Vanessa Layne revisits love for music with cover of ‘Whisper in the Dark’

by Tricia Reddock

St Vincent and the Grenadines’ own Vanessa Layne is revisiting her love for singing after a 30-year hiatus spent pursuing other interests.

Vanessa’s cover of Dionne Warwick’s ‘Whisper in the Dark’, a pop ballad originally released in 1985, is easy, breezy and unforced.

Produced and engineered by Mark Cyrus of Masteroom, Vanessa takes a light approach, effortlessly resisting over singing. Her version is emotive enough to provide a personal listening experience, without taking herself too seriously, delivering a vocally strong performance well suited to the track.

Of the three upcoming versions to be released, my personal favorite is the acoustic. This bare stripped down version is the perfect showcase for her soothing, light, airy vocals.

However the pop version, which drops tomorrow, March 29, is more radio friendly. While it remains true to the original musical production, Vanessa’s vocal interpretation is reminiscent of 80s pop without Warwick’s bluesy overtones, or the angst of those times.

The soon to be released dance version is quite catchy, and actually does make me want to get up and dance, I expect it will become a part of local DJs club rotations.
When asked directly, Vanessa hinted at the possibility of other songs in the pipeline, however, she didn’t go as far as a hard confirmation on the details.

“I am just enjoying myself. I am just throwing it out there into the universe,” she laughed. “It’s just a leap of faith. It’s scary at times, but it’s kind of fun. I want to see where it goes, and let things happen organically.”

Vanessa’s current contribution to the local music scene is a refreshing departure from traditional Caribbean musical genres.

Vanessa offers up a solid re-entry to music on her own terms, since she indicated a strong preference for studio recordings over live performances.

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this cover, and will definitely add it to my playlist, and I am also looking forward to seeing how Vanessa develops her artistry as a studio vocalist.

You can listen to, and download the track here https://music.apple.com/us/album/whisper-in-the-dark-single/1675555578
FB @vanessalaynemusic
IG @vanessalaynemusic