Powerful. Riveting. Sultry. Mere words can only capture the refrain of her awesome talent. Maria Howell is much more. She is the ballad of beauty and elegance. The melodies flowing from the petite vocalist are truly amazing. While casting a spellbinding smile, she mesmerizes her captive audience with incredible harmonies and rhythms.

Howell's signature film performance as the choir soloist in the movie "The Color Purple" was quoted by one critic as being "one of the film's most stirring moments!" Her rendition of "God Is Trying to Tell You Something" was memorable for all who saw it, but the offerings of the all-grown-up Maria are truly unforgettable, eliciting more stirring moments, one after another.

Some may be inspired to call her a best kept secret, but anyone who leaves an imprint on every medium from radio, stage and television to the Hollywood screen is hardly incognito. Howell's talent has been featured as a nightclub singer "Goldie", in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (Chicago and NY episodes, which also feature veteran actor Keith David).  Other roles on the small screen include Linda, where she plays alongside master performers Richard Thomas (The Waltons) and Virginia Madsen (Sideways) and in Scattered Dreams with Tyne Daly (Judging Amy) and Alicia Silverstone (Clueless and Beauty Shop). Her credibility as a true thespian flourished when she nailed a coveted role as the daughter of Maya Angelou's character in Langston Hughes'  "Tambourines to Glory" stage play.  She has worked with famed actor, director and producer, Tyler Perry in film, "Daddy's Little Girls" and in the TV version of "Meet the Browns".  She will be appearing in Lifetime Television’s Living Proof, where she plays the part of Kate (best friend to actress, Regina King).

Although acting was a natural artistic segue, singing and entertaining are skills that emanated from Howell as far back as she can remember. She recollects glaring at her six-year-old image in the mirror and knowing at that moment, her destiny was clear. The destiny became a reality as she wowed audiences as the opening act for the legendary Ray Charles, and as she shared the stage with Earth Wind and Fire's point man Phillip Bailey. Performing in front of the likes of Nancy Wilson, Marvin Hamlisch, Will Downing, and George Benson, became her comfort zone - Anyone who swings with the Cab Calloway Orchestra, croons with Baby Face and rearranges the scale with Jeffrey Osborne can not...ought not be boxed into one musical art form. Like Howell, her music is a collective sultry, soul... smooth. She not only combines sounds such as R&B with jazzy punctuations, she evokes an international flavor into her flambé of recordings. Her first CD, Peace of Mind, was produced while her celebrity was peaking in Japan. She followed up with another CD shortly after with a U.S. favorite, Same Old Story. Both sets of recordings have romantic overtones, but marinated with opportunities for toe tappin' and finger snappin'. Confident in her own groove, Howell shares the spotlight with several Atlanta artists in her latest compilation, Acoustically Yours.

Over the course of her career, Howell has availed her illustrious voice to TV and radio commercials.  In the near future, Howell hopes to use her voice in a more philanthropic spirit. She has an affinity for connecting with children who aspire to their own unique greatness. Her drive to shape our youth is commensurate with her acting ambitions. She'd like to star in films that are reminiscent of the times when families would gather to watch poignant documentaries and movies. She is also interested in uniting her talents with animation. Not only does she love this variety of film, she understands that an animated movie is a masterful way to gain a child's undivided attention.

And offering up another novel Howellistic melody…
is a way to keep ours