Julie Haven

“Julie Haven is a memorable vocalist who doesn’t shy away from being extraordinary and out of the box. She isn’t someone you can compare to another artist so easily. In fact, her sound is quite individualistic.”
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— BUZZ MUSIC

Singer-songwriter Julie Haven has been safeguarding a special collection of original songs for many years. These moody, piano-based songs were forged from love, heartbreak, self-discovery, and resilience. They have been performed around the country, and recorded in many studios, yet their elusive essences have never been properly captured until now.

Today, the Metro Detroit-based artist is sharing newly-recorded versions of this very personal catalog of stirring and elegantly enlightening alt-pop as the album, Dramatic Departures. And the timing couldn’t be more perfect: a recent breakup has imbued these songs with even more vitality.

“It feels like these songs have been part of my life forever. They are based on true experiences, and they’ve helped me get through many hard times,” Julie says. “It seems like synchronicity that I am experiencing the same kind of heartbreak today as I went through when I wrote them, and here they are to help me get through.”

Julie is an emotionally raw but musically sophisticated singer-songwriter with a penchant for cinematic arrangements, lush orchestrations, soulful and dynamic vocals, and a flair for lyrics that are both vulnerable and visceral. Julie has garnered favorable comparisons to Tori Amos, Fiona Apple, Alanis Morrissette, PJ Harvey, Sarah McLachlan, and Chantal Kreviazuk. She has performed throughout the U.S. in a variety of contexts—from coffee houses to festivals, including many consecutive performances at Michigan’s beloved Arts, Beats and Eats Festival. Previously, Julie released an album, four EPs, and a live record. Dramatic Departures, however, will be her first full-length album available for worldwide release.

Julie is one of those rare talents that began singing as soon as she could speak. Her father is a jazz guitarist, but she embarked on her path to making music through rescuing a neglected upright piano that was in danger of being thrown out. This lonely vessel of expression became her best friend as she sought solace in it while enduring school bullying and battling low self-esteem.

The self-taught musician wrote her first song at the age of 7. By seventh grade, spurred on by Tori Amos’ album Under the Pink, Julie began seriously considering a career in music and was regularly performing solo shows at local music venues. There, she impressed audiences and the surrounding musician community with the emotional maturity conveyed in her songs. One local veteran blues musician presented Julie with the surname “Haven” when she was 16 because he was so moved and soothed by her original songs. Julie would go on to spend the rest of her teens performing in small coffee shops and open mics until she officially became a professional musician at the age of 20.

Over two decades, Julie has evolved to become a heartfelt but polished musician who has performed both as a solo artist and as part of several groups. She’s gigged extensively in the Midwest and the South. One fateful night performing in Atlanta, Georgia, on her way to Nashville, Tennessee, a group of likeminded performers suggested she seek out Nashville-based producer Stephen Leiweke (Ingrid Michaelson, Jason Gray). He would be the one to unlock the soul of the songs on Dramatic Departures.