East African Artist Imi Serenades the Internet with her new EP, Roots X Wings
- thegiftedonline
- Oct 7, 2018
- 10 min read
If you ever needed music to uplift your soul, look no further than this riveting EP Roots X Wings by emerging artist Imi. Hailing from Nairobi, Kenya, 23-year-old Imi paints herself as a rising singer/songwriter and producer who wants to inspire people to be the most courageous, self-loving beings possible through her sweet, unshackling acoustic melodies in her first EP.
Roots X Wings is an EP that is comprised of two parts. Part A, known as Roots, is a collection of the first three songs: Echoes in the Wind, A Hero's Tale, and Legacy. Part B, known as Wings, is a collection of the remainder three songs: Déjame, Dreamscape, and Germaine. X is the song in the middle of the two collections that talks about having "anchored wings."
Recently I hopped on FaceTime with Imi to learn more about her background, her EP, and her life moving forward.
Shakirah: What is the story behind your EP, Roots x Wings?
Imi: Roots x Wings was released end of July around the 22nd and the concept is actually inspired by a Sudanese proverb that I came across. It says:
“We desire to bequest two things to our children, the first is roots and the other is wings.”
I thought that it was such a powerful concept. At the time, I had quite a few songs that I wanted to put on the EP, but I didn’t know how to filter them and how to put them together. So when I found this proverb, I found it so powerful, I decided, "you know what?" I want to call the EP Roots x Wings. And that sort of helped me filter out to see what would be best where. The interesting thing is, X is the first song that I ever wrote. It was kind of like me finding out my roots and my wings — roots being the things that anchor you and wings being the things that allow you to soar in your interactions with other people.
Shakirah: Wow, that's very powerful. So what has the feedback been since you released your very first EP?
Imi: Pretty good actually. It’s always pretty scary when you are putting your first piece of work out there, especially on major platforms. For me, I hoped that people would listen and at least find some kind of meaning for themselves because it sparks so many conversations with different people about what it is that anchors them. I find it nice that music can connect people, so I’m pretty happy with the EP.
Shakirah: Where is your studio located and how long did it take for you to write these songs?
Imi: I don’t have a studio. I record in my bedroom. I use an iPhone and I use a laptop to record and produce my music. I travel between Madrid and Nairobi, so it was very hard to find a producer who I could constantly work with. So I decided to learn how to produce my own music and to just go from there. Of course learning by my bed, it took a while to understand what my style is and how I can best bring it out. For example, Dreamscape was written by a friend of mine, Odin Umeofia, but the production part of it took almost two years because I didn’t know how to bring out that electric sound. Whereas A Hero’s Tale went through four different changes and I would say it took me a year to write. Coming up with the first concept [for A Hero's Tale] took me a day or two but then just reworking it to make sure it really brings out the meaning that I wrote it with to have for people took quite a few changes.
Shakirah: Interesting. Lots of hard work going into your production. So why music? When did you discover your niche in music and what factor(s) in your life made you want to pursue music even more?
Imi: It’s really hard for me to pinpoint a time when I decided that this is what I want to do. I want to go for music and there definitely have been a lot of factors that pushed me more in that direction. At a young age, I started learning to play instruments and singing in the choir. I’m really grateful that I’ve always had teachers and coaches who pushed me forward. I was quite self-conscious though, but by the time my roommate, Noni, she was pretty set on going for music and she wanted someone to accompany her on the guitar. That really pushed me out of my comfort zone because it was no longer just about learning and doing, but actually performing for people. I’d say the thing that really pushed me to keep going for music is the fact that it is my own little journey where I can actually see the benefits of being disciplined and pushing myself and being committed. So yeah, I’d say around age 16, a couple of open mic nights and just being able to see how I was growing and how every little experience builds into what my music sounds like and how it’s evolving. I began thinking “you know what? I like how it’s going so far and I want to keep going with it.”
Shakirah: Wow, you have a great background story. So where do you want to take your music? Are you trying to make it into a full-time career?
Imi: I mean right now, I’m really just taking it a day at a time. I’m not sure if I want to make it a career or just do it part-time, but I do know that the goal with my music is to always create something that has meaning. So whatever song I bring out next, I really hope that it just touches someone or it just gives them those 3 minutes that they have been looking for, whether it is to act as emotional relief or just something to dance to, I hope that it creates meaning and if that does lead into a career, I think it would be something that I accept, if it doesn’t, then making music is something that I am happy to keep doing.
Shakirah: Between Madrid and Nairobi, where do you spend most of your time?
Imi: Kenya.
Shakirah: What is the music scene like in Kenya? Are there a lot of artists?
Imi: It is actually very lively and very interesting here in Kenya. A lot of the development has been taking place over the last 5 years. The creative scene has been really budding and I’m quite happy because now it’s at a time where it is diversifying. It’s no longer just like electro music and rappers, but we also have a really strong live music scene that’s going on especially among the young people. Of course we’ve always had our classical good acts that always perform and you know that it is going to be good quality stuff. But I’d say the biggest marker is the fact that there are so many more artists who are coming up and have really good quality stuff to show.
Shakirah: That's amazing. So what open mic night venues have you performed at in Kenya?
Imi: In Nairobi, I usually just do one offline gig, the Sofar performances. Here in Madrid, I have performed at a cafe called Toast Cafe and the cafe has open mic nights every Tuesday so I’m always there. In Johannesburg, there was a place called “African Freedom Station where they have open mic nights every month, if I’m not mistaken. I don’t know if it’s still going on, but that’s where I use to perform. And then every now and then I kind of just like walking into bars and seeing if they have stuff and kind of checking it out to see if I can come back and hopefully offer something that people enjoy listening to.
Shakirah: That’s really cool. So talk to me about the story behind the song Germaine.
Imi: Germaine was written by this astounding poet. His name is Nteranya, a friend of mine. We went to school together in South Africa and he wrote the whole story. It’s based on an experience that he had where a close family member of his was actually poisoned by another family member. It was just out of spite of his whole family. So [Germaine] is recounting that whole experience. On one hand, it’s about processing the emotions and the confusion that comes with it and all the anger. But on the other hand, it’s a space where you can say “I’m letting go” and this doesn’t mean that I love you any less, but this is a weight that I need to let go of. It’s definitely been one of the best experiences working with him on this just because I’ve never really made a spoken word track before and it’s just such a weighty, heavy story. It took a lot of thought and collaboration from the both of us to bring out all of the emotions in a truthful and authentic way without underplaying or overplaying. So yeah, that’s the story behind Germaine.
Shakirah: Wow! So talk to me about the story behind Echoes in the Wind.
Imi: Echoes in the Wind, for me it’s about knowing something that you choose to ignore, but then it follows you so subtly and so naggingly as if it was like an echo in the wind. So I wrote it at a time when I was really doubting my music and I decided “You know what? I don’t want to do this anymore. I’m never going to perform for anyone.” Of course I’m going to keep learning for sure and then I went for an acoustic session and there was this artist, her name is Chisara, and she sang so beautifully. It was like a trance, you know? I feel like I can’t even tell you how bomb the session was because I was just so taken in how beautiful and rich the music was and I couldn’t fight it. It was very clear that I love music right now and I’m completely very invested in music. But also, I’m fighting the fact that I don’t want to perform. On the one hand, I love music very much, but on the other hand, I don’t want to perform it anymore and I didn’t feel like sharing my music anymore. And it’s just that conflict of how this situation kept following me and how my feelings and my thoughts were kind of conflicting. But I guess it means different things for different people. For some people, it’s the struggle of wanting to be heard but not being able to be heard, which I think is good in the song. If everyone can find their own meaning that’s the best thing.
Shakirah: What about the meaning behind A Hero’s Tale?
Imi: A Hero’s Tale, that song is about searching for courage, about searching for self-belief. And it sort of follows a protagonist who is suppose to be on a quest, and they find these animals, a colobus monkey, a cheshire cat both of whom tell a book: These other guys have done it, what makes you so special that you can do it?
And it’s just about slowly working your way up and realizing that it’s not even about what people say, it’s about the idea that, "If you are where you are and you believe that you are enough, that’s pretty much half of the journey done. For as long as you believe in yourself, you muster that courage, you can face whatever it is that’s dancing your way." It’s very special to me because I found that the meaning became more and more real the more I worked on the song. Because it really forced me to up my game musically and really bring out the message in it. For example, I originally had it as electric, and then it became super acoustic, and then I brought it back to where it was. So many changes made me feel like, “ugh, can I actually make music properly?” But working my way up towards it. *sigh* Yeah, it was a whole journey.
Shakirah: So what instruments are you well-versed in?
Imi: I would just say the guitar, really. The guitar and my voice. When I produce, I am able to add other instruments, of course it’s much easier because when you have the theory, you can just modulate it, but you find that in the whole album I only ever really use guitars, the drums, and my voice.
Shakirah: You are truly multi-talented. Tell me more about Dreamscape.
Imi: Dreamscape was written by a very good friend of mine, whose name is Eric. Initially we were just bouncing ideas around and then we got to: Imagine if you could escape but not escape outward into things, escape inward into yourself.
And so he ended up writing all of the lyrics, but then with more reflection, he acoustic'd it a little bit because it ended up becoming “Imagine if you just focus on your own limitlessness, instead of focusing on everything else that’s around you." You just look and find all of these limitations that pose on you from other people’s expectations. When in reality, you could be everything you want to be, because you know yourself better than most people know you.
Shakirah: That song is really mind-blowing. I'm enjoying all the meanings behind the songs you wrote and collaborated on. I think it's always good to hear how the artist interprets her own songs just to see if I, as a listener, received the same meaning. So lastly, tell me about Legacy.
Imi: Legacy is just about the intimacy of being with yourself. And those moments where you just sit back and you unplug from the world. You think about what you want to be, how do you want to be remembered. And understanding that as humans, it’s not even about being or having a dual personality, it’s about the fact that there is so much multiplicity that comes to us. So you have to remember this one thing, you can be very brave but you can also be very vulnerable.
Shakirah: That's beautiful. I think I am more brave than vulnerable, but I want to have more of a balance between the two. So looking at all the songs on your EP, what emoji would describe your music sound?
Imi: *laughs*
Oh my gosh, what a question. I think I’m gonna have to look at my emoji keyboard. I really hope that it would be the emoji with the yellow sparkles.
Shakirah: Ok, I feels that. Describe your sound? What genre would you fall under?
Imi: Right now I’ll say probably acoustic music. Maybe a little bit within soul just because of how emotive a lot of my songs tend to be. Right now I just try to settle and emerge with acoustic soul. But I’m also very open to veer into other genres as well and see how things go.
Shakirah: I'm liking acoustic soul. Your music makes my music library more diverse among all the R&B. So what kind of feelings do you want your listeners to receive from your music?
Imi: I just want them to feel safe. Like I want them to be able to listen and to be able to be a complete safe being, whether it’s vulnerable with themselves or introspective. I just want them feeling safe exploring the concepts that are in the EP from love to legacies.
Shakirah: What kind of people do you make your music for?
Imi: I make my music for people who are looking to find something authentic in music whether it is an authentic perspective on different aspects of life. Just a very like unfiltered view of whether it’s love or just the search for courage like in A Hero’s Tale, or even lost like in Germaine.
Photography: Kech
Instagram: _iminza
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