From the tiny country town of Bethany to the big-time studios of Nashville at age 17 – it’s been a fast trip for talented country singer, Marla Morris. This young artist has been singing and performing since age 4 and has been playing guitar since she was 13.  Schooled in the Grand Ole Opry tradition by voice teacher/vocalist Rose Coppola Trabandt, Marla’s signature EP features six of her co-written songs:  three co-written with Frankie Vinci, songwriter for country music superstar Tim McGraw; another three with Mark Oliverius, songwriter and producer for Lorrie Morgan, Trick Pony, Burns & Poe, Ashton Shepherd and Kelly Lang. The EP was produced under the direction of Mark Oliverius, a Nashville legend at studio production and a frequent at the Grand Ole Opry as the keyboardist for Lorrie Morgan. Oliverius has said of Marla’s talent: “At seventeen Marla Morris has the silky smooth delivery of a seasoned veteran … her voice handles like a fine tuned Ferrari.”

 Two of Marla’s songs have already been chosen from hundreds of entries as feature pieces on a non-profit CD for Foster Child Awareness, subsidized and commissioned by the State of Connecticut.  Marla actively supports many foundations with proceeds from her CDs being sent to various charitable organizations.

Marla is currently a student at Belmont University in Nashville as a music business major. She plans on pursuing a career in the music industry while attending college. Marla hopes to use her high energy performing talents in a wide variety of musical venues including opening acts for established country musicians.

                Her EP is available in outlets throughout New Haven County, on her website, as well as on iTunes, CDBaby.com, Amazon.com, and IndieRhythm.com.

Marla was very fortunate to record her debut self-titled EP with some of the top musicians in Nashville, including Mark Oliverius on keyboard , J.T. Corenflos on the electric guitar, Jimmy Carter on the bass guitar , Lonnie Wilson on the drums, Chris Leuzinger on the acoustic guitar, Mike Johnson on the steel guitar, Joe Spivey on the fiddle, and Thom Flora singing background vocals.  Her Production team included one of Nashville’s most prominent and sought after engineers, John Albani.