Exclusive Magazine Album Review

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Singer-Songwriter Deb Varn conquers cancer and explores spirituality on “Jasmine’s Colors”

Joe Taylor produced the personal album released on Friday that will be celebrated at an album release concert on Saturday.

COLUMBIA, South Carolina (7 MARCH 2025): When Deb Varn walks onto the stage this Saturday night (March 8) in Columbia, South Carolina to play music from her Moonwatcher Music debut album, “Jasmine’s Colors,” it will be a miracle in and of itself. After fighting multiple bouts against multiple myeloma (bone marrow cancer) and embarking on a decades-long transformational spiritual journey, the singer-songwriter has beaten the odds whether or not she sells any records. Veteran producer, songwriter, guitarist, and multi-instrumentalist Joe Taylor helped Varn assemble a collection of ten songs about her personal experiences, challenges, revelations, and relationships and bundled them as “Jasmine’s Colors,” which was released on Friday (March 7).      

Firmly anchored in the divine, Varn’s setlist on “Jasmine’s Colors” is comprised of intimate stories of faith, love, hope, and optimism incorporating Americana, country, blues, folk, rock, and pop music. Varn’s voice spans the gamut of emotions - from vulnerable to powerful, from pain to joy filled, from lovelorn to enraptured. Taylor’s sparse and airy production fosters feelings of warmth and connection, keeping the focus squarely on Varn, her eloquent and revealing lyrics, engaging stories, and the sweet and subtle melodies that she seeps into listeners’ consciousness.     

Given the subject matters and the messaging, it's apropos that Varn’s album release concert this Saturday night in Columbia will take place in a house of worship, specifically Unitarian Church. There she will perform the entire album and share the stories behind each song. The show will be livestreamed on her YouTube page (@debvarn) and available for public viewing for free. 

On March 16, Varn, who is an Agape licensed spiritual practitioner and a certified quantum healer, will be in Irvine, California to perform songs from “Jasmine’s Colors” for her Agape community at the Soul Center. She began her studies and training at Agape International Spiritual Center in 2020 and now performs at Agape gatherings, the LGBTQ+ ministry, and Agape East.

Recorded in Taylor’s Bennetts Point recording studio, Varn envisioned “Jasmine’s Colors” as a spiritually rooted set about her healing journey and faith. However, Taylor challenged her to dig deeper, to fearlessly explore darkness, to be vulnerable and even to be doubtful. What emerged from those unfiltered writing sessions illuminate the lyrics, shade the harmonies, and add depth, authenticity, and meaning to Varn’s vocals.  

Varn doesn’t appear on the cover of her new album, but what does offers a revealing look at the artist behind the music. The album artwork is a painting that was given to Varn by a five-year-old student named Jasmine when Varn was a teacher. The imaginative child didn’t follow directions and colored freely and liberally outside the lines. That backstory made the painting even more alluring to Varn who saw it as symbolizing and depicting courage, freedom to live just as you are instead of following rigid rules and restrictions and proffering and pondering possibilities in place of prescriptions.   

On “Jasmine’s Colors,” Varn’s subject matters delve into self-awareness, the human experience, life affirming tales, childhood memories, bitter betrayals, self-realization, unconditional love, and living life with abandon. She discussed the project last month on an episode of the Anything Anything Posi podcast with Brian Black.

Varn’s “Jasmine’s Colors” album contains the following songs:

“Pool of Me”

“I Ride the Waves”

“Alright Already”

“Little Shadow”

“Jasmine’s Colors”

“Little Soul”

“On My Own”

“Faith of a Mustard Seed”

“Break It”

“What Now?”

For more information, visit https://www.debvarn.com. 

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