Native singer climbs the charts

Upstream into the mainstream

Shawn Michael Perry is on the moveSinger/songwriter/actor Shawn Michael Perry is one ambitious man. As a recording artist, he's had the savvy to court the radio industry, successfully persuading to place cuts from his debut CD with his band, Shawn Michael Perry & Only the Brave, on America's pop, top 40, adult contemporary, college and country charts. He did his research, made his move and took a leap of faith.

“They hit on every one,” Perry exulted. “One song! I was like, wow!”His background:Perry was born in San Diego to a Salish father and a Panamanian mother of Mayan ancestry. One of his earliest memories of performing was singing Christmas songs in kindergarten.

"I was hooked from day one," he said, referring to the sound of applause. "What got me excited about music was 'The Flip Wilson Show,' and Michael Jackson used to come on there with the Jackson 5. I just thought that was it. As soon as I heard his voice and how people reacted to him, I just knew as a young child that that's exactly what I wanted to do."