Melodies to stop you in your tracks, lyrics you can sink your teeth into, and a voice you won't forget. This time, she delves deeper into hurt and anger -- and rocks louder as despair becomes strength and hope. In short: mature pop/rock at its finest.

10 MP3 Songs
POP: Today's Top 40, EASY LISTENING: Soft Rock



Details:
Maybe you heard her rock the East Village with a full band. Perhaps you wandered into a Brooklyn café to find her enchanting the crowd with just her voice and her guitar. Or lush vocals and clever lyrics on the airwaves caught your ear, leaving you wondering, "Who is that?"

By the time she could speak, Nicole Collins was turning heads with impromptu renditions of Top 40 hits. She made her stage debut at age 10 in talent shows, musicals and choirs. But singing alone was not enough: Amid the frequent moves of her military family, she began classical training as a violist â knowledge that would serve her well when she began writing her own songs as a teenager. Soon, she was fully immersed in music, even traveling the country as an actress and songstress in "Carved in Stone," a play honoring Vietnam War veterans, while still in high school.

By age 18, she realized that this was a love that would not be denied. She began recording while in college in Florida, and after graduation, Nicole followed her dream to New York City, where she quickly found her place as a soulful rock/pop singer and songwriter. She released her self-produced debut, âLeave It Behind,â in June 2004, then hit national radio, international TV and stages from New York to Atlanta.

This spring found her finishing up her second album, the edgier, brutally honest "Not This Time," then heading to Europe on various other projects. As always, she is performing, creating and doing for-hire vocals â and racking up the miles on the parkâs running trails in her free time.

A few highlights:
· Working with Alain Nkossi Konda, the Afro-pop artist/producer and John Lennon Songwriting Contest winner, Nicole worked her vocal magic in "I Will Sing," by world-famous soukous artist Kanda Bongo Man.
· Her cover of "Three Little Birds," is featured on an upcoming Bob Marley tribute album from Afrikool Records.
· In 2003, she performed on "15 Minutes of Fame," a New York TV show, and, along with Yaris, her SongStrong Productions collaborator, was featured in a show by Yleisradio, a Finnish TV station with 5 million viewers.
· She performed at the Bronx SuperFest in August 2003 and at the Freedom Festival in St. Petersburg, Fla., in November 2002.