Seven years after our last interview together, I am thrilled to be catching up with global Singer & Actress Jennifer Roberts who is about to release her latest album, I'll Be Around.

Recorded with Maestro Tedd Firth, I'll Be Around features 15 songs from The Great American Songbook.

After getting a sneak peek of Jennifer's NEW album, I can definitely say you are in for a real treat with I'll Be Around! 

Jennifer's voice soars on such tracks as "Alfie," "Nice Work If You Can Get It," "I'll Get By, Count Your Blessings" & one of my favorite songs, "You've Got A Friend" written by the legendary Carole King.

In this NEW interview, Jennifer once again answered my call, but this time around she shares:

• What makes I'll Be Around feel so personal
• The love stories, relationship turns & song choices behind the album
• Why one track pushed her further in the studio than she expected
• Playful stories sparked by “Save The Best For Last,” “You’ve Got A Friend,” “Some Other Time,” and “I Remember You”
• The rituals that keep her creative process alive
• So much more

Connect with Jennifer: Website, Facebook, Instagram

I'll Be Around, the NEW album from world renowned singer Jennifer Roberts, features 15 songs from The Great American Songbook, including such iconic hits as Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "Alfie," George and Ira Gershwin's "Nice Work If You Can Get It," Carole King's "You've Got A Friend," & Phil Galdston, Jon Lind and Wendy Waldman's "Save The Best For Last" (as famously sung by Vanessa Williams on her album, The Comfort Zone).

I'll Be Around drops this Friday, October 16, 2026 on all streaming platforms & as a physical CD.

1. This Friday, October 16, you are going to be releasing your new album, I'll Be Around. What are you most excited about with this new album? I am excited to share this new album for so many reasons, but I think I am most  proud of my work with Pianist and Arranger, Tedd Firth, and the art we created together in the studio.

We recorded the entire fifteen songs in just seven hours. We had very little rehearsal, so we just went into the recording sessions and let things happen. We were really musically and emotionally connected, and it was a joy to create this music together.

2. What should listeners know about this album before they stream or buy it? The entire album is just Voice and Piano - and we musically explore a lot of different styles including jazz, pop, swing and musical theatre.

The songs featured on the album are mostly from The Great American Songbook, and were written between 1910 and 1991.

3. What was the song that inspired you to record this album? It wasn’t just one song. I had been collecting these songs for many years, and one day last Spring I realized they were all about different aspects of love and relationships, all really about the heart.

I reached out to Tedd to see if we would be able to meet up a couple of times, to run through them, and build some arrangements, with the intention of heading to the recording studio in the Fall.

He liked all of the songs, and with a rehearsal in July, and another one two days before the recording session, we were on our way.

Photo Credit: Maryann Lopinto

4. What was the most challenging song to record on this album? Why was it so difficult? None of them were difficult, they just kind of flowed out of us, but I would say probably Stephen Sondheim’s So Many People required me to spend more time away from Tedd learning it correctly, because I didn’t want to be recorded singing his song differently than he wrote it.

His songs are thrilling to sing, but also have interesting and often difficult intervals and rhythms, and I am a firm believer that you need to learn a song correctly, as written, before you go changing it up and making it your own.

So, I spent extra time learning this one, to sing it as Mr. Sondheim intended it…I think we also did four takes of it in the studio, and most of the songs on this album were only two.

5. You released your debut album, An Evening with Jennifer Roberts in 2018. Why did you wait almost a decade to release this album, I'll Be Around?  You know, Adam, I fund these albums entirely myself, and the first one took almost two years to complete. The first album required a lot more editing, and sessions - having my friends come in and record the voiceovers, and the back-up vocals, all of that required a lot of time in the studio.

I had hoped to do another album a couple of years later, but the Pandemic hit and shut the world down. All of my work disappeared for quite a long time, and then was slow to come back. Before the Pandemic, Tedd’s main source of income was live shows and recording sessions, but with the live performance world coming to a standstill he ended up taking many large scale arranging projects, so when I finally could move forward again with performing and recording, Tedd had little to no avail.

We were not available at the same time for three years or so….it wasn’t until last Summer, 2025, that we could meet up to work together again (with the exception of the two Sheldon Harnick Birthday Shows we did in 2024 and 2025). We also started working on a Christmas album last Fall, and continue to work together on that.

Jennifer Roberts performing at The Green Room 42
Photo Courtesy of Jennifer Roberts's Social Media

6. Technology has changed a lot since 2018. What technological advances do you feel made the recording of your new album I'll Be Around easier than when you recorded your debut album in 2018? We did everything the same as we did in 2017, 2018 - recording live with Sean Swinney in NYC - although his studio moved between recording the first album and recording this one.

The only thing I would say that technology has made easier (for us) in the production of this album, versus the first one, is the ease with which everything can be sent via email, compared to eight years ago.

For the first album, Sean would burn CDs for me to listen to, and then when we would meet up again to make choices, edit and mix, we would listen together or work off my notes, which took a lot longer. Then he would burn more CDs for me, or put everything on a flash drive for me to listen to at home.

This time, I would have the sessions on my computer in a few hours, send him input via email, and he would send me back edited songs, or completed files. So, the ability to communicate between sessions was much easier than before.

I’m not an auto tune or AI artist, so none of that technology was used on either of my albums.

7. With your new album being titled I'll Be Around, can you finish this sentence, "I'll Be Around until_____” I would say - I hope to “be around” for a long time, but I guess I could say, “I’ll Be Around until the Lord calls me home.”

Tedd Firth & Jennifer Roberts
Pictured after finishing recording Jennifer's new album
Photo Courtesy of Jennifer Roberts's Social Media

8. Let's find out more about you by playing with the titles of some of the songs on your new album.

• "Save The Best For Last" - In putting this album together, what is something that you Saved The Best For Last which made you say, "Now this album is complete!”? Interesting that you asked this question - because this exact tune, Save the Best For Last, Tedd was a little resistant to including on the album, because he was afraid we couldn’t make it different enough from the original recording. I told him I really wanted to include it, so we played a little with taking it out of tempo, etc…and then put it aside….And, then months later, when we met up again, I threw this song in again at the very end of rehearsal, after running through the songs we were going to record and several Christmas songs, and this time, he said, “I’m not fighting you on this one…and we ran through it - and one month later we recorded it, and I felt the album was complete.
• "You've Got A Friend" - What is something you & your best friend like to do together? You know, I don’t really have a best friend near me….my closest friends - three of them, have all passed away in the last 5 years (all very young) and my friends who live closer to me, I just can’t seem to connect with. I have many friends across the country who are close to my heart, and when we get together we mostly catch up, laugh and talk, have a meal - explore. I have always traveled, so I love to find out what the “locals” do, and get out there and do it. I love antique shops, bookstores, music stores (harder and harder to find), walking, beaches, getting out and taking photos, catching Broadway shows and hearing great music. 
• "Some Other Time" - What is one dream you still want to achieve, but you find yourself often saying, "I'll chase that dream some other time”? I would say, I have been blessed to do so much within the entertainment industry - I have had some great callbacks for some great tv shows and film, but I’ve always been on gigs, or away when the great opportunities have come, so I would love to have the time to focus on that again - to be available when those opportunities come. I’d love to do more performing in great rooms across the country. I had hoped this year to get my Musical Theatre audition skills back in gear to audition for some stage work, as well! Everything takes time, energy, and focus!
• "I Remember You" - Who is someone you think of when something happens, that makes you say, "I remember you.”? So many come to mind - two of my friends who passed away - way to young - come to mind, often, when I remember something we did together, or made us laugh…I lost my mom two years ago, and I think of her all the time - and how much of an impact she had on my life. How despite her setbacks later in life, she greeted each day with joy and a sense of adventure. I think of a couple of guys I dated when I needed to do “prep” work to sing a song honestly, with emotion, to bring it to life - be it sad, happy or revelatory.

Jennifer with her Mom & Dad
Photo Courtesy of Jennifer Roberts's Social Media

9. In our 2019 interview, you mentioned that you "enjoy the creative process, the search for and discovery of songs and material, the research and rehearsal processes." Why is this your favorite part of the creative process? I would maybe say I am a historian, at heart. I love to discover new and old songs, bring them to the table, change them up, and put them out there for new audiences to find.

That is still my favorite part of any project - the research, the rehearsal, the bringing a vision to life. But, I would also add, this time, with this new album, the thrill and sense of fulfillment in creating this art with Tedd in the studio.

It was the spontaneity, the give and take, the communication between us that made it special.

10. What is something we didn't get to talk about in this interview that you'd like my audience to know about you? In case, anyone remembers our interview from a few years back, I am not the Starbucks fanatic I was when we did our first interview back in 2019…I still love a great cup of coffee, but no longer drive way out of my way to get a cup of Joe!

And, I love cats - I have two I named for Broadway’s Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock! And, all week I have had a visitor - in my yard and on my front porch. He made eye contact with me, through my porch window. He seems to be searching for something…..I named him, Alfie.

More Jennifer Roberts Interviews:

2019 (Read Here): An Evening with Jennifer Roberts Onstage & Off

Jennifer Roberts
Photo Credit: Joe Funk

More on Jennifer Roberts:

Jennifer has a global presence.

Her debut CD, AN EVENING WITH JENNIFER ROBERTS, received a 2019 MAC AWARD Nomination, numerous rave reviews, and continued airplay around the US and Overseas.

She is an accomplished Singer and Actress, with a Musical Theatre background, and experience in television and film.

A classically trained vocalist, she “excels at ballads, and in a jazz or swing mode, and can even have fun with country” - William Wolf.

Jennifer, who’s regional credits include Sarah Brown, opposite Broadway leading man Tom Wopat in GUYS AND DOLLS, serves up entertaining, exhilarating, jazz-infused shows that highlight her wide vocal range.

Drawing on her own diverse and eclectic background - she’s been a symphony soloist, motivational trainer, high school drama director, Opryland theme park singer and dancer, and traveled the country as an automotive spokesperson, Jennifer’s heartfelt theatrical performances showcase her unique blend of drama and humor.

Growing up in a musical family, she started singing at an early age, and started Classical voice training at age 15. She was raised in a suburb near Detroit, and was active in junior high and high school music and theatre opportunities.

She received a BFA in Theatre from Wayne State University, and was the recipient of two Acting Scholarships. While in college, and beyond, she studied Voice with Elsie Inselman, and movement/dance with Nira Pullin. She later studied acting with Uta Hagen. While in college, she appeared in many Wayne State plays and musicals, as well as dinner theatre and children’s theatre productions. She was also a member of WSU’s Touring Dance Troupe – “Movin’ Theatre.” During her junior year of college, she auditioned for Opryland theme park, in Nashville, and worked as a Singer/Dancer in numerous live shows for several years.

While in Nashville, she was a frequent guest on one of The Nashville Network’s first television shows OPRYLAND ONSTAGE and later PORTER WAGONER at OPRYLAND. She was also cast, while in Nashville, in many commercials, and worked as a singer/dancer in several touring, convention and industrial shows with Country Music legends Porter Wagoner, Roy Acuff, Minnie Pearl, Lee Greenwood, and more.

Moving back to the Midwest, she was cast at Meadowbrook Theatre, in a production of THE CHILDREN’S HOUR, directed by Terence Kilburn, with a stellar cast including Jayne Houdyshell and Linda Gehringer.

She also worked extensively in television and radio, including commercials and industrial films. She was featured in an UNSOLVED MYSTERIES episode, and cast as DA Martha Coakley, working with Hilary Swank, Sam Rockwell and Peter Gallagher, directed by Tony Goldwyn in the film, CONVICTION.

As a vocalist, Jennifer has performed numerous times with Symphonies - both Pops and Classical. She has performed in many other venues, churches and theatres and appeared as both the Soprano and Alto roles in THE ALL NIGHT STRUT, at Detroit’s Historic Gem Theatre, over a 20-year period. She also performed the show in Rochester, New York.

Jennifer’s regional credits include Guenevere in CAMELOT, at the Alhambra Dinner Theater in Jacksonville, Florida and as Sarah Brown, opposite Tom Wopat, in GUYS and DOLLS at the Barn Theatre, in Augusta, Michigan.

In 2002, Jennifer created her first New York Cabaret show – with Andy Gale, as Director, and Mark Janas, as Musical Director, performing at Judy’s Chelsea and Don’t Tell Mama.

In 2014, Jennifer created a new Cabaret show, this time with Tedd Firth, as Musical Director, directed again, by Andy Gale.

In 2016, she created a show based on the lyrics of BROADWAY LYRICIST ~ SHELDON HARNICK, with Tedd Firth as Musical Director and Broadway regular, Lance Roberts, as Director – the show is titled JENNIFER ROBERTS: SHE LOVES….SHELDON!

The show was performed again in April of 2018, and several times in 2019, at Don’t Tell Mama, Pangea, and The Laurie Beechman Theatre. Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon Harnick attended the show at the Laurie Beechman Theatre, in January, 2019 - a thrill of a lifetime!

Jennifer just completed her second album -  with Musical Director and Pianist Tedd Firth, celebrating mostly The Great American Songbook, to be released on October 16, 2026!

They are also working on a CHRISTMAS ALBUM, slated to be out in 2027.

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