Stoking The Legacy: Love, Community and Our South Bay Music Scene By Contributor Kamaren Henson
Michelle and Steve performing on stage
Our South Bay, with its beach towns and cities of industry, has long been a quiet powerhouse in the music world. If you know, then you Know—the South Bay is a place where rock ’n’ roll, punk, ska, and soul have crashed like waves on the local scene and then spread out into the world.
The South Bay music legacy is undeniable, with historic recordings from bands like Black Flag, Pennywise, Sublime, and No Doubt etched into its story—and so many more. And, like any great story, it continues on…
Meet Michelle and Steve Ornest, a musical power couple stoking the flame of the South Bay music scene by nurturing raw, authentic artistry right now, right here in our backyard.
Michelle laying down vocal tracks at Total Access Studio
Michelle Ornest: Finding Power in Every Voice
Michelle Ornest, the woman behind Michelle Ornest Vocal Studio in Redondo Beach, isn’t your average vocal coach. Raised in a musical family of singers and musicians, she’s been singing since she was a baby. Inspired by powerhouse vocalists of the ’80s and ’90s—like Whitney Houston, Gladys Knight, and Mariah Carey—blasting from the car stereo while she and her mom sang along at the top of their lungs, Michelle knew early on that singing had to be a part of her life. She began performing and teaching voice while still in high school and never looked back!
After years of working at other vocal schools, Michelle took a leap, inspired by a challenge from Steve: “If that’s your dream, you can make it your business to make it happen.” In fact, when Steve talks about Michelle, he always tells people she went from teaching out of her trunk—literally driving to people’s houses—to building her brand and business. Now, she serves the community with her expansive and beautiful voice school.
Michelle teaching vocal techniques to a student
As an authorized instructor of Vocology in Practice, Michelle is part of a global network of elite voice professionals that includes vocal coaches, speech-language pathologists, ENTs, and laryngologists. Through this organization, she has had the privilege of being mentored by some of the most respected figures in the vocal world—including voice science expert Dave Stroud, who has trained Kelly Clarkson, Justin Timberlake, and Michael Jackson; speech-language pathologist Kerrie Obert; and business mentor Whitney Nicole Cytryn, creator of the Singing Straw.
Michelle Ornest Vocal Studio is grounded in science-backed vocal technique and raw heart. Her approach focuses on enhancing vocal harmonics by shaping vowels and tuning formants—acoustic resonances in the vocal tract—to optimize tone, increase power, and reduce strain, all while helping prevent vocal injury and fatigue. “Sometimes the things a singer is doing ‘wrong’ are actually what make their voice unique,” Michelle says. She takes care to listen closely to each voice, offering exercises with intention—aiming to preserve its unique character while making singing easier and healthier. “A great vocal coach teaches you how to use the colors—but you’re the artist. You get to decide how to paint with them.
Michelle and Lilly teaching a harmony workshop
Jokers Hand performance at Saint Rocke
The students of Michelle’s vocal studio aren’t just learning how to sing—they’re learning how to thrive. From Carmen Scotti, a local voice and community draw as the lead singer of Journey Jukebox, to Jakob Nowell, now fronting Sublime and headlining this year’s BeachLife Festival, to Joker’s Hand, with lead singer and guitarist, Kevin Kjawano and Matt Lau, who have worked with both Michelle and Steve and have opened in previous years at the festival —the studio is quietly nurturing new stars. Michelle is also mentoring the next generation of voice teachers, including Lily Horrocks—once her student as a young girl, now a vocal coach at the studio and performer in the South Bay band Sunflower Academy with her brother Thatcher. And, there’s Maggie, a Berklee College of Music grad and South Bay native who recorded with Steve at Total Access and now also a coach at the studio. “It’s about passing on the knowledge,” Michelle says. “And nurturing people — not just voices.”
Michelle's latest venture? Expanding her studio near Knob Hill and PCH to include the entire second floor of the building. The space includes 3 vocal rooms,and open style communal music spaces, which will accommodate larger group workshops like recent harmony sessions and upcoming songwriting intensives. Her kids’ and adult student showcases happen a few times a year, and the studio parties —Fourth of July bashes and holiday mixers—are becoming vital music community-building hubs, where emerging artists connect, collaborate, and grow.
Follow @michelleornestvocalstudio to keep up with all the fun things happening at her studio!
And just a few blocks away, inside a storied studio space in Redondo Beach
founded in 1981, Michelle’s husband, Steve Ornest, is holding it down at Total
Access Recording Studio.
Steve Ornest and Total Access: Carrying the Legacy Forward
Steve and Wyn working their magic at Total Access Recording Studio Redondo
A South Bay native, Steve grew up in Palos Verdes, digging through his mom’s records as a toddler, falling in love with the guitar at age 6, and recording his own music by 11—long before producing for legends, rising stars, or even meeting Michelle.
When Steve was in high school, a friend told him he should meet her dad, Wyn Davis, who had a recording studio. So he did. “I was 14 years old and I’ve never been so intimidated,” Steve recalls. “Her dad’s work was on all the hottest records—Dokken, Black Sabbath, Black Flag, Sublime, No Doubt—I was buzzing.” Wyn started calling Steve in to play guitar licks on tracks he was working on. “He took me under his wing, and I fell even more in love with the recording process.” Meanwhile, Steve went to Berklee College of Music, Wyn met Steve’s mom Francine, they fell in love and married—creating one big, happy music family.
Steve and Wyn working their magic at Total Access Recording Studio Redondo
Total Access isn’t just a studio—it’s hallowed ground. Van Morrison, Guns and Roses, Pennywise, Foreigner, Minutemen—all recorded here with legendary recording engineer, Wyn Davies. And now, Steve is the torchbearer of that legacy, guiding new artists through the studio’s analog-digital hybrid paradise with precision, empathy, and an almost spiritual dedication to honoring the artist’s vision.
“My process is a little different—I don’t try to insert myself too much,” Steve says. “I’m here to serve the artist. If we finish a project and they say, ‘That’s exactly what I was trying to do but couldn’t do on my own,’ then I’ve done my job.” That ethos is why Total Access remains a hidden gem—an oasis just outside the buzz of LA’s more congested studio scene. It’s why major artists still fly in to record here and why indie acts find a home among the same walls that once pulsed with punk and rock rebellion.
Steve with Scout of Acolyte Band.
Total Access is a big facility with a homey feel. The space includes an analog
console, a tape machine, a live room with an overdub space, and a rehearsal wing. Steve and Wyn are currently building a beautiful new 900-square-foot B room. “It’s gonna be awesome for smaller projects—indie artists, major label bands—anybody who wants to make a great record in a great space,” Steve says. “We’re carrying on the legacy of the Total Access vibe by designing the new wing in a cozy and inspiring Moroccan-esque style.”
“In the ‘80s, all the SST punk bands and major hard rock acts were recording here,” Steve reflects. “Then, in the ‘90s and early 2000s, it was Sublime and No Doubt making records, along with reggae bands like Slightly Stoopid, and Pepper. There have been multiple times when it felt like the South Bay was having a major music moment—and I think it’s happening again.”
While the technical side of music is Steve’s wheelhouse, what really fuels both him and Michelle is community. “We’re seeing it start to pop off right now,” Steve says, pointing to venues like Saint Rocke, the Lighthouse, and Resin Gallery in Hermosa Beach, where gritty, ’90s-inspired indie acts like Acolyte and Willowake are packing out 250-capacity rooms. “There’s a new local scene brewing, and it’s exciting to watch so many young, talented bands carry the torch.”
Steve (right) with the guys from Willowake
Acolyte performing at the Lodge Room
Manhattan Beach native Charlotte Sabina is preparing to release her debut album “Herobrine” on June 13th. Ornest mixed the record and Sabina had this to say about the experience,
“There’s nobody on the planet I trust more to understand, envision, and finally execute a sound or idea. Steve’s attention to detail is unparalleled. He is undoubtedly creatively and sonically gifted, but what sets him apart from everyone else is his intense focus and musical intuition - it’s the kind of thing you can’t teach, or buy, or even fully define.”
In Harmony: Building Community and Family Through Music
Together, Michelle and Steve are a harmony of contrasts: clinical meets creative, analog meets emotion, coaching meets crafting. At home, they’re parents to their son who is now a toddler, and even while fully booked, expanding their businesses, and parenting, they still find time to be their true romantic selves—their frequent date nights often involve attending their clients’ performances. “We make it a night—go to dinner, support our students and the music we love being a part of, and make sure we keep space for each other” Michelle shares. Their secret weapon? Steve’s mom, Francine, who keeps the family grounded while the couple juggles their professional and parental roles.
Acolyte performing at the Lodge Room.
Their relationship—both personal and professional—is the kind of rare chemistry that sparks more than just romantic flames. It lights up an entire community fueled by music. The synergy between them is palpable: Michelle teaches singers to express their true voice; Steve gives them the space to capture it. “I feel aligned with Michelle, trying to serve the local music scene,” Steve says. “We really care so much about it. We could’ve gone to Hollywood. But the South Bay is home. And there’s so much talent here that just needs a place to grow.”
In a world where music feels increasingly commodified, Michelle and Steve
Ornest are cultivating something deeply human. Their work reminds us that great music doesn’t just come from hit factories or TikTok algorithms—it comes from lifelong passion, nurturing mentorship, and people who believe in and care about each other. And in Redondo Beach, that’s exactly what’s happening.
The South Bay music scene is alive. It’s thriving. And it’s got heart—thanks, in no small part, to two people who love music—and each other—loudly.
This article was written by guest writer, Kamaren Henson, who has been learning voice technique at Michelle’s studio for over two years—she was inspired to share a story about Michelle and Steve and all the wonderful ways they are fueling our musical community here in the South Bay.