We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Allison Iris. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Allison below.
Allison, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
It was a very difficult journey. I was always the quite one in the room. I liked to observe and in doing that I absorbed a lot of what other people were and put it into a neat puzzle to present to the world as the type of artist I am. When in reality, I had no clue who I was, or what I stood for. And one day it hit me, when I was asked a simple question. “Who are you?” And I was stunned, I couldn’t give an answer that was genuine and it was very apparent. I started writing music, trying to see if I have a message, something I want to share with the world. So I started to look inwards, into my life and my story. And once I started it just flowed and I realised I do have a lot to say, it was just buried under the what I thought people wanted me to be. The journey only got more difficult after that. Now I knew who I was and what I wanted to say, but I had to start creating and putting myself out there. It took trial and error, but once I truly believed in my art and my message my confidence grew. Because no one could tell my story better than me and that I know for a fact. And that fact helped me believe in myself and allowed me to use the skills I acquired to create art that tells a genuine story about who I am as an artist.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I am a songwriter, recording artist and performer. I am currently growing my brand as an artist. Recording and releasing music to establish my place in the industry as a genuine artist. My debut album will be dropping in the summer and it is something I am looking forward to. It is blend of afrobeats and R&B. It is filled with songs about my story and I hope my audience will love it. I am also currently working starting an NGO. A performance academy for the underprivileged. It’s mission is to bring hope and inspiration to children from disadvantaged backgrounds. By nurturing their talents in the arts and providing them with enough business knowledge and life skills to bridge the gap between a talented individual and someone employable by the performing arts industry.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I would say number one was learning to communicate effectively. As an artist you need to be able to sell yourself, but also get the people around you to understand your message and help you bring it to life in the way you imagined and that can be difficult if you do not know how to communicate. It also helps to maintain healthy relationships both personally and professionally. Having resilience is essential, especially when starting out. Because you are going to have failures and encounter setbacks, but you need to keep on working. Keep on writing new music, sending in your demos, performing; because eventually you will get your break. And the grind does not stop there and that is why it important to have good work ethic. To grow you need to keep at it, try new things and always push yourself to new heights. I am always trying to learn new things in my field to help me become a better musician. The industry is always changing and if you become complacent, you get left behind.
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
My dad. He is a self-made man. He grew up under the Apartheid government in South Africa and under circumstances that killed many people’s dreams. But he did not let that keep him down. He strived for better. Started his own business and became a success story. He is a living example of how hard work, determination and a little faith can create miracles in your life. Whenever I am stuck I either go to him or think about how would overcome challenges and I am always inspired after. He never allowed me to be complacent and pushed me out of my comfort zone. He was the one that put me on a stage first, in church. The one who signed me up for music classes and the one who pushed me to study it. He is my rock and I will always be grateful to him.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allisoniris/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@allisoniris1580
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-230731601
- Other: Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/artist/4htgRV1O32NgfxM3SXoPuN
