Quick Facts
Biography
Laura Elsie Dickinson is an actress and singer from California who is a vocalist for featured songs on the Disney Channel shows Phineas and Ferb, Sofia the First and Jake and the Never Land Pirates. On December 12, 2014, she released her debut album One For My Baby - To Frank Sinatra With Love on Music & Mirror Records in celebration of Frank Sinatra's 99th birthday and centennial year. She is currently serving as Vocal Director for Disney Television Animation.
Life and career
Growing up in Los Angeles, Laura began studying piano, tap, ballet and acrobatics at age three. Her first recording session was at age five. Her mother is a singer and classical pianist, while her father was a professional singer/soundalike who went on to found "Buffalo Springfield Again" with original Buffalo Springfield members Dewey Martin and Bruce Palmer.
She began her long affiliation with the Walt Disney Company in 1995. In 2001, she met Deke Sharon and founded a cappella group Groove 66 at Disney's California Adventure theme park. She transitioned to musical directing, arranging for and co-producing the group in 2004 under the name Vybration.
Laura has been the Principal Vocalist and Vocal Contractor for Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach, California since 2004, which led her to meet guitarist/composer/producer Danny Jacob in the orchestra pit in 2006. Thus began their long-term collaboration, starting with The Emperor's New School. She sang on the original demos which landed him the job as composer for the Emmy award-winning Phineas and Ferb. Laura was a regular featured vocalist/voice actor on Phineas and Ferb from the beginning of the series in 2007 to the end of the series in 2015. Danny and Laura are also working together on Disney Junior's Sofia the First, Elena of Avalor and Milo Murphy's Law. Laura has also appeared on Pickle and Peanut, Penn Zero: Part-Time Hero, The 7D, Wander Over Yonder and recurred on Jake and the Never Land Pirates as the singing voices of Tori Spelling's "Pirate Princess," Tiffani Thiessen's "Misty" and other characters.
During 2007-2008, Laura joined Spiritualized on their Acoustic Mainlines tour, which finished with a headlining spot at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. She sang background vocals on their 2012 release Sweet Heart Sweet Light and toured with them promoting the album throughout North America in May, 2012. Their Huh? tour included an appearance on Late Night with David Letterman and concluded with headlining Sasquatch! Music Festival.
She had the great privilege of opening for Tony Bennett ringing in the 2013 New Year at the Bel Air Hotel and has also opened for Lyle Lovett. Other television and film credits include Pitch Perfect, Pitch Perfect 2, Sing (2016 film), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2018 film), Modern Family, The Talk with Andy Grammer, Cinderella III: A Twist in Time, MTV Video Music Awards (with Florence and the Machine), American Idol, The Emperor's New School, Sonny With A Chance, Fish Hooks, White Collar, Supernatural, Touch, as well as national commercials for Target, Macy's, Subway, NBC's Last Comic Standing, and the long-running "Priceline Negotiator!" jingle featured in the Priceline ads starring William Shatner.
In 2016, Laura began working with Alan Chang as Michael Bublé's vocal contractor. She contracted and directed the choir featured on his release Nobody but Me (album) and is the featured vocalist on the first track "I Believe In You." Laura also contracted and directed the background vocalists featured on Mr. Bublé's 2016 promotional tour, including iHeart Music Festival, Apple Music Festival 10, Bublé at the BBC, Good Morning America, Live with Kelly, and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.
Laura will be voicing the title character in a new animated series produced by DreamWorks Animation, soon to be announced.
As a trained dancer, actress, and singer, Laura has performed in over 60 professional regional musical theatre productions. She is a member of SAG-AFTRA, Actors' Equity Association, American Guild of Variety Artists, BMI, American Society of Music Arrangers and Composers and NARAS.
Discography
- 2009 – Phineas and Ferb (Soundtrack)
- 2009 – Phineas and Ferb – Christmas Vacation (Soundtrack)
- 2010 – Disney Karaoke Series: Phineas and Ferb
- 2010 – Phineas and Ferb – Summer Belongs To You (Soundtrack)
- 2010 – Phineas and Ferb – Holiday Favorites (Soundtrack)
- 2011 – Phineas and Ferb – Across the 1st and 2nd Dimensions (Soundtrack)
- 2011 – Phineas and Ferb-ulous: The Ultimate Album (Soundtrack)
- 2011 – I'm With You Sessions – Red Hot Chili Peppers
- 2012 – Sweet Heart, Sweet Light – Spiritualized
- 2012 – Pitch Perfect (Soundtrack)
- 2012 – Sofia the First: Once Upon a Princess – EP
- 2012 – Love Was – Vince di Mura (featured vocalist)
- 2013 – Sofia the First (Soundtrack)
- 2013 – Phineas and Ferb – Rockin' and Rollin' (Soundtrack)
- 2014 – Sofia the First: Songs from Enchancia (Music from the TV Series)
- 2014 – Disney Junior DJ Shuffle
- 2014 – One For My Baby - To Frank Sinatra With Love
- 2015 – Pitch Perfect 2 (Soundtrack)
- 2015 – Phineas and Ferb – Last Day of Summer (Soundtrack)
- 2016 – Nobody but Me (album) – Michael Bublé (vocal contractor, choir director, featured vocalist)
- 2016 – Elena of Avalor (Soundtrack) (vocal producer, vocal contractor, vocalist)
- 2016 – Sing (2016 film) (Soundtrack)