PART VI: WOMEN BEING THEMSELVES

Illustration of Tamia, by Alyssa Etoile.

Illustration of Tamia, by Alyssa Etoile.

Musically and vocally, Tamia is someone I have long looked up to. Another of my performance muses is Sabina Sciubba, the lead singer of the Brazilian Girls. There’s something about the way that Sabina performs and the way that Tamia performs—there’s something in between there that I feel close to, vocally. Sabina comes from a jazz background, and when she sings, she sings really straight. She doesn’t do a lot of runs, it’s about the notes themselves, the phrasing—there isn’t a lot of embellishment. I really love this kind of singing.

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This Björk TV video is just beautiful because she’s being herself; she’s amazing. All of these videos are examples of women being themselves; they show what I’m relating to.

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Abra’s “Roses” is such a good, addictive song, and she looks hot in the video. Abra’s badass, you know? I appreciate this! ♦

—As told to Derica Shields.