TEACHING is SHARING.
Ayo graduated from the Berklee College of Music in 2007 with a professional music degree focusing on Vocal Performance and Music Business.
Since then, Ayo has had the opportunity to learn from jazz greats like Ellis Marsalis, Peter Eldridge of The New York Voices, and has studied with Grammy nominated, master pianist, Art Lande.
She works with students of all ages from 3 to 60+; increasingly passionate about her students' learning. She believes it is a gift to share knowledge, and that understanding how your instrument works, particularly with voice, is a crucial component not only to steady development, but also to the ability to fully communicate through music.
She is currently accepting students for private instruction in the Los Angeles, CA area and anywhere via Skype, focusing on a multitude of areas including voice, songwriting, self-accompaniment and performance of all styles and skill levels. Ayo also teaches workshops, masterclasses, group sessions with bands; and is available for vocal production, arranging and in-studio coaching.
Click HERE to book a lesson with her directly.
TESTIMONIALS
Working with Ayo has been amazingly helpful. I can’t believe how far I’ve come since starting with her. It’s been all aspects of my music career, too. General vocal health, rehearsal strategies, live performance technique and even songwriting improvements; she’s helped me make leaps and bounds with everything. And she adjusts what we work on based on my goals and career direction. I’m especially impressed by her ability to understand and describe the subtleties of the tiny body adjustments needed to sing with good form. I feel super lucky to have found her as a teacher.
- Ali Spagnola, artist and comedian
I didn’t study voice growing up, but after college music steadily became a more and more important part of my life. I currently play in a 5-piece band. We all sing lead and harmony, so we have a lot of moving parts and pieces! As our group’s vocal coach, Ayo was able to address our strengths and weaknesses. She offered help with our harmonies, dynamics, and intonation, on both an individual and group level. This helped build our confidence before we hit the studio to record, as we could think back to our sessions with Ayo and use her advice to create a bigger, stronger sound. Ayo is very personable, an amazing singer, and her instruction is succinct and clear. We plan on working with Ayo again soon to begin tuning up our vocals for our next studio session.
-Steve Foltz of Trout Steak Revival, musician
Working with Ayo has transformed my singing voice. Yes, transformed. When I first met with Ayo I was struggling through live performances without enough breath, stumbling over the breaks in my voice, and unable to find and sing harmonies easily, or at all! Now, I can do all of these things and I do on a regular basis in my career as a children's entertainer. One of the things I love about working with Ayo is her mix of the practical--lessons and homework to complete--with the more intimate and personal--where does singing come from for you? What does your voice sound like? How can you support yourself when you get flustered? I've had great success working with Ayo over Skype! Though I love when I get to connect with this enthusiastic, creative woman in person, her talents translate to the virtual classroom. Ayo's teaching techniques, musical skills, and fun-loving nature are a powerful combination that create an incredibly effective and intuitive teacher.
– Paige Doughty, environmental educator and performer
"I am so grateful to have found Ayo. After years of singing professionally and studying singing on my own from books, youtube, and other singers, I wanted someone to focus specifically on my mechanics. In only a few lessons, I gained crucial vocal insights from Ayo's visualizations, exercises, and analysis of my vocal delivery. Can't really say enough on how much it has helped me. I use Ayo's techniques daily in warm ups, rehearsal, and on stage."
-Eric Halborg of Dragondeer, musician
"Ayo was truly a joy to work with. As a singer/songwriter, the personality of my voice is a major part of my craft, and in the past I've had teachers who would look past that. With Ayo, there was an appreciation and respect for the voice that I have. Instead of trying to change my voice, she set out to strengthen and sharpen what was already there. She brings the technical knowledge of a voice teacher as well as the freedom of an artist, and that balance is exactly what I needed." - Joel Ansett, singer-songwriter
My vocal lessons with Ayo were some of the most productive and useful music lessons I have ever taken. Ayo is not only a wonderful and kind person; she also delivers a lot of usable technique, body awareness, and general vocal knowledge in a short amount of time. She has the most prized of teacher gifts -- tact. The way she describes what I am doing wrong in ways that are creative, positive, and inspiring, is noteworthy. And she smiles a lot. I would recommend Ayo's lessons to anyone. Ps. Also of note, my first interaction with Ayo was in a group lesson she did with my entire five-piece bluegrass band, which she handled with aplomb. To watch her teach to the varied educational levels in our group, while still imparting knowledge to all, was illustrative of her talent.
- Travis McNamara of Trout Steak Revival, musician
Ayo is a really, really talented teacher. She is very good at catering each lesson to where your voice is at, knowing where to push and what needs to be worked out. I can hear significant change and improvement, lesson by lesson. She has an immediate intuition that lets her assess, on the spot, how to work through trouble spots in your voice. She really took the time to understand where my voice was at and what I wanted to get out of our lessons, and I've been really happy with my progress so far! - Kendall Stillman-Riddle, singer, actress
"Ayo really helped me understand my absolute vocal range and how to exercise its full potential. Being a professional guitarist for years, I'd sing regularly but would often hurt my vocal chords during recording sessions/practices. Not only did Ayo help me understand the physical dynamics of singing but she helped me gain a new understanding in how to effectively practice. She's been instrumentally a positive force in contributing to my pursuit of becoming a professional singer."
- Greg Matthews of Yellow Shoots, musician
Ayo is always a joy to work with in the studio. Creative, easygoing, kindhearted, and able to sing anything—perfectly—the first time.
– Jayme Stone, Musician, educator & producer
My first experience working with Ayo was a group lesson/coaching session with my band, Trout Steak Revival. Ayo helped us with singing as a more unified voice with harmonies, matching tone, cadence, and inflection. I noticed the change in the quality of our bands singing right away and a gradual improvement as we continued to practice with Ayo's suggestions. I returned to Ayo as an individual student and focused on breathing and making strong clear vowel sounds in my singing. Again, I notice improvements as I focus on the skills that Ayo taught. Ayo brings a level of knowledge, confidence, and kindness to her teaching that is inspiring and extremely valuable for anyone wanting to improve upon their singing ability. Thanks Ayo! - Will Koster of Trout Steak Revival, musician
Ayo Awosika is not only one of my favorite instructors, but my muse for my determination to continue writing my own music. She has introduced new challenges and exercises to advance my voice. Most all of my accomplishments can be owed to what I’ve learned from Ayo. Whenever I feel like I’m having writer’s block or I’m overwhelmed with music responsibilities, I listen to Ayo’s music or refer to the teachings and coping methods Ayo has taught me to meditate upon. I would happy recommend Ayo as a teacher to anyone in search of a skilled and driven instructor. – Melany Anderson, singer
Ayo is one of the most talented and gracious artists I've ever met. She has both performed and recorded with me as part of my children's music project, helping to make our sound rich, full, and vibrant. Her deep soulful tone melts your heart quicker than an ice cream cone on a hot summers day. I just can't ever get enough of it!!
– Amelia Robinson, AKA Mils Trills, educator & performer