Biography: Erika Lynn Dangler

Born: April 11th, 1992

At an early age we realized Erika had a love for music. On the way home from pre-school. She would sing the Bonnie Raitt song "Let's give em' something to talk about" At age four she was memorizing song lyrics and singing them back to me in the car. I am still amazed that I didn't drive the car off a cliff or into a tree, because she would sing as loud as she could. I would say, "Can you stop singing for a while daddy's ears hurt"

Her musical journey Begins......

Erika signed on for voice lessons and piano at Mary Ann Bruce studios, she was starting to grow musically and performed at a young age for her year end recitals. She sang selections like Colors of the Wind (from Pocohantas) and My Heart will go On (from Titanic). She received 2 Gold Cups from the AmErikan Federation of Music for scoring a 33 to 35 rating for 3 consecutive years, both for Voice and Piano.

At this time she was also involved with Ballet and studied with Mary Kay Page at Ballet Theatre. She was selected twice to dance with the Russian Nutcracker (Moscow Ballet). She has since moved on to hip-hop dance instruction with Karen Sitter (from Nik & the Nice Guys) at Spins dance studio.

AmErikan Idol Juniors...... April 2003

We drove down to Purchase College in Rye, NY for what proved to be a fantastic weekend. Erika tried out for AmErikan Idol Juniors. I drove around all night dodging security guards and police patrols so that I could secure a place in line, so she could obtain that almighty wrist band. Just like the adult version of the show she came running out with a wrist band and her yellow paper which contained her audition number. We met the executive producer of AmErikan Idol and some of the judges. Erika sang the Star Spangled Banner, she was put on the call-back list we were excited about the chance to go to Los Angeles.

John Robert Powers...... Disney Auditions......

Erika studied acting and modeling with John Robert Powers. She was chosen along with a group of fifty other contestants out of a room of 400 possible candidates. It was a six month study course that included:

• Audition Technique
• Acting for T.V. Commercials
• Monologue and Scene study
• Runway
• Fashion and Commercial Print

Minnesota Connections......

Through John Robert Powers we met a wonderful woman. Stephanie Schodde, was with the Minneapolis office of John Robert Powers. She was on a mission to get Erika discovered in Los Angeles. She wanted us to attend workshops in L.A. Young Performers Studio.

New York City...... Summer 2004

Erika Attended the IMTA (International Modeling & Talent) This convention is held every year in L.A. & NYC.

Erika won 2 awards:

• Singing Competition
• Ready for Close up/Cold Read (This award was for On camera intensive & Script Memorization)

Highlights included hanging out in Times Square and carriage rides through Central Park.

Los Angeles...... 2005...... Young Performers Studio

July 2005 we flew to L.A. to see what these workshops were about. We met with Donnajeanne and her daughter Rachel Glenn. Erika attended a 2 week intensive workshop with the focus on preparing for auditions for T.V. and movies. This workshop ended with a Talent Agent showcase. Erika was asked to perform first, she sang the "Game of Love" from Santana. It was awesome! She currently has an L.A. agent interested in her. Los Angeles was great, We checked out Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive & Bel Air. In Hollywood we saw Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, Kurt Russell,and the movie stars homes.

At Warner Brothers Studios we had the pleasure of meeting Paula Abdul. We were waiting in line for lunch and there she was! I thought Erika was going to pass out, she finally got to meet her favorite judge from AmErikan Idol. Paula was extremely friendly and easy to talk with. She told Erika, "Follow your dreams of singing & acting. Maybe I'll see you on AmErikan Idol in a couple of years."

Eric Palmer...... Musician...... Songwriter......

Erika's cousin, Eric Palmer wrote the lyrics and music for her first CD release "Eternally Yours" Eric Palmer lives and works in Orlando, Florida. Eric works at a recording studio in Orlando where he also creates music for video games. He is a talented songwriter, musician, and has produced CD's of his own. He is currently working on his new CD, soon to be released.

Eternally Yours...... Black Dog Studios......

Erika's first CD release. We are so proud of her... The vocals are strong and the song really flows... Thanks to Robert Blackburn, Producer. Robert added guitar to the track and Matt Guarnere added the "live drum sounds." We are so grateful for the help and musical vision they provided for this song. We are looking forward to working with Robert & Matt in the future. Thanks again to Eric Palmer For your musical wisdom, and your inspiration. Special Thanks to Cara D'Emanuele Erika's Professional Acting Coach (The Sopranos).