- Born
- Nicknames
- Menken
- Anna Menken-Meren
- Anna
- Anna Rose
- Anna Rose Menken
- Height5′ 2¼″ (1.58 m)
- If New York-based rocker Anna Rose could add a subtitle to her name, she says it would be, "Don't Let the Name Fool You." She couldn't be more right. With that sweet name, the angelic blonde hair, the petite frame and unassuming smile, one might think she's just another pretty face with a pretty voice who likes to sing pretty songs.
But that couldn't be further from the truth. Anna Rose is a spitfire of rock and roll passion, a true guitar head who doesn't mind getting her fingers bloody, and a mix of Jim Morrison's sexy bravado with Brigitte Bardot's seductive stare onstage. It's the dichotomy of masculine and feminine, retro and modern, strong and vulnerable that makes her sophomore effort, Behold a Pale Horse, a true statement of who she is as a woman, a performer, and an artist.
"My name is very sugary, but my personality is very spicy. My mom used to call me a little ball of fire. I love hard. I hate hard. I play hard, but if you calm me down, I can be gentle. That's what this album is. It shows the true essence of who I really am as a person, as an artist," says the East Village New York-based 27-year-old singer/songwriter/guitarist.
And who that is exactly is a little bit of rock and roll, a little bit of blues, and a whole lot of a songwriter who is finally coming into her own and finding her true voice. "My first record, Nomad, was more of a collection of songs from a young songwriter. It was a songwriter showcase album. But on Behold a Pale Horse you really see the kind of artist I am and want to be. It's more of an artist's album," she says.
Her new material is coming from a stronger, deeper, and even darker place. The CD title, and title track, Behold a Pale Horse is a phrase from the Book of Revelations, and is a representation of death. " The album is about the concept of death and what that really means to each of us individually based on our histories. For me, death is not just physically dying. It can be the death of a relationship or a friendship, the ending of an era in your life, anything like that. Death is everywhere, but so is rebirth and it's that cycle that spawned this record," says Anna Rose. "This album might have come from a darker place, but ultimately I think helped create this stronger more empowered me. I finally feel like I know where I belong now and I know who I am more than ever before."
Her talented family is a big part of who she is. Her father is Oscar-winning Disney composer Alan Menken and her mother, Janis, was a dedicated and celebrated dancer who donned ballet shoes until she was 8 ½ months pregnant. Not only did Anna Rose inherit her parents' musical and dancing talent - having danced as soon as she could walk, sing as soon as she could talk, and learned piano at 2 and guitar at 5 - but she was instilled with a strong work ethic as well. And though she grew up in the house that Disney built - and even sang on demos for dad's score to Enchanted and Tangled - Anna Rose's musical soul leans more toward gritty, blues-drenched rock and roll from the '60s and '70s.
"As much as my dad's known for Disney musicals, at home it was very much more rock and roll - Little Feat, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles," she says. "And, I'm drawn toward strong females - especially as inspirations for this album - such as Stevie Nicks, Janis Joplin (her dog is named Joplin), Chrissie Hynde, and Joan Jett. But there are also influences of the Stooges, Tom Waits, Nick Cave, and even back to Son House, Muddy Waters, and Buddy Guy. Yes, I'm an old soul." (She even got to fill Iggy Pop's shoes at a benefit for the late Ron Asheton at the Roxy in L.A. in 2010.)
Anna Rose taps into those influences beautifully on the Kevin Salem-produced Behold a Pale Horse, in which she wrote or co-wrote all of the 11 songs. "I used to write in a vacuum, just by myself. I felt like I had to do it alone," she admits. "But Kevin really opened me up to writing with others for the first time and to opening myself up musically. He also helped me be comfortable in bringing out the rock more on this record - and this record is definitely a lot harder. I really feel like I've grown because of it."
Moving back to New York after a five-year stint in Los Angeles also weighs in on this record musically and lyrically, especially on the songs "Los Angeles" and "Beautiful World." "Los Angeles' is all about this city that I idolized for its '60s/'70s Laurel Canyon music scene, which influenced Nomad. On that record, I was searching for something. I was restless," explains Anna Rose, who wrote more on electric guitar than acoustic this time around to achieve that more rocking sound. "And 'Beautiful World' is about returning to New York and realizing this is where my home is, this is where that restlessness quiets. This is where my search stops."
Though the idea of death in general, provided a focus for the album, the title track, "Behold a Pale Horse," is actually more about one's legacy. "I think all that matters is what you leave behind. I want to leave behind really great music that's not just a hooky song for radio or something people can shake their ass to. I want to make music today that will allow me to keep making music tomorrow. Music that is real and authentic," she says.
On Behold a Pale Horse, Anna Rose is certainly off to a great start on creating that musical legacy.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Official Bio on Faebook - Anna Menken was born on August 1, 1973 in New York, USA as Anna Rose Menken. She best known for her work on the Walt Disney Pictures. She is the eldest daughter of the Artists ('Alan Menken (II)' and ('Janis Menken). Considered one of the most talented and important person working in The Disney Studios and especially in the Disney Renaissance, in beginning to the end of this era. She is married to Actor and Artist Aiden Meren.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Lily Liam
- Anna Rose is rock n' roll. Raw and unfiltered only begins to describe the petite-blonde's persona; so don't let her looks fool you. After her sophomore album Behold a Pale Horse, Rose has evolved deeper with her upcoming release, Strays In The Cut.
Rose sums Strays In The Cut into one crisp breath - bravery. Stripped of its fat and fluff, tracks like "Bury Me Deep" coarse through your veins with depth and rock energy. Rose is unconcerned with conformity and hones in on feeling. It is equally a reflection for Rose as it is for the heart of each listener: Bury me shallow where the rain can touch / keep the knife dull 'cause I feel too much of everything. "I wrote this song at a time where I very often felt misunderstood," where spurts of emotion get lost in the chaos of life and the vast music industry," said Rose. "Bury Me Deep" attests to that focus heard in its hazy guitar riffs, defined pulse and electricity. Attitude crosses honest writing and pierces your skin: Bury me deeper where the sun don't reach / breaking my heart just so you can see the rest of me.
The six-track EP is a defiant revolution that pushes both personal and musical boundaries for Anna Rose. "I am very much an album artist and a storyteller," said Rose. Sentiment and conviction fountain from Strays In The Cut while embracing electronic elements like omnichord, edgy guitar and Rose's powerhouse vocals. "I gave myself more freedom to push my ability as a writer and artist" said Rose, all of which underline the EP's transparency from the studio to the stage.
"Start A War" is equally mesmerizing. The intro conjures a calming effect, soothing the ear in the wake of its storm. Rose's voice is healing. Her tone lures listeners into the heart and soul of Strays In The Cut. "Start A War" becomes a melting-pot of life, death and sorrow that blooms at each chorus and snare rolls propel the band into a distant forum of release.
By the age of five Anna had already taken up piano, guitar and dance. "My house was a rock n' roll house," said Rose. The lineage of rock music is potent, filled with innovation, rebellion and respect, which Anna Rose fully embraces. Her roots travel deep to the birth of rock and blues, or as Rose calls it, "soul-food." Artists like The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin have been at the core of Rose's upbringing; "Oh my god, Led Zeppelin," Anna repeated. Rose's musical palette extends to innovators such as Muddy Waters and Tom Waits to Placebo, Nirvana and Soundgarden.
It is equally important for Rose to pay homage to those who have inspired her. During the recording of Strays In The Cut Rose continued this tradition covering Warren Zevon's "My Shit's Fucked Up" and "Downtown Train" by Tom Waits. "Anytime you cover a song it is because it has made an imprint on you," said Rose, a feeling that bridges hope, melody and mystery.
Rose turns up the gain on Zevon's folk-tale, amplifying its looseness and integrity. Unlike the original, Rose's song begins with a defiant banjo lead, deep southern soul and earthy drums. Anna recalled Zevon's Grammy Awarded effort The Wind, which was the singers twelfth and final studio album. Zevon began the record as a response to being diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma lung cancer. Two weeks after the album's release Zevon died. Anna remains overwhelmed by Zevon's bravery - a theme that resonates throughout Strays In the Cut.
Strays In The Cut is bold. It rebels, excites and challenges the current industry, human beings and their emotions that are clawing - waiting to be set free.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Bio in her official website
- SpousesJason Cott(May 23, 2015 - present)Aiden Meren(April 25, 1977 - present) (4 children)
- Talented in all her works.
- The spitting portrait of her father, Alan Menken.
- Knows for her incomparable voice. She knows she can sings any style of music with a talented style.
- Strong black and shiny hair
- Her very remarkable beauty and her beautiful and sensual blue-green eyes
- Sister of actress and singer Nora Menken.
- Daughter of Oscar winner composer Alan Menken and of former ballet dancer Janis Roswick Menken.
- Eldest Daughter of Alan Menken and Janis Roswick-Menken.
- Performed live with her father, Alan Menken 'All the Wonders of the Universe,' the official theme song to Dubai Parks and Resorts. [December 18, 2016].
- Has appeared as one of the angels in the Madison Square Garden' stage musical A Christmas Carol.
- (On The Movie Disney's The Secret November 27, 1990) There's something strange and at the same time beautiful about this Movie. Maybe is my favorite Movie I have done in this year after Home Alone.
- (On The View March 19, 2014 About Her Father) I'm not just only very, very proud of him but also very, very extremely proud to be his Daughter.
- To those who said Daddy did not music rock n roll, go listen in his early songs in the 70s and judge by yourself.
- (About asking her what kind of personality her father January 15, 1990) Daddy's personality is when he wants to make a decision, he thought very slowly, he analyzing people's personalities that is around him, and forgive people, but when someone has done a thing very bad to him or people he love, he may be very tough with this person.
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