Coco O'Connor was named after Coco Chanel because her father really liked that famed designer. And while she's not the fashion designer of her namesake, O'Connor is nevertheless a designer; albeit a designer of songs. Perhaps, more than anything else, O'Connor's geographic heredity has had the biggest influence on her overall artistic development. She was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and grew up in a small town about a stone's throw away from Muscle Shoels and its pivotal FAME studios where some of the true musical greats – including Aretha Franklin, Etta James and Otis Redding – made musical history. O'Connor started playing bluegrass guitar at the tender age of five and writing her own songs by ten. O'Connor's path to making music professionally took a rather circuitous route, however. While her mother, in particular, was always supportive of her musical aspirations – helping O'Connor earn a certificate in music marketing from Berklee Music in 2009/2010 -- Coco subsequently went to work in the 'music business,' with stops at Topspin, Concord Music Group and AXS.com where at the latter she was instrumental in building that burgeoning ticketing company. These jobs in Los Angeles were sure a long way from her upbringing in rural Alabama, though. “I joked that I really was a 'Beverly Hillbilly,'” she remembers, “because I worked at Concord, which was in Beverly Hills.” Her mother's passing in 2013 was what truly prompted O'Connor to finally begin following her own musical dreams, however. “I told my mom a few hours before she passed away that I was going to get back to doing more music,” O'Connor recalls. She admits “I had been fairly consumed with working in the music industry and not really creating.” The creative urge can be an all-encompassing motivator, however, and usually ends up getting its way sooner or later. A few of O'Connor's friend and producer's (Billy Harvey) wise words also moved her further forward in chasing her dreams. “He said that it's easy to carve out a life in L.A. that you can't stand,” she remembers uncomfortably. “And that's exactly what I did. It was about six months after my mom passed that I came back to my home and studio in Santa Fe, New Mexico and began working on my most recent record.” In Santa Fe, O'Connor shares a studio with her husband and songwriting partner. “I met him when I was 18 and we've been writing songs ever since,” she explains. “It's not often couples can share making music together.” Both share an affection for the creative process and vintage sounds. “We love the sound of all those classic records made between 1960 and around 1979, so we continue to try and capture sounds that are similar.” The process of creating her most recent effort turned into a wonderful combination of new and unexpected beginnings. “To my surprise, I found out I was pregnant,” recalls joyfully. “So while I was making this record I was pregnant and gave birth to a wonderful little girl.” O'Connor describes her music as “'real,' with a swampy feel.” This swampy vibe also includes “a dash of blue eyed soul and lonesome fiddle thrown in just to remind me that I'm a country girl.” This country girl might best be described as an Americana artist; one that also works in some blues and jam band elements. Lyrically, O'Connor is one who “always tries to shoot from the hip and be straightforward in life and in music. Always being true to one's spirit.” O'Connor's straightforwardness can be heard in this only-child's music, particularly as many of these new songs deal with the recent loss of her mother. You may even hear a little Native American spirit running through her sound because O'Connor is 1/6 Cherokee. Music, when it's done right, has an otherworldly quality to it. “I love how it allows me to escape and feel things on a spiritual level,” O'Connor concurs. She sees 'making it' in music in fairly practical terms. “Making it means replacing what I made/make doing web design and strategy with doing music on a full time basis.”And by doing so, she'll be carving out a life she truly loves. She may not have become a fashion designer, like her namesake, but she's doing what's in her heart – making music. It's a brave pursuit to follow one's heart, and many have lived and died having never fully followed their dreams. Coco O'Connor is going to follow her dream just as far as it will take her. This self-described 'Beverly Hillbilly' may have appeared to be a fish out of water when she brought all her Alabama Southern-ness to the slick, contemporary L.A. entertainment scene, but her accented Southern singing voice just makes her that much cooler now. One imagines if her mother is up there somewhere watching Coco, she's be mighty proud. This is because O'Connor is doing her best to be true, spiritual, hopeful and singing songs that always come straight from the heart.