KAYLA WATERS

Has been able to fuse her faith into her music rather effortlessly. As she prepared for the release of her latest album entitled "Presence," she took time out to speak with Smooth Jazz Magazine about her career, her music, and her Divine inspiration..

- Keivu G. Knox

SJM: So Kayla I know you have a very busy schedule, where are you in the world?

Kayla: Right now I'm in Napa Valley, CA for Brian Culberton's Napa Valley's Jazz Getaway. I just finished Dave Koz's cruise, and I had a week to rest but I'm back out now!

SJM: How did the cruise go?

Kayla: It was a lot of fun. It was a lot of playing too. I played every day and enjoyed the scenery, and it was great hanging out with the artists.

SJM: When you're an artist on these cruises sometimes you don't get a chance to be a fan. Was there anyone that you were looking forward to seeing while on the cruise?

Kayla: I was looking forward to seeing Sheila E. It was great to see Dave Koz actually, as we had a chance to perform together. It was really great seeing Jonathan Bulter and watching him perform as well.

SJM: So switching gears a little bit, let's talk about the new album, "Presence." How are you feeling about it?

Kayla: I'm feeling great about it. It's been 5 years since my last album and I feel it's my best work yet.

SJM: Looking at the song titles, one thing that stuck out to me is that the titles had a Godly tone to it. Was that by design?

Kayla: Absolutely! All my music is God Given and I'm very intentional about the song titles. Everything is written with love, purpose and care. In the liner notes I write a little bit about each song and what it represents. For example, "Abundance" is talking about the abundant love of God, "Presence" is about basking in God's presence. That is actually the overall theme for me. I also have a love of water and I fuse my love of God with my love of water as well.

SJM: When I saw the title of "Abundance" I thought of the scripture of Ephesians 3:20, was that part of the inspiration?