Heather Porcaro, a multi-talented artist, musician, and songwriter from Los Angeles shares her new single “OH NO!” today. “OH NO!” sets a weighted message to an ironically feel good beat, planting nostalgia and lightened perspective among “these deep, dark times,” we are currently undergoing. The track was inspired by a Boogie Woogie piano lesson Porcaro had with country singer-songwriter Billy Swan, best known for his 1974 single “I Can Help.” The melody of “OH NO!” is in reference to the carefree pop of the 50s and 60s generation. When 2020 began to sour increasingly by the day, Porcaro returned to the song for it’s timely chorus and title. She reached out to longtime friend Ben Ford of the Nash-ville band Airpark, who responded with lyrics that felt to Porcaro surprisingly like herself, “like he was inside my head.”The track also features production and instrumentals from both Tim Young (guitarist, The Late Show with James Corden), and Scott Seiver (touring drummer, producer, film composer). In spite of having come to fruition amidst a global pandemic, the single is the artist’s most collaborative work to date. “OH NO!” celebrates music’s ability to transcend geographical barriers and channel the bizarre-yet-commonly shared experiences of today.
ABOUT HEATHER PORCARO:
Heather Porcaro is a fourth generation musician, she takes an avant-garde approach to her classical training, with wide and varying influences spanning Pop, Jazz, Folk, and Rock. Her buttery, alto voice embarks listeners on a surreal and poetic journey through the everyday, with quirky lightheartedness and contagious energy. Thematically, her songs explore the bizarre nature of life, temporality, and human emotions.
Born to musician and producer Steve Porcaro, she grew up alongside his Grammy Award-winning band Toto, doing homework in the studio as he worked with Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson. Her family’s impeccable standard for musical skill and songwriting traces back to her grandfather, Joe Porcaro, a renowned session drummer and member of “The Wrecking Crew.” Growing up in Los Angeles immersed in the music and film industries, she was shaped by countless time spent with renowned actors, musicians, and producers who became her educators, collaborators, and lifelong friends. Her work reflects her almost intuitive understanding of the intersection of film, theater, and music: she’s written music for film and theatre, filmed and directed music videos, and performed in music videos throughout her career.
Porcaro began writing music as a child, though her career was pulled towards supporting roles for many years. Together with her husband, she owns a recording studio in Los Angeles where she’s had the pleasure of developing several artists and contributing to tracks. She sang backup vocals for Wanting Q and across Broken Bells’ 2014 album After the Disco, produced and recorded Chinese artist Leah Dou, directed and performed in music videos, and acted as Art Director on tour with Toto. She scored films and wrote songs for live theater in San Francisco, playing shows in her spare time until she landed a residency at Largo in Los Angeles. There, she caught the attention of Tony Berg, who pushed her in the studio as a professional musician. She wrote and recorded her first demos with Berg on guitar, Steve Porcaro on keys, bassist Dylan Cooper, and drummer John Wicks of Fitz and the Tantrums.
It wasn’t until she was diagnosed with Acoustic Neuroma and faced with the potential loss of hearing in the affected ear, that she narrowed her focus entirely to her own work. She began working with session guitarist Tim Young, touring drummer and composer Scott Seiver, and Michael and Ben Ford of Airpark, to write and record three debut singles for release in 2020. “All Hands on Deck,” “Oh No!,” and “Charleston” are set to release independently in the Fall of this year, alongside the “All Hands on Deck” music video directed by Ariana Delawari.
Heather Porcaro’s long-awaited 2020 debut represents a confident personal breakthrough after years spent behind-the-scenes. In spite of having come to fruition partly during the Covid-19 pandemic, Heather calls this work the most collaborative she’s ever created in her life, made possible by the encouragement and support of musicians and artists across the country.
