Peopling of New York City
Spring 2014
Abby is a young artist and a New York City native. She is a charismatic, mellow redhead whose hair makes her stand out in a crowd, much like the main character Merida from the Disney film Brave; she even made a joke about how hair is an important feature of expression and image for a musician in New York City. What makes Abby special is that she started in New York City and is now experiencing a music scene elsewhere, whereas most artists around the world would have it that the place they’d want to end up is in New York City.
I found her on Twitter through a combination of two hash-tags: “#thestrugglesofamusician” and “#nyc.” I stumbled upon her twitter and her “bio” description fit the perfect descriptor for an artist in New York City. I sent her a direct message telling her that I was “studying the music scene in New York City” and that I “wanted to do a little interview with [her] about her experience with music in NYC.” She replied quickly, with an enthusiastic “I would totally love to!” and we promptly exchanged numbers. Our first few phone calls were quite short due to conflicts of schedule on both of our parts—so we decided to do a mixture of the interview through phone calls and Facebook messages.
On the phone we spoke about her personal background—my aim was to understand from where she draws her inspiration for music. Abby comes from an artistic family: her father is a musician and her mother is a painter and photographer. She described her house as the interior of a room from Alice in Wonderland, with crazy colors bursting out of every photo, painting and window in the room. There is always music playing, and the small rooms help resonate the sound throughout the house.
Over Facebook, I sent her the following message, while also adding that she can take her time in answering them: “So I have a few questions already ready for you: How would you describe your music style? Where have you performed in NYC and how would you describe your experience of performing in NYC? Have you met other artists like yourself? If so, did you find that their musical realities were similar to yours (and how so)? How would you describe the music scene that you are a part of in NYC?” After several days of lapsed communication, she replied apologetically, though always enthusiastically. Her answer was long and insightful: “My music style is a combination of folk and pop…I’d say “indie” but that’s super broad. I’ve played at many venues including Arlene’s Grocery, Sullivan Hall, The Bitter End, the ABC lounge and other venues. My experiences have varied; the most difficult part is when venues ask you to sell presage tickets. It’s fairly annoying…I shouldn’t have to pay to play at a venue if I’m being hired to perform there. I’ve met many other artists like myself, we’re all kind of struggling to “make it” but also have fun and live real lives. Now that I’m at SUNY Purchase’s music conservatory, I’m feeling really at home with an immense amount of potential to have a music related career…but reality also feels very scary…I’m worried about having a real career, and being able to provide for myself in the future.”
Although I am not an artist myself, I can imagine the struggle that these people face in a city as big as New York—where one’s success depends on several factors: appeal of the music, appeal of the artist, and connections (although I’m sure there are additional factors for certain genres of music). My message in reply to hers was: “That seems to be a common struggle amongst artists especially trying to make it in New York City. How would you describe the folk/pop scene in NY that you have been involved in? Where do you see yourself in the future with your music?” And this time she replied quickly; she wrote: “In the future, I’d like to be composing contemporary music backed by a chamber outfit. I think that there is a ton of people in the young artist scene, as there’d always be, and that it’s really important to be somewhat of a master of your craft before you brag about it, ha-ha. That sounds mean, but it’s very important to recognize how much more work you need to put into your craft before being able to say “Hell yeah, I’m good at this.” And yeah, you can quote me. I hope that answered your question…There are a ton of people who think they’re amazing, who really have to do a lot more. There’s tons of potential.”
Soon after those messages, I called her again. This time we talked about the musical atmosphere in Manhattan—which she compared to a friendly, but aggressive playground where people are eager to hear and appreciate one’s music though there’s always a subtle scent of competition around each corner.
You can find her music on iTunes, although for privacy concerns I’ve removed her full name from this transcript. Since the last time we spoke, she has invited me to go see her perform live this summer at several venues in the city. For a 19-year-old girl, I’d say that all she has accomplished is quite impressive in a city like New York City, also known as the “Concrete Jungle.”
NYC as a friendly, aggressive playground–that really captures it. With respect to her comment re: some folks thinking they’re amazing before they really are, I wonder if this dynamic has been fueled by social media: get attention first, then get good.