Singing sensation Larrita Adderley is going from strength to strength — and her latest achievement is the release of her debut album.

Since winning a JaKoMa Entertainment competition in 2003, Miss Adderley has won the Bermuda Idol, then Amateur Night at New York’s Apollo Theatre on seven different occasions, then Singing for Success and she also has performed the US National anthem at both Shea Stadium and Fenway Park.

Now the 27-year-old has released her debut album — ‘Where Do I Go From Here?’ recorded at Phat Planet Recording Studios, in Florida.

It features all original work, bar ‘His Eye is on the Sparrow’, which was written in 1905 by Civilla D. Martin.

She recorded the album in February after getting a bank loan — she made some calls to studios in New York, Atlanta and Florida, where she teamed up with Phat Planet Recording Studios.

Miss Adderley said when she got to the studio, it was like “coming home”. “I sat down and talked to [producers] Byron “Mr. Talkbox” Chambers and Andy Anderson,” she said.

“They were so excited and happy and they made me feel so comfortable — I felt like I had known them forever.

“They had so much faith that I would finish this CD, with no experience, as this was my first time in a recording studio. So I came with my lyrics, and Byron played the music just like I wanted and they listened to me.

“Andy Anderson worked alongside Byron who played the drums, the guitar, the grand piano, the Congo drums, everything, he did it. He engineered as well and did the voice training in that entire week.”

Voice training involved her accent and she added: “As Bermudians we have this accent, and he was stern on how to pronounce the lyrics in the songs. He is American and he picked up on it throughout every song.”

Miss Adderley was not the first Bermudian that Mr. Anderson had worked with — he had also produced Ayiesha Woods, who has two CDs out.

While recording she was also offered advice on her choice of musical genres, and it was suggested that she sing Gospel, which she did although it is Gospel performed with rock and roll, reggae, soul and jazzy beats.

Speaking about the inspiration behind a few of the album’s singles, she said the title song came out of a time when she was feeling uncertain about her future.

“I remember one day I was just feeling really down and I didn’t know where God wanted to take me and that is where the song came from,” she said. That was like, three years ago, and it was way before I won the Bermuda Idol.”

Another song on the CD is entitled ‘Perilous Times’. “I was reading the Bible and God showed me a song,” she said. “I wasn’t going through anything, I just saw the scripture and wrote.”

Since the completion of the album she says, “It has been a long wait, the anticipation has been driving me crazy.”

But she said it has all been worth the wait. “I had confirmation when I handed it in to Thaao Dill (radio host) and he played ‘Let Not Your Heart’ and for me to go to HOTT 107.5 and for them to play it was an amazing confirmation,” she said.

“And then a lady today heard one ‘He’s Amazing’ and she asked, ‘Who’s singing that? I said, ‘It’s me’. She loved it, so I had to sell it to her after work. I’m just seeing confirmation, after confirmation, after confirmation.

“It is my dream and I have wanted it for my entire life. God has taken me to other big places, like, I never thought that I would be going to the Apollo, that wasn’t a dream, but the Grammy Awards are my dream.

“I have a lot of plans in mind and I continue to ask, ‘God, where do I go from here?’”

L The album is available from Music World, Only the Best, Wig City and Dub City, and on the internet from CDBaby and DigiStation amongst others.