"I don't want to be cute. I don't want to be light and airy. I want to be real. If there's anything that I most want anyone to get out of my records, it's this: I'm the real deal. Being able to relate and connect to an artist is so important and I really want my listeners to feel that they can connect with me..."
Stacey Mullett wants the whole world to know her name...she also wants them to say it right. "It's 'mew-lay!' Not 'mullet,' 'mew-lay!'" she laughs. "You have no idea how many people say it wrong on a daily basis. But for the record, it is 'mew-lay,' not 'mullet.'"
Actually, if you want to get technical, it's Blackwood, as in Mrs. Andy. "I actually don't like to play that one up," Stacey admits, referring to her marriage to the President of JLN Records. "It can lend itself to nastiness, which I've heard a lot in the past. Some people don't want to judge me based on my own merits as an artist, they just want to say that I wouldn't be here if I wasn't married to the boss. That's very frustrating to me, because the two things have nothing to do with each other at all. I'm certainly not getting any special or preferential treatment because of Andy. I'm just an employee, like everyone else."
Stacey will admit, however, that she's seen a few things some other employees never have, such as the actual building of the company. "I don't want to sound conceited," she begins with a laugh, "But I really think I had a lot to do with the label being started. Joel was going to do it anyway, I'm not saying I had a hand in that decision. But I definitely did in my husband's involvement. Joel wanted Andy to make an investment in it...a loan is actually what he asked for. And well, Andy said no. So I had to kind of talk him into it, because I knew that if he did, he wouldn't regret it. I really believed in Joel's vision and I knew that he would really do something with it. So, in that sense, I'm sort of responsible for JLN...as conceited as it sounds."
Shortly after JLN got off the ground, Stacey was approached by Joel Gibson ("Not Andy, Joel," she insists) about releasing a record. "It was funny to me, because I'd always been a singer. I did the whole choir thing in school and in church, but I never thought about actually making a career doing it. But it was something that sounded fun, so I said, 'Okay, sure. Where do I sign?'"
In the fall of 1982, the JLN label began making its mark on the music scene and Stacey Mullett's debut record, aptly titled Stacey released to the public. "I got some pretty good reviews," she remembers, "but I sold very poorly." Despite the success of singles "Save Me" and "My Heart," the sales on the album were dismal at best, which Stacey admits was a disappointment. "It stung. I can't sit here and say that it didn't hurt me, even a little bit. I really put a lot into that record, like I put a lot into all my records, so for it to pretty much flop was a blow to me."
So much so, Stacey opted out of her contract after just one album to focus on a quieter life at home. "It was time to just step back and be a normal wife and a normal mom again," she relates. For four years, Stacey laid low in the industry, instead helping out on the executive realm. "I liked the executive way of life better," she admits with a smile. "I loved to brainstorm and listen to the demos and really get my hands dirty with the process. And you would think that Andy and Joel would have been chasing me out of the building, since I really didn't belong up there, but they were very cool about letting me in on things. They would ask what I thought and I'd tell them...and sometimes, we actually agreed!"
Eventually, though the simple life had been her own choice, Stacey began to hunger for the performer's life. "For some reason, I just started thinking about it again and I said, 'I really miss that.' So I let Joel know I was interested in maybe coming back. It was a very slow process. I told him this in maybe 1986 and it was the middle of 1987 before there was anything definite on the table. I signed on to do one more album, which became two by the end of the week."
This time, though, Stacey insists she was not in it for the acclaim. "What happened the first time taught me a lesson," she relates. "It made me question just why I was doing this in the first place. Was it because I felt like I had something to say and wanted to express myself through music or was it because I wanted people to like me? And it took some soul-searching for me to realize it was the former. I just wanted to make some music and share my heart. And it didn't matter how liked it or who didn't."
A Journal of Collective Thoughts, Feelings and Ideas ("The longest album title in the history of the world," Stacey laughs), released in July of 1988. The lead off single, a cover of labelmate Tony Millerstein's "Wishes," resounded well on radio, critics could rave enough and the audience grew. "Just when I said, 'I'm going to do this, no matter who likes me,' everyone started liking me!" Stacey marvels. "It was a trip!" Subsequent singles "Ring-a-Ling" and "Steady Me" went to number one in 1989, but instead of reveling in their success, Stacey was reveling in a more personal one.
Daughter Mackenzie Kay Blackwood was born on April 30, meaning Stacey's had her hands quite full lately. Still, she insists it's something she doesn't mind at all. "I love being a mommy," she smiles. "It's a wonderful gift to have a perfect little life placed in your hands. I love every minute I have with her. She's just perfect." WIth the success of Journal and a new baby, Stacey Mew-lay is in no hurry to release another record. "Oh, I do want to," she insists. "But right now, I'm happier just being a mom at home. It means more than anything to me."
Actually, if you want to get technical, it's Blackwood, as in Mrs. Andy. "I actually don't like to play that one up," Stacey admits, referring to her marriage to the President of JLN Records. "It can lend itself to nastiness, which I've heard a lot in the past. Some people don't want to judge me based on my own merits as an artist, they just want to say that I wouldn't be here if I wasn't married to the boss. That's very frustrating to me, because the two things have nothing to do with each other at all. I'm certainly not getting any special or preferential treatment because of Andy. I'm just an employee, like everyone else."
Stacey will admit, however, that she's seen a few things some other employees never have, such as the actual building of the company. "I don't want to sound conceited," she begins with a laugh, "But I really think I had a lot to do with the label being started. Joel was going to do it anyway, I'm not saying I had a hand in that decision. But I definitely did in my husband's involvement. Joel wanted Andy to make an investment in it...a loan is actually what he asked for. And well, Andy said no. So I had to kind of talk him into it, because I knew that if he did, he wouldn't regret it. I really believed in Joel's vision and I knew that he would really do something with it. So, in that sense, I'm sort of responsible for JLN...as conceited as it sounds."
Shortly after JLN got off the ground, Stacey was approached by Joel Gibson ("Not Andy, Joel," she insists) about releasing a record. "It was funny to me, because I'd always been a singer. I did the whole choir thing in school and in church, but I never thought about actually making a career doing it. But it was something that sounded fun, so I said, 'Okay, sure. Where do I sign?'"
In the fall of 1982, the JLN label began making its mark on the music scene and Stacey Mullett's debut record, aptly titled Stacey released to the public. "I got some pretty good reviews," she remembers, "but I sold very poorly." Despite the success of singles "Save Me" and "My Heart," the sales on the album were dismal at best, which Stacey admits was a disappointment. "It stung. I can't sit here and say that it didn't hurt me, even a little bit. I really put a lot into that record, like I put a lot into all my records, so for it to pretty much flop was a blow to me."
So much so, Stacey opted out of her contract after just one album to focus on a quieter life at home. "It was time to just step back and be a normal wife and a normal mom again," she relates. For four years, Stacey laid low in the industry, instead helping out on the executive realm. "I liked the executive way of life better," she admits with a smile. "I loved to brainstorm and listen to the demos and really get my hands dirty with the process. And you would think that Andy and Joel would have been chasing me out of the building, since I really didn't belong up there, but they were very cool about letting me in on things. They would ask what I thought and I'd tell them...and sometimes, we actually agreed!"
Eventually, though the simple life had been her own choice, Stacey began to hunger for the performer's life. "For some reason, I just started thinking about it again and I said, 'I really miss that.' So I let Joel know I was interested in maybe coming back. It was a very slow process. I told him this in maybe 1986 and it was the middle of 1987 before there was anything definite on the table. I signed on to do one more album, which became two by the end of the week."
This time, though, Stacey insists she was not in it for the acclaim. "What happened the first time taught me a lesson," she relates. "It made me question just why I was doing this in the first place. Was it because I felt like I had something to say and wanted to express myself through music or was it because I wanted people to like me? And it took some soul-searching for me to realize it was the former. I just wanted to make some music and share my heart. And it didn't matter how liked it or who didn't."
A Journal of Collective Thoughts, Feelings and Ideas ("The longest album title in the history of the world," Stacey laughs), released in July of 1988. The lead off single, a cover of labelmate Tony Millerstein's "Wishes," resounded well on radio, critics could rave enough and the audience grew. "Just when I said, 'I'm going to do this, no matter who likes me,' everyone started liking me!" Stacey marvels. "It was a trip!" Subsequent singles "Ring-a-Ling" and "Steady Me" went to number one in 1989, but instead of reveling in their success, Stacey was reveling in a more personal one.
Daughter Mackenzie Kay Blackwood was born on April 30, meaning Stacey's had her hands quite full lately. Still, she insists it's something she doesn't mind at all. "I love being a mommy," she smiles. "It's a wonderful gift to have a perfect little life placed in your hands. I love every minute I have with her. She's just perfect." WIth the success of Journal and a new baby, Stacey Mew-lay is in no hurry to release another record. "Oh, I do want to," she insists. "But right now, I'm happier just being a mom at home. It means more than anything to me."