ABOUT

Tanya Leah is an award-winning, multi platinum-selling songwriter/artist who’s work has been heard on many albums, and in film and TV.

In her youth, she became a favorite of Ken Gorka who booked the world-famous “Bitter End” in NY’s Greenwich Village, and she played there regularly, allowing her to hone her craft and connect with other aspiring artists and writers. She began recording her own songs and released her first eponymous 4 song EP. 

She went on to tour with her own music and as a sideman with other artists, sharing the stage with the likes of John Sebastian, Dee Carstensen, Jonatha Brooke, Alison Krauss, Sinead O’Connor, John Hiatt, Dar Williams, and many more. 

During those early years, she supported her songwriting by singing on other songwriter’s demos, and landed a few national jingles including Coca-Cola,, Downy, M&Ms (with Ritchie Havens), and a kind of awesome over=the-top song about ice cream, released as a single in Italy (produced by Phil Ramone).  

She traveled the NY-Nashville-LA songwriting circuit trying to make her way, and got lucky when her first song that was recorded by another artist also became her first #1 song. Around that time, she and her friend Lindy Robbins won the Grand Prize in the Unisong International Song contest. Those events (and much pavement-pounding), ultimately landed her her first publishing deal with Celia Froehlig, Robin Palmer, and Famous Music, and launched her songwriting career. 

It was during that time in Nashville that she recorded her first full-length album, Emerging.

Since then, Tanya has had songs on a number of gold and platinum records, and singles that have reached into the top forty, including three more that have reached number one.  The list of artists who have recorded her songs is long and varied and includes stars such as Lila McCann, Wynonna Judd, Melinda Doolittle, Agnes Carlsson, Lesley Gore, Natalie Grant, and many more.  Also, her songs have been heard in numerous tv shows such as “How I Met Your Mother”, “Dawson’s Creek”, “Providence”, and others.

In 2011, Tanya’s father, Ira (aka Panjo – an artist and musician himself) suffered a devastating, incapacitating stroke, and everything changed, including the trajectory of her life and career.  After living 10 years in Nashville, she put her world on hold and moved back to NY to help with his caregiving.  After not writing at all for the first 6 months of his illness, she decided she would try to create songs that would lift his spirits and soothe him.  The resulting collection of songs became her highly acclaimed, award-winning Roses For Panjo record, which was re-released digitally with one additional bonus song in August, 2020.

While back in NY, she reconnected with her friend and collaborator, Ilene Angel, and ended up producing her “In Color” record, which included a surprise guest vocal on their duet “Friends Like Me And You” by international pop superstar, Kenny Loggins.

Before the pandemic, Tanya began working on a new collaboration with Ilene, and another super-talented, long-time friend, Lorraine Ferro, in a trio called “The Inspire Project.” Their first 6-song EP was released in August, 2020.

Currently, Tanya is excited to be working on her new works in progress project.  She lives in Spuyten Duyvil, NY with her lovely and ridiculously talented, musical-theater-writing husband, Arnie.