Broadway Singing with Derek A.

Derek Wesley A. is a professional singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist currently living in the United States. He was born in North Carolina on February 24th, 1983. Derek began learning music at age 4 with the help of his father (Harvey Dalton A.: bassist for legendary Southern Rock band The Outlaws). Derek would play melodies and chords he heard on the radio or around the house and Harvey would explain to him how these related to each other. At the age of 10 Derek began playing drums, and by fourteen he was playing professionally in the nearby counties. In high school Derek started the band Blue Dust Box with three of his classmates. This band charted for two weeks at #8 in the Australian Unsigned Artist Charts. Derek was the primary songwriter for the group. At age 19 he moved to Raleigh and quickly became one of the most sought-after bassists in the region, which led to multiple tours of the United States and Canada, as well as countless hours of session work. Derek was also consistently the house bassist for five separate music venues in Raleigh over a 7 year period. While based out of Raleigh, Derek played with John Custer (Columbia/Sony Records), Kenny Soule (Nantucket/DAG), Nick Hagelin (The Voice/Superstition TV Show, Interscope Records, Carolina Ballet), Daniel "Slick" Ballinger (B.B. King's Oh Boy! Records), world renowned blues legend John Dee Holeman (Martin Guitars/Music Maker Foundation) and many others. Derek now lives in Winston Salem, NC. He earned his Bachelor of Music Degree in Composition and his Master of Music Degree in Composition at the conservatory University of North Carolina School of the Arts.