Backstage with Cami Thompson
Singer. Songwriter. Actor. Creator of artsy cigar box purses. Cami Thompson is full of “unexpectable” surprises and, at almost 50, hitting some of the highest notes of her career. A sixth-generation Nevadan, she is frank, funny and honest about life onstage and off. Read Cami’s recent conversation with RLife Publisher Jackie Shelton below.
An interview by Jackie Shelton

Who are your musical influences?
Ella Fitzgerald. Sarah Vaughn. Al Jarreau. Betty Carter.
Growing up, I loved Barbra Streisand and Bette Midler. As a child, I would come home from school and bury myself in headphones, imitating Streisand for the rest of day. I had a girlfriend I would share Bette with, but not this other music. I was a closet Streisandite for a long time.

The standards have become popular again, but it wasn’t necessarily so when you were growing up.
If you stay backwards long enough, you’ll become trendy (she laughs). I’ve always loved this music even when it wasn’t popular. When I was trying to sell records in the 90s, producers couldn’t understand how they could sell an album full of standards, but these are great songs that stand the test of time. I think Linda Ronstadt was the first to find success (with renewed interest in the standards) and then, of course, Natalie Cole, who gave up a recording contract to do this.

Everybody has a choice. That’s the cool thing about music. And it’s the same with art and food and wine. There is no right and wrong. You just have to do what’s right for you.

Knowing what you know now, is there anything you might have done differently?
I’ve been given a musical gift, but maybe not a discipline. I’m sure I could have profited more by continuing my music education in college.

What do you see as the future for the recording industry?
The music industry specializes in the comodification of artists. It brings them up and then kicks them in the ass. Artists like Mariah Carey find huge success and then the industry gleefully gloats at their downfalls. It’s the way the system works. I hope that the few that can recover will bring back their wisdom with them. I hope Mariah Carey returns with a lot more soul, and shows them how it should be done.

Music today is on the Internet. This means that we have a full choice to pick what we want and download what we want. Not having it shoved down our throats is a good thing.

You’re a self-admitted control freak. How has this helped you in your life?
It allows me to make a picture of my life the way I want to paint it. I have a pretty good idea of how I want my life to be shaped, from both an artistic and a personal standpoint and I can work to make that happen. Ultimately, I don’t feel that I’m at the beck and call of the paparazzi or an artist management company.

How has it hurt you?
There have been times when it doesn’t seem like a healthy way to live. I don’t paint a very big picture of my life, and I might have had more success if I had let go a little bit and let other people make choices for me. I can be very stubborn (she laughs).

Tell us about one time that you allow someone else take control.
I ended up in foreign country (Holland); suing for my freedom from a contract I hadn’t signed. My manager at the time had coerced me into signing a letter of intent to negotiate a contract, and he had made promises to the holder of the contract when I wasn’t around. I found out about the promises, which were not suitable for me, and that the contract holder was corrupt. I tried to break away from the Dutch contract-holder, but in Holland letters of intent are binding. It took me three weeks in court, defending myself in a foreign language (paying for translations), until the judge finally apologized for the Dutchman. He (the judge) wished me luck, but told me I couldn’t pursue anything the Dutchman had established. I had to leave the country, and I had been building up a pretty successful career there.

That experience scared me away from the recording industry for awhile, when I realized how many people wanted a piece of my life. I wondered how much would be left of me at the end of the day.

When is it okay to lose control?
I never had children to teach me how to let go, but I do have my music. Oftentimes when I’m planning a show, a guide or an angel will tap me on the shoulder and say, “Have you thought about this?” When I’m arranging a song, I put all the musical instruments around the lyrics, and sometimes I’ll find that the trumpet wants to come in where I hadn’t intended. I have to listen to that. I have to have reverence for the gift of music and its intentions (which are not necessarily to me).

Do you work with the same musicians all the time?
I try to use a few of the guys who I’ve grown up with and who get me, and who get that it’s about the presentation of the show. They understand that I always try to make sure that the show comes off with as much as love as possible. Newbies are often surprised by the way I do business. They learn to understand that I’m not a dictator. I’m a Democratic control freak (she laughs. Cami laughs a lot).

You talk about your family, and love for Nevada, a lot. Tell us about them and how they connect you to Nevada.
I’m a 6th generation Nevadan: my great-great-grandmother was the first non-Native American on the Nevada registry when it applied for statehood. She was only a few weeks old at the time.

My father, Don Thompson, is the epitome of an entrepreneur. He spent 20 years as a musician; he is a remarkable, natural athlete and a great creative ad man. He adopted the nickname “Snowshoe” because he delivers information about the ski industry. It was a fun name and it was designed to honor the original man. (For more information about the original Snowshoe Thompson, see the January 2007 issue of RLife). My dad took over the Reno Business College in 1962 and created a remarkable program. He did this by going out into the community and finding out what the needs were and then creating programs to serve them.

My mother, Norma Thompson, is the sweetest woman on the planet and strong as an ox. Originally from Utah, she came to Nevada to work for the Red Cross, and met my dad while he was a lifeguard at Idlewild Pool. My dad is four years younger than she is; just like me she likes her men younger (she laughs). She worked side by side with my dad from day one. She still kicks my ass when we do yard work together.

My sister, Randi Thompson, is a wunderkind. She’s just amazing. I’m so lucky that she’s my sister because she’s also one of my best friends. She’s always been a safety net for me, and she’s always shown up to help me in whatever I need. She’s a great sounding board in that she listens with an open ear and an open heart. I think this is what makes her such a great public service person. Her whole reason for doing the things she does is to help people find agreement.

My older sister, Corrin Keck, is a steam train. I can’t believe the speed at which she lives her life. She’s a very adventurous person and has more energy than anyone I know. She is committed to having people be happy and making their businesses work.

You got married for the first time, in February of 2007, at the age of 49.
I actually met him 11 years ago, but the night we met he said, “I have to marry you, but can you wait ten years?” He says now that he knew all along (that he wanted to marry me) but that he wasn’t ready for that big of a love. He didn’t feel like he was the man he wanted to be.

How did you meet?
I had just gone through another “what’s the point” relationship and I decided to turn it over to God. I wrote a letter to God asking for help picking out my next partner. I listed about a dozen traits -- none of them physical -- mostly about his spirit and attitude. I wanted him to be a teacher and a student. He had to have compassion for the planet and all the beings on it and above it. He had to love music and had to have something passionate in his life. Then I mentioned that it would be nice if he could cook. The next day, a waiter-friend of mine brought Scott (Lenau) to my show at the Coconut Grove because he had a vibe that he needed to introduce us. He didn’t know about the letter.

My friend got Scott pretty well lit before he showed up and he (Scott) was sunk. I was wearing a sexy mermaid dress, and some days the old broad can look pretty good (she laughs). I fell in love with his eyes and sweet smile. I knew. This was my partner.

We’ve been together ever since. He turned me on to a lot of world music I hadn’t discovered. We’ve traveled and gone camping. He’s quiet and shy and committed to truth and living his life with integrity. And he’s a chef (she laughs).

Are you as successful now as you’ve wanted to be?
I wanted a certain level of achievement, but sometimes the universe has different plans for you. Big fame wasn’t my path. My path was to learn humility, generosity and community. My father said that “success was getting paid to do that what you would gladly pay to do.” And I’ve added “and to be happy about it.” The success for me is that I get to make music. I get to make music. The gift of that is huge to me. I do feel successful.