Interview: Rainere Martin of FOREVER DONNA at Florida Theatre

I had a chance to chat with Rainere Martin as she prepares for her show at the Florida Theatre on March 27, 2026. For Rainere it hasn’t been a lifetime of “preparing,” but rather one of using the gift she was blessed with. As she puts it, “Even though you're coming to see a Donna tribute, you're learning who Rainere Martin is in the midst of it.”

Here is our conversation:

Brock: What drew you to the music of Donna Summer?

Rainere: Well, the first 45 that my mother ever bought me, at 6 years old, was “On the Radio,” and I fell in love with it and started mimicking it, and that's all she wrote! I was in love with Donna Summer.

Brock: So that was going to be my next question…what song made you say, “Yes! I want to sing that!” So it was “On the Radio”?

Rainere: “On the Radio”! I still have that 45 to this day.

Brock: Obviously, audiences will notice that you have a striking resemblance to Donna! I was looking at your social media…you look fantastic, by the way! I love your confidence and that you're not afraid to share your age. Do you think that Donna helped develop that confidence in you?

Rainere: Of course! She exuded confidence! As a child you see things, you hear things, and as kids do, they imitate. I loved her voice and it just took off from there! I always say music is love, and, I just love everything about her and all that she was.

Brock: How do you bring your own personality to the performance when you are imitating such an iconic voice and stage presence?

Rainere: It’s crazy because some tribute artists actually have to change their voice to sound like that person. I'm just blessed because the tone that I have is so very close to Donna's. So honestly, when I sing, you're hearing some of what Donna sounded like, but you're hearing me, because I'm not really altering my voice. That is a true blessing. If I'm singing somebody else, like Anita Baker, I'll alter my voice to sound like Anita, because you want to replicate what you hear. When I sing Donna, it's me, I’m just singing and it naturally sounds a little like her. That's a blessing in itself.

Brock: Absolutely! Donna Summer’s music ranges from disco to gospel influenced ballads. How do you navigate vocally those different types of songs in one show?

Rainere: Actually, we switch up our songs yearly. One of my favorite songs was a gospel that she did. It was called “Forgive Me”. I added that song after an experience I had in 2023. I got laryngitis and I lost my voice for three months. I was down on my luck. I was depressed, and it was to the point where I didn't know if I was going to get my voice back. Unfortunately, some people kicked me while I was down and I didn't have support from everyone.

So when I got my voice back, I added that song to my show because it carries a message. It's about forgiveness, and I had to learn to forgive those who didn't support me. It meant something personal to me.

Brock: And that helps you connect even more with the music.

Rainere: Absolutely. I related to it. A lot of times when you hear music or you hear a song, you relate to it for a reason. In my show, I always tell stories. Even though you're coming to see a Donna tribute, you're learning who Rainere Martin is in the midst of it. I share my journey and what led me here.

People come up to me at the meet and greet, and they say “oh my God, thank you for sharing your journey. I went through something like.” My message to everybody is to never give up. I actually gave up singing for 20 years. I didn't get my start until I was 42 years old. So I always tell people, I don't care how old you are, 8 or 80. If there's something that you want to do, don’t give up. Stick with it. It's not too late.

Brock: I love that! And I love that we get to experience you through Donna's music as well! Let’s talk a little bit about the show. Donna's music has been featured in musicals like “Summer: The Donna Summer Musical” and “Priscilla: Queen of the Desert”. Do you think her songs naturally lend themselves to a theatrical performance?

Rainere: Absolutely! If you look at Donna's videos, she was acting! When she was on stage, she acted her songs out. Look at her expressions and how she moves, like in “MacArthur Park”, she's not just singing it. She's acting it out.

Brock: Do you have a favorite moment in the show where you feel like the audience really connects with the music the most?

Rainere: Definitely when I share the story about “On the Radio” being the first 45 that that I received from my mom, from anybody! Also when I share the story of how I gave up singing for 20 years. You can see it on their faces and their mouths are open, like, “Oh my God, really?” They're relating it to something in their own lives.

So many people tell me that they were inspired by my story. That's why I do what I do. I want to bring joy. I want to bring happiness. I want people to relive the happiest days of their lives in the '70s when her music was at the top of the chart. So my message is not to give up, and I think that is probably one of those moments in the show that everybody is like “she's just like me. I experienced something like that”.

Brock: Which song do you think gets the people on their feet the fastest?

Rainere: She has so many! So many, but I have to say, at the end of the show, “Last Dance”, everybody's up. It's the last dance! Honestly, there are people dancing literally from the beginning to the end. I tell people this is a disco party, so if you feel the need to get up and dance, do that!

Brock: What is it like seeing longtime fans alongside the younger audiences who are also there reacting to the music?

Rainere: The people who remember her music a lot of times, you see tears in the audience, tears of joy, and then we have the new people. I've had a 6 year old dancing, like he was dancing in Studio 54 and didn't know anything about Donna.

I always tell people, if you enjoy good music, you like singing and you like dancing, this is to show that you need to come to because anytime a 6 year old who was nowhere around, wasn't even born, by the time Donna passed away, and they're up singing and dancing. That makes that speaks volumes!

Brock: Younger generations now are also hearing her music influencing current artists! When you're when you're not performing Donna, who are you listening to?

Rainere: I listen to a little bit of everything. I love some country music. I love jazz, soft rock. I love R&B. I grew up on R&B. If I can feel it, I can absolutely sing it. I love music, period.

Brock: If Donna Summer could see your tribute today, what do you hope that she would take away from your performance?

Rainere: Well, number one, I would hope that she would be proud of me. I would hope that she would feel that I'm doing her music justice. It's important to me. I would just pray that she would be proud of me and happy that I am showcasing her music in the highest light.

Brock: After performing her music, has your appreciation changed or deepened?

Rainere: It has because it's hard. It’s not easy. Donna, she did it effortlessly, but to put a 90 minute show together with all of her music, it's difficult because she was up in the sky! So yes, I have a whole new appreciation of it. It's one thing if you're sitting, listening to the radio, singing a song, opposed to on stage acting out that song and doing 90 minutes of it. It's absolutely a new appreciation. It's not easy.

Brock: Tell us some of the Donna Summer hits that the audience can expect to hear during the show.

Rainere: “Bad Girls”, “Hot Stuff”, “Dim All the Lights”, “On the Radio”, “She Works Hard for the Money”, and we just added a couple of her hits from the 80s from on the album that Quincy Jones produced. We added “Finger on the Trigger”, which is such a fun song!

When I do a costume change, my background singers take the stage and they do hits from the 70s, so the show never stops. It just keeps going.

Brock: If there was one song that someone could listen to before the show to get them ready, what do you think it should be?

Rainere: There's so many! I would say something that got you up and dancing, “Bad Girls”, “Hot Stuff”, because people are on their feet from the start of the show to the end of the show! We don't have any slow songs in the show right now!

Brock: So definitely a fun, upbeat, fast paced show! What are you most excited for the Jacksonville audience to experience when they come to the theatre?

Rainere: Having the time of their life, especially for people who haven't been out in a while, to just leave the theatre happy! I honestly have to say, I feel so blessed because every show that we do, we get that response and when they're happy, I'm happy.

It is just a fun show. If you enjoy dancing, singing, laughing, crying…you’ll experience every emotion coming to the show. It is definitely a show that you do not want to miss!

Tell all your friends and family if they want to a good time…

Brock: Get your tickets now!