Meet Ari Chi (pronounced Khi). She is a 22-year-old Neo-Soul singer born in Atlanta. She spent most of her childhood in Saint Petersburg and Tampa Florida where she studied classical music for 7 years.
You may recognize her YouTube performances where she covers various artists including J. Cole and Desiigner.
Ari’s passion for music didn’t happen overnight. She credits her family’s creativity for her music and writing. “I was brought up in a creative environment. We are all creative. My mom is a poet so she has had a big influence on my writing skills,” says Chi. “At every family gathering they always insisted on me singing that song by Celine Dion from the Titanic,” she recalls. In addition to the Celine Dion family jam sessions, Ari was an active member of the school choir.
Ari faced a difficult decision: go to school for nursing or follow her passion for music. “I realized that creating music was my passion, but turning that into my career would take all of my focus. I put school on hold,” Chi explained.
Ari follows the simple rule: “make what makes you happy” and her music is the result of that philosophy. Ari explains, “My music is a mix between Indie and Neo-Soul, and I play the ukulele so there can be island undertones.” She does not believe in adapting music for target demographics. She advises people to “go with what you want to do. Do what makes you happy. Appreciate what you put out. Be you and be original.”
Now residing in Orlando, Ari is writing, creating and producing all her own songs. Her latest single, “Apple Pie”, is debuting this Sunday, Sept. 25th. The rest of the album is set to release later this year!
Listen to her as she lets Ari Chi be Ari Chi in her original song “Let it be known.”
Want to hear more? Check her out:
Twitter: @ItsAriChi
Instagram: @ItsAriChi
Snapchat: Ari.Chi
Soundcloud: Soundcloud/arichimusic
Facebook: Ari Chi
YouTube: Ari Chi
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