Jacquie Walters was composing songs before she could read. When she was six she recorded her first song, a cover version of ‘Bob Dylan’s Dream’. From 1987 to 1989 she attended the United World College of the Atlantic in Wales and studied under the outstanding Welsh tenor Alun Jones. This is where she really discovered her singing voice.
Following her return to NZ, Jacquie teamed up with local musicians Ariana Tikao and Leigh Taiwhati to form the group ‘Pounamu’. They recorded ‘Koha’ before Leigh left the group. Jacquie and Ariana went on to record ‘Uha” and “Mihi’, made regular appearances on television, and were selected to represent the South Island on a musical series recorded at TVNZ in Auckland. They were chosen by The Body Shop as their New Zealand representatives to deliver the 1996 petition against nuclear testing to the French Presidential Palace. During this trip they performed on the BBC World Service and in live in London, Paris, Strasbourg and Sydney. Jacquie still performs occasionally with Ariana.
From 1996 to 2000 Jacquie performed at a number of music festivals and events throughout the UK, including touring and performing as part of ‘Freewheelin’ with Pete Dean and Kate Bramley. Kate is now a member of Jez Lowe’s band ‘The Bad Pennies’.
In 2000 Jacquie returned to New Zealand. She recorded her first solo CD ‘Dreamwalking’ in Christchurch in 2000. The title track from the CD received an honourable mention in the Billboard World Song Contest. A second track from the album achieved an honourable mention in the Unisong International Song Competition.
Jacquie recorded her second solo cd ‘Step Into The Light’ in 2006 to critical acclaim. The release coincided with the birth of her first daughter and led to a memorable promotional tour around the country with her three-month old baby.
Jacquie is now based in Nelson, NZ. She is currently working toward the completion of her next CD, “18 Roses”.