Ayron Michael hoping to chart course to stardom

As recording artiste Ayron Michael tells it, music has always been his sweet escape.

"As a kid, I prioritised education first by completing primary, secondary school and college by the direction of my family. But, I always wanted to do music professionally. Music has always been a means of escape and healing for me, grounding me at every stage of my life," he recalled. "As a child, there was music playing all the time in my home. From gospel to blues and R&B. Music has a special place in my heart."

The artiste shared that his formative years were spent singing in church choirs and worship teams, all of which moulded his artistic style.

"My family sang and played piano, organ and drums. I am a tenor, but during my upbringing in the Baptist and Pentecostal Church, I learned to sing all parts, to the point [where] I could teach them to choirs and groups," he said. "Gospel music gives you the experience to learn to harmonise in different ways, but most importantly, how to extract feeling into every note. Gospel music was birthed out of pain as a way to provide hope. Gospel music has, and still gets me through good and bad times with a beautiful sound."

Michael, who is still charting his own course to stardom, has had what he considers huge opportunities.

"From singing solo in front of one of my favourite male artistes in a room full of the who's who in Hollywood when I opened for Tank, to singing background for Angie Stone at an awards show, is just priceless," he said. "I remember Samuel Jackson saying I sounded good. I got to show off what I had learnt from legendary James Watkins (father of T-Boz from TLC). Mr Watkins was my stage performance coach during the years after college when I performed weekly at a coffee shop in Orlando, Florida," Michael explained.

Michael, who is currently working on an album, said he wants to hit the Billboard 100, perform on every continent, record with his favourite artiste, Mary J Blige, and mentor new artistes.

"Through every song, I want people to learn that they should live their best lives. No matter what ups or downs they have to face, their life is theirs to live and no one else's. Life is what you make of it, so enjoy and love it," he shared.

Currently promoting his latest single, Love Story, the singer said he is hoping that his experience with heartbreak on the track will resonate with listeners.

"I had been in a four-year relationship with the love of my life and I was engaged to be married," he explained. "The relationship ended and caused a pain I had never felt before. When I healed, I decided that I wanted to write down why the loss of this love hurt so much. As I started to write, I realised I was writing the blueprint for my next and final love story."