Salli

In the months leading up to the recording of her bright and beautiful debut EP, XLIV, Salli Denner experienced a phenomenon that strengthened her resolve to push forward and take her dream into reality.
“I swear this happened,” Salli said, her eyes getting wide as she recounted the story. “Just as I’d be going through my day, I kept running into the number 44 in random, everyday places. My dad would park the car in a pay lot and it would be space number 44, or I’d unlock my phone at 4:44 p.m., things like that. Once you see some guy walking past you with a No. 44 jersey or notice you’re driving exactly 44 miles an hour, you start thinking there’s something more going on around you.”
The number popped up so frequently that Salli decided to Google it. Website after website mentioned a “guardian angel number 44” or that it symbolized a deep inner strength and conviction to achieve goals. Salli said she isn’t a total believer in numerology, but she took it as a sign that her love of singing and writing songs needed to be put into action.
The result is XLIV, a remarkably mature and diverse collection of songs providing a showcase for Salli’s soulful, expressive voice. Ranging from club-ready bangers to heartfelt ballads, XLIV (the Roman numeral for 44) delivers a first-rate example of what people in Salli’s life, like her parents, David and Libby Denner, have known for years.
“We noticed not long after she was up and walking as a toddler that she sang constantly around the house -- singing more than she talked, really,” said Salli’s mother, Libby Denner. “We have a family friend who is a professional musician who heard Salli singing when she was just three years old. She was just listening to this sweet little voice singing on key with very little effort. She just looked at me and said, ‘Salli has perfect pitch.’”
At 6 years old, Salli regularly belted out “God Bless America” at family barbecues and neighborhood get-togethers, and word spread throughout her central Oklahoma City community that a grade-school girl could sing like a trained adult. Two years of voice lessons followed and multiple performances in local musicals, and it seemed like Salli had the makings of a child star. But just as her local reputation was building a head of steam, Salli stopped performing entirely.
“I felt overwhelmed, honestly,” she said. “People were asking me to sing in the middle of furniture stores, in checkout lanes or in the school cafeteria. It just became too much for me at that age, and so I kind of shut down. Like, I never lost my love for singing, but I’m naturally a private and introspective person, so I still think it was the right thing to do.
“From eighth grade through junior year, I wouldn’t sing for anybody. But I would sing for myself – it was an escape, a way to forget about everything,” Salli said. “And during that time, I also had a chance to really grow up and mature.”
She also built her musical foundation in soul and deep balladry, studying the jazz and R&B-inflected style of Amy Winehouse and the powerful, emotive vocal genius of Adele.
“I really started to appreciate Amy,” she said. “I feel like I’m an old soul like her, because it’s always been older music or music based on old sounds that I really loved. I’m constantly listening to Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, old-school funk, and then modern torch singers like Lana Del Rey, whose slower, sexier songs remind me of one of my absolute favorite songs, ‘Fever’ by Peggy Lee. All of that contributes to my sound, which is just … different in every way. I’ve always wanted my sound to reflect how I feel about myself, which is just a few steps away from what people expect. I love being out of the box.”
As Salli’s songwriting developed and the 44s continued to pop up around her, Salli became inspired to make it official and dedicate her life to creating music.
“I was playing the piano, writing songs and thought, ‘I need to share this with people,’” Salli said. “And so I started looking for ways to get my music out there.”
A chance meeting with Ashton Starks of Castle Row Studios led to a series of recording sessions produced by Ashton and her husband, Garrett Starks. With Ashton directing vocals and Garrett building arrangements, the trio began crafting what would eventually become XLIV.
“I really cannot overstate it,” Ashton Starks said. “She sings like she’s been performing professionally for a couple of decades. Salli’s a natural, and a persuasive songwriter on top of that.”
The final song selection, including chart-ready hot tracks such as “Roll,” “Colors” and “Mona Lisa,” the ‘90s-style rocker “Can You” and her centerpiece ballad, “Used To,” illustrate the depth and breadth of Salli’s range as a singer and creative artist. With the release of XLIV, Salli now focuses on the challenge of proving herself and fulfilling what all those 44s seemed to promise.
“I’m doing this straight out of high school, which is something people my age just don’t seem to get,