Meet Dani

Photo courtesy of: Janna Woody Smith

16 Questions with Dani Austin - Lead Vocals

 1. Name: Danielle Lynn Austin 

2. Birthday: December 5th 

3. Hometown: Saint James, NY 

4. Favorite instrument: I can’t play any personally, but I’d say guitar. 

5. What made you want to become a musician? I started singing when I got a karaoke machine for Christmas when I was about 4. I grew up listening to Ashlee Simpson and Hilary Duff and I knew I wanted to sing and perform like them. 

6. Which instruments did you play in high school? I didn’t play any instruments, but I was in choir all 4 years. I was a pro on the recorder in elementary school though :) 

7. What are your hobbies or interests outside of music? Outside of music I like to bake, paint, travel, and spend time outside whenever it’s nice out.

8. Describe your favorite performance venue. The thing that makes a performance venue great to me is the people that are there to listen. A great crowd with big energy feels incredible to play to.

9. Tell me about the craziest/worst thing that has ever happened onstage. At one gig we played, the microphone connection was weird I guess, and I got shocked a few times which was startling…but I was fine! 

10. What qualities do you think make a great musician? I think the ability to adjust on the fly is crucial for anyone who performs live. You never know when there’ll be a technical issue or what not, so being able to adapt and stay chill in the moment is important.  

 11. How do you handle performance anxiety (nervousness)? (Not well!) To this day I still get crazy anxiety before just about every show, but joking around with the rest of the band always helps. Plus, once that first song starts all the nerves melt away.

12. What is the most trouble that you ever have gotten into? Honestly, I was a goody goody growing up so never got in much trouble…but probably was when I got my first tattoo. 

13. What is your favorite song to perform? We’re always working on adding new songs to the setlist, so it changes a lot but right now it’s a rocked-up cover of Before He Cheats.  

14. Who Are Your Biggest Influences? Stevie Nicks, Miley Cyrus, Kelsy Karter, Joni Mitchell

15. What's the best piece of advice another musician ever gave you? Play every show like it’s your last one because life can change in the blink of an eye.  

 16. Tell me about your experience on the X-Factor! I auditioned in high school back in NY. My mom and I waited in endless lines all day in this big basketball arena and then in the center of the arena there were about 100 curtained off cubicles each with a random judge in them. I could hear everyone around me singing, which was wild, and then I got about 45 seconds to sing a song to this one guy (I did “Beautiful" by Christina Aguilera) and he handed me a pink sheet of paper that got me into the next round! It was a whirlwind but so much fun.

Take a listen to some of Dani’s favorite songs.