I arrived at The Drom on Avenue A, between Fifth and Sixth Streets and walked towards the stage desperately searching for my phone to alert Aimee of my presence. Anxiously waiting by the stage, Aimee and I united under a beautiful chandelier; immediately, her presence extinguished the unsettled external liquid fused adrenaline.
As we sit on the plush leather couches, a band sets up in the background and after assuming she will take the stage in a matter of seconds I
dive right into the nitty-gritty.
Q: How did you know singing was the creative outlet best suited for you?
Aimee: I started playing the guitar, and singing, at a young age and thought this is the closest to get to God.
Q: Why the guitar? Did you take lessons?
Aimee: I taught myself. As the only child, (unintentionally, I interrupt her in mid sentence)
Me: I am an only child too; I apologize, Aimee you were saying….
Aimee: You are that is great. Well, I started playing the guitar at a very young age.
I am impressed since learning the guitar remains a miscellaneous, yet fun goal to achieve in the prospective future when the violin ended its era in a land far away. However, since this is not about me, I detour the focus back to the dual dialogue. I probe into her past of briefly residing in Philadelphia, while Aimee enthusiastically dishes out that her and her Aunt conquered a sixteen-hour road trip from Tennessee to NY. Instantly, I am intrigued and acquire the motivation to infiltrate deeper with additional random inquiries. Currently, the rehearsed questions I wanted to ask fly out without permission, wings, or a filter; I hope Aimee remains receptive.
Q: Tennessee or NY? Which do you prefer?
Aimee: I prefer NY because people are open-minded while in Tennessee, I did not find the same acceptance.
Q: If you had the chance to categorize your music, what genre would you categorize it? Additionally, do you see yourself going “Hollywood?” You have to get an agent re-locate, change almost everything, etc; if you decide to kiss the Hollywood scene goodbye and do your own thing, what becomes of your genre?
Aimee discards her shoes, hugs her guitar, and commands attention with her incomparable, articulate, and rapturous vocal cords vibrating through The Drom and piercing your spirit. Aimee’s group Factorye alongside her friends singing Acapella cascaded every square inch of the venue with their synchronized accentuation. I wanted her to continue playing, and I was delighted when she played one of my favorite tracks Thin Shoes. While Aimee wraps up, poses for pictures, one more question ached for an answer. I asked Aimee why she played without her shoes and she replied because she feels grounded; awesome.Aimee looks down while searching for an answer looks up, smiles, and responds, “I would categorize our genre like Meditation Folk. As far as making up on my label, it would remain the same Yes, I see a label in the prospective future, but it has to be a company that aligns well with what we do.” I wanted the conversation to continue but it was time for Aimee’s performance so I squeezed one last question. While most performers aspire to conquer Carnegie Hall, The Met, and alternate epic venues Aimee’s ultimate slice of heaven is performing at an annual Music festival in Morocco. Her eyes illuminate and she ignites the internal spirit with her description of the event; I hope I am a plus one.
By: Laura M. Artis.