Arts & Entertainment
Sea Sea Riders Singer Auditions for 'The Voice'
Michelle Lee Grossman, 53, is auditioning for the second season of a singing competition reality.
By day she works at Dunedin Beads. In the evening, she pulls out a red-lacquered acoustic guitar and coos Mama Cass. A few times each month, at places like Sea Sea Riders or Sweet Pea Cafe, Michelle Lee Grossman is the star for the night.
Thursday, she’ll be in Orlando, auditioning for the second season of “The Voice,” a singing competition reality show broadcast on NBC. If selected, she’ll be called back 2-4 days later.
Grossman has prepared two pieces for the audition: “Crying,” by Roy Orbison and “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” a song made popular by the Mamas & the Papas.
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She only watched one episode of the first season of “The Voice.”
“I didn’t want to compare myself to that,” Grossman said, referring to the talented singers on the show. “I was afraid it would make me nervous.”
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She’s been playing guitar for five years. She’s been performing as a singer since she was 8, and still gets the jitters when she first gets on stage.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing to get nervous,” Grossman said.
She was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in New Jersey. Her husband’s job brought her to Florida 11 years ago, but they are no longer together. She has a 24-year-old daughter and a 34-year-old son, both of whom live in Atlanta.
Grossman is now 53. She has dark red hair and wears glasses. She wears jewelry she designed and made herself, with supplies from Dunedin Beads.
Her voice is low for a woman.
“Alto is almost too high for me to sing,” she said.
She tends to sing in a men’s tenor range. That means her setlist often includes works by artists like Elvis Presley and Jason Mraz.
Grossman also works part-time as a Mary Kay consultant. She’s been with that company for 8 years, but lately has been shifting away from sales, trying to make music her full-time career.
She plays mostly at local venues, restaurants and cafes. Occasionally she’ll play a Dunedin Chamber of Commerce dinner or Rotary Club Christmas party. She has sung the national anthem at a Dunedin Blue Jays baseball game.
She plays mostly covers, but has some original songs. She’s responsive to the tastes of the crowd she’s performing for.
“I have quite a few people that follow me,” she said. “I know what song they’re going to request, so I just start singing it before they do.”
Grossman’s next scheduled performance is at Sea Sea Riders on the 19th, from 6 to 10 p.m. To hear a few songs, check out her page .
