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Episode 28. Castella hit the music scene in April 2020 with the release of her original tune, "No Ordinary Love". Hailing from Long Beach, California, Castella has sang her entire life. Castella's family and friends know her as Cathy Rebecca Crowell-Thompson, wife, mother of three, and human resources executive. In the latter part of her career in HR, she was inspired to tap into the creative side of her brain by mentor and writing partner, Darryl Swann.

Castella released her first EP, "Thinking About You," produced by Corey Stampley, in late 2019. She released her first single from that EP, "No Ordinary Love," in April 2020. This tune reached #24 on the Smooth Jazz charts and garnered her a "Breakout Artist of 2020" nomination by Smooth Jazz Network, an original iHeartRadio station. She then decided to make another record and release it on her birthday as a gift to herself.

During the pandemic, she met producer Jeff Canady. Along with Jeff, they pushed out two amazing records: "Let Me Love You" and "Sleigh Ride"! "Let Me Love You" reached #33 on the Smooth Jazz Charts and rose to #5 on the Urban Charts and rose to #1 on the Black Planet Radio Chart in Italy. "Sleigh Ride" rose to #6 on the Smooth Jazz Holiday Chart.

Castella's work on "Let Me Love You" garnered her nominations for the "President's Award,", "Newcomer of the Year," and "Best Female Artist of 2020," as well as being named "Artist of the Year" by the "Central Standard Time Show" on stlsmoothjazz.com, and she has the hardware to show it!

Ever true to her work and trusting her heart, Castella decided to reach back into her pocket and release her tune "Mojito" from her debut EP, a very special record to Castella and her team where her mentor, multi-platinum GRAMMY Award-winning producer Darryl Swann contributed with writing on the tune, as well as mixing and mastering the tune - in fact, all of her tunes. "Mojito" did well on the charts, rising to #2 on the Urban Influencer R&B/Soul Chart and #49 on the Smooth Jazz Network Top 100 Chart!

Castella continues to work on more music to share with her fans. Castella released her chart-topping tune, "So Glad I Met You," featuring trumpeter and friend Willie Bradley. This song did well on both Smooth Jazz Charts, as well as hitting #2 on the UK Soul Charts and #1 in Canada with TeeRex Radio! Castella had the wonderful opportunity to work with French producer Tom Glide to produce a remix of "So Glad I Met You," which topped the UK Soul Breakers Chart at #1 as well as making several charts in the UK and Canada Top 10!

Castella released her second EP, "Let Me Love You," on January 7, 2022. On the same day she released her single "So Into You," a remake of the 70's classic by the Atlanta Rhythm Section, with an exciting radio campaign spearheaded by Gorov Music Marketing in the U.S. and Gary Van den Bussche in the UK. "So Into You" has already made a big splash by hitting #1 on the UK Soul Breakers Chart on January 3, 2022. Castella's new EP includes three previously released original tunes ("Let Me Love You," "So Glad I Met You," and the "Central Standard Time Show Groove"), and two of Castella's favorite tunes that she chose to remake: "So Into You" and "My Funny Valentine." The remakes are a window into who Castella is as an artist!  She loves music of all genres and the remakes are just a small piece! Stay tuned for more from Castella.

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