Hilary McRae Chooses Music Over Aviation

(andPOP) - Hilary McRae has been called a younger Stevie Wonder or Fiona Apple and even a PG-rated version of Amy Winehouse, before she even released an album.

The 21-year-old McRae released her debut disc, Through these Walls, last week on Hear Music, the label developed by Starbucks, and is receiving praise for her strong voice.

Not only does the Boca Raton, Fla., native sing, but she also wrote most of the tracks. McRae has been writing since she was 13 or 14 years old, and all the songs on the album deal with personal experience.

"I wrote a lot about heartbreak because of a lot of situations that I had," McRae tells andPOP. "[Songwriting was] the first thing that helped me get through it. A lot of the songs are about overcoming adversity."

McRae studied at the Berkley College of Music after winning a scholarship on the strength of her audition. She says she always knew she wanted to write songs, but was undecided about whether she would give her songs to other artists or sing them herself.

"The writing aspect of it definitely spoke to me a lot more for a long time. I kind of came to a crossroads when I left school and I had to decide," she says. "I wanted to write for myself, but I knew I wasn't a performer so I had to get that experience."

So McRae went on tour with Christian Castro, a Latin music star, to cut her performing chops. When the tour of South and Central America was completed, McRae knew she wanted to be a singer-songwriter like her musical idols Don Henley, Karen Carpenter (The Carpenters) and Fleetwood Mac.

When it comes to the comparisons – some also compare her to soulful Alicia Keys – McRae says she is grateful but believes her music can stand on its own.

"I think my sound is very different than the music of today, especially with the horns, it has a very distinctive sound with the horns," she explains. "It's different music. At the same time, I wouldn't be offended if I was compared to any of those artists because I'm inspired by them, and I think that's a great thing. But at the same time, I think we're different."

McRae is right. The sound backing her is a mix of R&B, filled with an old school vibe, drenched with horns.

The title of the album's first single, "Every Day (When Will You Be Mine)," immediately makes the listener believe they are in for a heart-strung ballad, but instead it is an up-tempo declaration to a potential lover. McRae's vocals kill the song, but she does not overdo it, like a Celine Dion ballad. Rather, she allows the emotion to come out in her voice evenly.

"The guys in the band are in the video and we had a lot of fun with that. It was a great afternoon. There was a lot of magic in the air. It was a really great experience, a lot of fun."

As the music industry continues to find its footing in the peer-to-peer downloading that has rocked the industry for 10 years now, McRae is hopeful that things will turn around and people will stop downloading music for free.

"It's a fear, but we'll see what happens. I hope people will come around and realize that someone has put their heart and soul into this and it's not fair that it's given away for free."

Even with these concerns, McRae is looking forward to continuing the only career she has ever had her eyes on. Well, almost the only career she has only had her eyes on.

"I worked in an airport as a hostess for a while. I've always been fascinated with planes. I did have dreams of becoming a pilot, but I never really succeeded," she admits.

That's OK because it looks like her second choice is working out.