Sometimes a voice creeps up on you out of nowhere, and grabs your attention with both hands. This happened to me a couple of months ago when I was sent a couple of You Tube links that introduced me to Gaela Brown.

Born in Paris to a Polish father and a Cameroonian princess, Brown possesses a voice as smooth as silk, her every inflection oozing endless soul and making every song she interprets her very own. From Clapton to Jessie J, Lady Gaga to Amy Winehouse, her repertoire of covers is diverse, but emphatically consistent in bringing out her particular timbre.

A self-taught piano player since the age of six, Brown picked up the violin at 11, expanding her African, classical, Yiddish and soul influences, when she discovered hip hop. Relocating to New York, she hooked up with producer Craig Mitchell and other important musicians.

More recently, Brown was signed by Los Angeles record label and publishers CanUFeelit, owned by the renowned producer Patrick Smadja, with whom she is currently working on her first EP, to be released ahead of a North American tour next year. We caught up with the young singer ahead of her live performance in Malta on Saturday.

Poland, Cameroon, France, Israel and America… that’s quite an interesting mix there. In what way has this multicultural mix helped you as an artist?

I think my background has made me stronger, and I’ve always been very proud of it. I’ve also spent a good part of my life travelling the world, and that did me a lot of good on a personal level. I became even more open-minded, but it also helped me develop my musical skills.

I’m lucky to have listened to lots of different music from a young age, which led me to experiment with different instruments too, namely the piano but also the accordion, the darbuka and other African instruments. I don’t consider myself a professional, but I do enjoy playing and discovering new instruments.

What drew you to music, and to start playing the piano at such a young age?

I remember being interested in music when I was four. I don’t know why, I just think it was meant to be.

But at six, I knew I wanted to be a musician. I started to play the piano because my older sister was playing it and I was captivated by it, particularly by classical and baroque music.

When I was 11, I told my parents I wanted to play the violin. They never forced me, but coming from a Jewish family, music is a big part of our culture. I later found out my grandfather Yaakov used to play the violin in Poland and my grandmother used to sing too, so I guess it’s in my blood.

I believe music can be found everywhere; you can create it in any environment you are surrounded by

When did you discover contemporary music and what about it connected with you to make you explore further?

When I started dancing hip hop at the age of 14, my parents weren’t too keen on it. I used to tell them I was going to study at the library, when in fact I was going to dance in downtown Paris and the metros, where I first discovered hip hop.

Soul and pop came a little bit later, but really I’m quite eclectic as I’ve also been strongly influenced by Yiddish and African music. I guess I need to listen to everything; there’s so much going on in this world.

“Where the music is… when the mood strikes.” How important have these words (taken from your Facebook profile) been in shaping your career and the direction it has taken?

I believe music can be found every­where; you can create it in any environment you are surrounded by. It’s all about being inspired, which is essential to the creative process.

I’ve had to work on many kinds of musical projects to really understand where I wanted to go with my music, what I wanted to bring to it. It’s not something one can realise early on.

I think you need to discover who you are and try many things to understand where you want to go. It’s something to do with maturity perhaps.

What is it about singing covers you like the most and what do you look for in a song when you’re picking one to cover?

I love to work on my own songs, but I also enjoy doing covers, as I would feel very honoured if someone would cover my song.

The songs on You Tube are all re-arranged; Marry the Night has a more jazzy rock feel as I am a huge fan of dirty loops, Change the World is more bluesy, Valerie has a touch more soul and Casualty of Love, which Jessie J herself asked me to cover, has been given a stronger RnB/soul feel.

I think it’s interesting to explore other people’s work and demonstrate the ability to take those songs in a different direction, giving them your own personality and style.

I follow the example of Jessie J herself who, like many other artists, started out doing covers and attracted the interest of the public via the social media.

A word about your upcoming debut release in terms of direction, style, influence and inspiration…

The direction of the record will be pop with soul and neo-soul influences, but I’m sure I will incorporate more styles as I explore further, especially because my influences are universal.

We’re currently recording some new tracks at the studio, and it’s great to be surrounded by such a fantastic team. There’s multiple Grammy award-winning sound en­gineer Dave Pensado; Celine Dion’s guitarist and French Gram­my award-winner; Amy Keys, who has worked with Toto and Phil Collins; and musicians who have worked with Earth, Wind & Fire and others from Beyoncé and Lenny Kravitz’s band.

This won’t be your first visit to Malta but it will be your first official performance here. What are your expectations?

I’m looking forward to it. The performance will be an acoustic session and I will be accompanied by my guitarist Idan Sneor from Israel, and two vocalists from Paris.

I feel honoured to be performing in Malta and I love this country a lot. I hope the Maltese people will enjoy it too, as this is the most important thing. I’m also excited about it as I will be performing a lot of my own original compositions as well as some covers.

What’s next for Gaela Brown?

For sure, there’s the EP I’m working on with Patrick Smadja, which should be released in February next year. Patrick is like a father to me, he has helped me a lot, not only on the production end of things but also on the business side. We have an amazing relationship that gives me the freedom to navigate my own career.

We’re also working on a US tour for 2014 and my first official music video. It’s hard work but I’m really excited about it all.

Gaela Brown will be performing on Saturday at the Orpheum Theatre, Gżira. The concert starts at 8pm and local bands The New Victorians and Stalko will also be performing. Tickets are available from Accessorize, La Rive, New York Best and Bianco’s or online. For more information call 7941 7034.

www.showshappening.com;

www.facebook.com/gaelabrownmusic