Music
Michelle’s Album ‘Should I Be’ is available on
Love, heartbreak, strength and resilience.
It doesn’t matter if Michelle Serret-Cursio is singing an original song ripped from the pages of her life, or interpreting a classic from the likes of Dolly Parton, Roy Orbison or Édith Piaf.
The result is heartfelt and genuine.
The heart knows no bounds, and neither does her voice.
Should I Be is a stellar debut, combining Serret-Cursio’s own songwriting obsessions, with classic songs she’s performed as lead vocalist on Dancing with the Stars, and for the much-vaunted theatre experience –Cavalia: A Magical Encounter Between Human and Horse.
“This record has allowed me to express my personal experiences of love and heartache,” she says. “I also pay my own personal tribute to some of my all-time favourite singers and songs.”
The album was created in collaboration with Melbourne musician and producer Phil Turcio [Guy Sebastian, Marcia Hines].
She also recorded a version of Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On with Adrian Hannan [Vanessa Amorosi, Delta Goodrem].
The lead single and title track Should I Be was co-written with Robert Azzopardi [who co-wrote Tina Arena’s Wasn’t It Good], and details a scenario close to her heart.
“I wrote Should I Be when my husband, David, and I had just met,” Serret-Cursio explains. “He was leaving Australia for six months to take up a music opportunity overseas. The song was an expression of my emotions at that time and all of the scenarios I was living out before he had even left.”
The blend of crazy-love, doubt and a playful sense-of-self is successfully captured in the song’s video. “I loved playing out the story and expressing those emotions in the video.”
Here I Stand is another upbeat original that Serret-Cursio dedicates to the “love-rats” of life.
“It’s about the women who love these men and their plight in wanting to believe that they are wrong about their man, or believing that their man will change,” she says. “Here I Stand captures the frantic feeling of a woman caught up in this situation.”
The emotional heart of the record is the slow-burn ballad How Do I Say Goodbye, written about a “relationship with someone who walked in and out of my life at various points in time. Many years passed before I saw him again, and then circumstances, and life choices, had moved us into a place where we were never going to be together.”
One thing we know from hearing Should I Be, when it comes to love, heartbreak, strength and resilience, there’s no language barrier.
Growing up in a French-speaking home, Serret-Cursio is no stranger to singing in a foreign tongue. Thanks to Dancing with the Stars she’s performed more than 1400 numbers live and interpreted songs in Italian, French, Spanish, German, Cantonese, Hindi, and Latin.
On Should I Be, she conjures an Italian gospel version of Amazing Grace, does Édith Piaf’s memory proud on La Vie En Rose, and masters Caballo de Luna from the equestrian theatre experience, Cavalia.
“It was a privilege to perform this song during my time as lead vocalist in the Melbourne season of Cavalia,” Serret-Cursio says. “It was a career highlight for me to perform live on stage surrounded by beautiful horses, aerialists, acrobats and a live band. The song [meaning Horse Moon] captures the essence of the show, man’s relationship with the horse – majestic, powerful and free.”
Another song close to Serret-Cursio’s heart is Roy Orbison’s Crying, which she originally performed on a Dancing with the Stars grand finale.
“I’ve always loved Crying by Roy Orbison,” she explains. “When I was introduced to the Spanish version, Llorando, from the movie Mulholland Drive, I fell in love with it all over again, and I wanted to bring the two versions together. Producer Phil Turcio created an amazing version of this beautiful song. It was one of my most enjoyable performances on Dancing with the Stars.”
The merging of two languages is also present in My Heart Will Go On.
“I always loved this powerful ballad from the movie Titanic,” Serret-Cursio admits. “And it was a pleasure to include my French and English interpretation of this song. It’s just over 100 years ago since the Titanic sank, and I set out to capture the sadness and tragedy of that event.”
Meanwhile, Patti Page’s country gem, Tennessee Waltz, is not just a popular American classic. It’s also big in Japan, one of the highest-selling singles in the land of the Rising Sun.
“When I first performed Tennessee Waltz, I fell in love with it instantly,” Serret-Cursio explains. “It’s a classic country love song, a perfect mix of guitar and beautiful melody.”
No Japanese version?
“Never say never.”
