
The Draught Horse/Cherry Pit - Philadelphia, PA
Elizabethtown College - Elizabethtown, PA
Ephrata Performing Arts Center - Ephrata, PA
Evergreen Miniature Golf - Douglassville, PA
Exspresso Yourself Cafe - Douglassville, PA
Family Time Farm - Oley, PA
The Flying Dog - Earlville, PA
Fraternal Order of Eagles events - Stroudsburg, PA
Freddy's Tavern - Bristol, PA
Fredericksburg Eagle Hotel - Fredericksburg, PA
The Gap - Born to Play national event - Reading, PA
Get the Word Out - Mt. Airy/Philly, PA
Global Libations - Kutztown, PA
Goggleworks - Reading, PA
Greater Reading Expo - Reading, PA
Gullifty's Underground - Camp Hill, PA
Gusto's Upstairs - Lancaster, PA
HAACSTOCK - Harrisburg, PA
Hard Bean Cafe - Hamburg, PA
Harrisburg Civic Center - Harrisburg, PA
It's A Grind Coffee House - Paoli, PA
KatManDu - Trenton, NJ
Kildare's - Philadelphia (Manayunk), PA
Kutztown Folk Fest - Kutztown, PA
Kutztown Optimist Club - Kutztown, PA
Kutztown University - Kutztown, PA
Lickety Split - Philadelphia, PA
Malone's - Harrisburg, PA
Marie's Hard Bean Cafe - Fleetwood, PA
Max Crema's - Fleetwood, PA
Millennium Music Conference - Harrisburg, PA
Mid-Day Cafe - Reading, PA
Molly Maguire's Pub - Phoenixville, PA
Mr. G's Sports Bar and Grill - Harrisburg, PA
Musikfest - Bethlehem, PA
National Vigil for Hope Event - Scranton, PA
Neena's Brick Oven - Sewell, NJ
Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen Fine Craft Fair - Richboro, PA
private parties and weddings - Berks County, PA
Saint Peter's College - Jersey City, NJ
Sample Somerville - Somerville, NJ
Sandtrap Grille - Limerick, PA
Sidewalk Expo - Boyertown, PA
Starbuck's - Wyomissing, PA
Steel City Coffeehouse - Phoenixville, PA
Stonersville Hotel - Birdsboro, PA
Sovereign Center (National Anthem @ Reading Royals games) - Reading, PA
Summit Bar & Grille - Macungie, PA
Titus Inn - Spring City, PA
William Penn Restaurant and Bar - Lebanon, PA
Women's Show @ York Expo Center - York, PA

REQUEST Valerie Nicole's SONGS ON THESE STATIONS:

88.5 WRKC FM: King's College, Wilkes-Barre, PA
91.3 WXAC Albright College Radio: Albright College, Reading, PA
WEXP La Salle Radio: La Salle University, Philadelphia, PA
88.5 WXPN Philly Local: UPenn, Philadelphia, PA
WQHS Student Radio: UPenn, Philadelphia, PA
91.7 WIXQ FM The Ville: Millersville University, Millersville, PA
WCLH: Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, PA
WWEC 88.3 FM: Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA
WCFA 101.5 FM: Cape May, NJ
Q94 Classic Rock: Altoona, PA
WCHE 1520 AM The-Dixon.com Radio Show: West Chester, PA
WCHE 1520 AM The Jay and Randy Morning Show: West Chester, PA
WPAZ 1370 AM Great Talk show: Pottstown, PA

You can check her out live at any of the venues on her event schedule, which is regularly updated. You can also purchase her promo cd and merchandise at any event or on this site. If you are interested in being notified of any news or upcoming shows Valerie has in your area, please sign up for her e-mail list here.