Minnie Driver becomes a Hollywood hyphenate with her debut album Everything I've Got in My Pocket. But her emergence as actress-singer is not a whim; Driver was signed to a major label in the early '90s before her acting career eclipsed the music.
The actress known for her roles in such movies as Circle of Friends and Good Will Hunting has before her the specter of other less-than-illustrious musical outings by actors: Keanu Reeves and Russell Crowe, to name two. But this CD is, for Driver, the culmination of an interrupted career.
Driver was signed to Island Records in London in the early '90s, having started writing and performing songs in her teens. Her breakout role in the coming-of-age tale Circle of Friends forced her to put recording ambitions on hold.
The revelation of Driver's musical ability is two-pronged: In addition to the album, she appears in the upcoming film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera, though her singing voice is only heard during the credits. Driver talks with NPR's Scott Simon about music, acting and the feelings behind the songs on this album.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.