Jennifer John has a face you’ll probably recognise.
Whether it’s through her work training countless numbers of choirs, as a coach on ITV talent show The Voice, running her vocal training firm, or acting as this year’s ‘Lady Liverpool’ at the Netball World Cup, it’s safe to say Jennifer is as close to the epitome of “creative” you're likely to find in the city region.
Life certainly isn’t slowing down for Jennifer, 54, who found out last month she’d been nominated for the Liverpool City Region Culture and Creativity Awards.
On a drizzly Monday afternoon at a city centre cafe, a passionate Jennifer recites the extensive list of her achievements to the Business Post - not least managing the successful Sense of Sound Singers group through which she has trained thousands of people to sing. Or running her business Jennifer John Music, which provides a range of services to Liverpool’s musical and creative industries.
But because there are just so many to name, there's a real danger of skirting over those relatively “smaller” accomplishments. Countless examples of this come up during the interview. Little nuggets such as that her band, the brilliantly-named Killerfernandez are currently producing their second studio album, or that she, along with her Sense of Sound Singers, sang with Take That at Anfield as part of their Greatest Hits tour earlier this year.
A move north
Born in the East End of London, Jennifer moved to Liverpool to study in 1983 at the age of 18, her love for music already in full swing by that point.
“My brother was a concert pianist,” she explained.
“He was simply exceptional from when he was tiny. I just adored my brother and wanted to do anything and everything he did.
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“He was very classical, disciplined. I soon decided I wanted to study jazz, and the reason was because it was the complete opposite to that. I started to write songs when I was 13, but I had more ideas in my head than my ability.”
She soon realised she had been luckier with her upbringing than many, partly due to being encouraged to take up music at home.
“I had really supportive parents. I really do believe in making a difference. When I first moved to Liverpool, I realised things I had taken for granted about being encouraged to become a singer.
“I met a lot of people I was blown away by, who didn’t consider themselves to be singers because they hadn’t been encouraged. It made me realise how lucky I was. I thought ‘if I can encourage that in other people, they could get that sense of confidence too’.
“It’s really important to feel good about yourself in life, and I did. But I saw people who weren't able to - and that didn’t make sense to me.”
After her move to the North West, Jennifer, a budding singing and performing talent, took a job for a short period of time with a city consulting firm.
“In the 1980s, Liverpool was a very different place. There was nothing like the music scene my company went on to create.”
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After leaving the firm, Jennifer began to speak to women from across the city, and soon found out there wasn't much opportunity for people to go and learn to sing.
So she launched training courses where she would use her experience to teach the city's women to sing.
She explained: “After a few weeks, loads of women were attending.
“A couple of decades on, and I’ve trained thousands of people - whether on mass or individually."
She described the 80s in the city as “bleak”, with a divided society and visible racism.
“People would ask me why I had gone to Liverpool - but it was the people who kept me here. There was very little musical provision.
“Outside of the city centre, racism was rife. It was rife everywhere, so not specific to the city. It was the landscape. Anywhere there’s poverty and desperation, human beings want to feel better than someone else, and it’s politicians that can make policies that pit people against each other.”
She said there were various modern-day comparisons with that era, not least Brexit - which is having a “detrimental effect” in that sense.
“The EU is something really progressive - the idea of being a part of something much bigger and more important. Brexit really feels like we are going to take a step backwards.
“It’s making people fearful and making people distrust.
“But that’s where creatives can come in, because we don’t have a political or religious agenda.
A force for good
“Those two areas are usually what cause that divide. Music is just a feel good. Whenever life’s difficult, musicians are often at the centre of making that change.
“I’m seeing more and more displaced people for a plethora of reasons, and wanted to use music to bring those people together. There’s a lot of reasons that people need to be brought together right now.
“The country is really divided for lots of reasons - homelessness being one of them.
“I’m constantly upset by seeing people sleeping in the street. It’s not normal. I want to do something about that, and something for people seeking refuge.”
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Music, Jennifer, said, is the "mainstay" of everything she does.
She explained: “My ethos around singing is that it gives people a voice, literally and metaphorically, and the chance for people to express themselves and realise that all they need is themselves.
“Creativity and music is a really powerful tool for people to be able to discover who they are and think about why they are who they are. It’s a fast track to feelings - especially if you’re a song writer. It’s the backdrop to most people’s lives.
“Along with sport, music is one of those things that brings people together very easily. It’s a very powerful tool.”
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In terms of Sense of Sound, Jennifer has been involved with the singing organisation for 26 years.
The creative company of performing professional singers provides backing vocals and recordings in their own right and collaboratively with other artists and producers - with the aim of making music accessible for all. It also provides entertainment to events with bespoke packages, from one singer to entire choirs.
She founded her firm Jennifer John Music in 2016, providing singing and speaking training, music mentorship, managing Sense of Sound singers, and working in an advisory capacity. She operates it from her vocal studio on Bold Street.
“It was the first time I had the chance to embark on a business venture of my own. And I have to say I took to it right away. I’m just not very good at working for other people.
“It's proven that people singing in choirs in terms of social cohesion works really strongly. It releases endorphins in your body, makes people feel better, and when they feel better, they do better.
“I’m all for anything that stops people feeling divided or isolated. Everything that I do has a social cohesion element to it.”
‘There’s nowhere like Liverpool’
It would be safe to assume such a talent who herself was born in London would be inclined to remain in the capital given its cultural and musical reputation, but for Jennifer, there's nowhere she'd rather be than Liverpool.
“I just fell in love with it, and still am. There’s nowhere else like Liverpool. People are really warm-hearted and funny.
“There’s a kind of razor sharp wit that people in the city have, which I’ve never seen anywhere else.
“My daughter has moved to London for the reason that it’s where most things happen, but I’d rather be here.
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“I like London, but it’s impersonal. You have got to be tough to live in London. There’s not as much space.
“Liverpool has got all of the added advantage - you can actually walk from one place to another, for one thing. It’s easy to find your way around the city and make friends."
Sadly, the Business Post doesn't have space to include each of Jennifer's impressive achievements, which also include acting as musical director for the 100 Women's Voices project - a community scheme that last year recognised a century since some women won the right to vote. That's as well as Jennifer being the powerhouse behind a Guinness World Record, which saw the biggest number of people - 1,631 - .
Music is a "huge part" of Liverpool, she said, adding: "It’s football and music that bring people to this city. There’s so much creativity here. There are so many different types of music that need to be celebrated too, not least our fantastic festivals like Africa Oye and the Liverpool International Music Festival. It’s an amazing place to be a musician.
“I don’t want to compare it to London, but it’s a really important city. We have the biggest record of number one artists, and the advance of digital means we can collaborate in a way we couldn’t before - because we can see and have access to music from around the world that wasn’t accessible to us."
So what's the biggest challenge for this adopted Liverpudlian, who appears to be thriving in her field?
“Working on my own is the biggest challenge for me. I work better with people. I could live in my own head I’ve got that many thoughts that go around. I need to be careful I don’t burn out. I’m better anyway, when I’m able to share ideas.
“At the moment, it’s just me and a marketing manager and that’s it.
“Marketing has been a big challenge. Not enough people know about what I do, and I’m in danger of just doing what I do and not taking time to tell people about it.
“I would love to have a big team, but having said that, it would have to be the right team.”
If running her own successful firm, writing studio albums and performing around the world wasn't enough to fill her diary, Jennifer’s also a lecturer at the All Northern College of Music on the pop degree, which hosts students from all over the world.
Lady Liverpool
Amid her countless projects is one called the Choir With No Name - a 海角视频-wide initiative that sees homeless and marginalised people come together and sing.
That's as well as a 'Complaints Choir' - a light-hearted initiative where firms give employees the chance to share their complaints about the workplace - but in a "fun, safe and creative environment".
She acted as Lady Liverpool for the Netball World Cup earlier this year at the Echo Arena, during which she sang iconic Liverpool songs, and was supported by a 250-strong choir made up of Sense of Sound Singers and other local groups.
Perhaps Jennifer's most renowned profession is her role on ITV hit show The Voice, for whom she acts as a vocal coach.
That involves her working on the process that sees contestants audition before they get the chance to sing on television in front of - or behind - the judges.
She’s part of a team of nine, and said she thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of the role, particularly seeing stars like last year’s finalist, Deana Walmsley, a singing teacher who also hailed from Liverpool, achieve such success.
“I enjoy it because I get the chance to allow people to realise their ambition.
“Deana came first. It was absolutely amazing and well deserved. I just do all the travelling around. It's quite a condensed process, and takes two months in total.
“[The show] enables me to empower those who audition to improve their vocal and performance skills whether they are successful within the show or not. The duty of care behind the scenes is really respectful and nurturing."
So how does Jennifer keep so many plates spinning?
The key, she explained, is simpler than one may first think - but might not be easy to do, particularly for those who enjoy their lie ins.
“I have a regime where I wake up at 5.30am every morning. I meditate for 15 minutes, then go for a walk for an hour, every morning without fail. That’s the only time I actually listen to music.”
Finally, later this month, Jennifer, who lives in the Georgian Quarter, will find out whether she's been successful in the public vote for the City Region's People's Choice Award.
She said: “I’m delighted and delighted at the category - just look at the name of it - 'people’s choice'.
"Just to be nominated for something like that, for me wanting to make a difference in the world using my creativity - to be acknowledged for that is fantastic”.
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