Artistic Journey and Approach
[ 01 ]
Origin
I produce live musical works of art that build connection, preserve culture, and break the barriers between performer and audience member. My creations dismantle the historical understandings of traditional artforms like opera and dance by infusing them with contemporary rhythms, genres, colors, textures, and stories. My formal training is in classical and contemporary theater, voice, and dance, as taught by teachers and coaches that are the heartbeat of Los Angeles, yet lesser known by name.
[ 02 ]
Intention
My approach to creating abandons the concept of music and dance as artforms or industries. I aim to replicate the feelings I felt within the walls of my grandparent’s house (my childhood home) in my theatrical performances. This home was a gathering place where the doors were always open and no one knocked. Food was plentiful and voices were loud. Clothes were bright and music was amplified. I believe that all artists and audience members deserve this type of familial place, and I feel obligated to recreate this sense of peace through theatrical and musical storytelling.
[ 03 ]
Philosophy
All voices can sing and all bodies can dance. Professionalising these innate cultural expressions is an act of colonization that my pieces combat with urgency. Juxtaposed with the extraordinary quality of the stories I write, the music I procure, and the talent I hire, audiences leave my stages feeling both part of our artist family, yet in awe of our artistic excellence.
Artistry
I create from reverence, making theatrical tributes to the most wonderful things I know, such as Black American culture, fairytales, sequins, neon colors, jazz, opera, Hip Hop and R&B, sweat, drugs, natural landscapes, parental abandonment, and heavy baselines. I have a great devotion and admiration for telling stories from the past that tend to repeat themselves. I’m obsessed with researching, discovering, and retelling long-lost works in a way that highlight current feelings and desires. My sense of perfectionism drives me to create and recreate over and over again, developing pieces that survive years, yet always somehow feel new. My art is a tribute to something greater than myself, as most things are.
PERFORMER - ARTS ADMINISTRATOR - EDUCATOR - ARTISTIC PRODUCER - LAUSD KID
I use music as my main source of inspiration, and work I with artists that surrender to it through singing, dancing, and storytelling. My productions range from small vignettes to full scale shows, all of which are very detailed and overwhelming. As an artist, I am a sum of my experiences, including those that occurred outside of this industry. Each of these experiences are equally valuable and they contribute to my artistic voice and practice.