Today we’d like to introduce you to Imani Ray.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Imani. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My family moved to Georgia when I was six years old, prior to leaving New York, I was in dance school. When we came to Georgia, my mom did not find a new dance school for me to attend, but I watched a lot of dance on TV as often as I could. I practiced dancing in the living room and my bedroom. At the age of 14, a family friend invited me to do a photo shoot because she is a photographer and was heavily involved in the entertainment industry. The shoot was extremely successful! We were all pleasantly surprised, especially my mom. I then got involved in dance again, after being selected for a TV Pilot, following an audition, which leads to more opportunities. Our family friend also told me one day, while I was still 14 that I have a nice voice and if I took singing lessons, I could put the dancing together with it and do something. I kindly declined at the time, because I loved to dance and couldn’t see myself doing anything else.
At the age of 16, after I was selected to dance for Terrence Davidson at the Bronner Bros. Hair Show (2011), I learned on Facebook that my father passed away. We had rehearsal that day, I drove to it, but I was not able to actually rehearse. I didn’t want to have a breakdown in front of everyone to cause any distraction. I took video footage of it instead, so I could practice at home. I continued to dance for a couple years after the show. It was a huge success and I was able to stay focused and have some fun. I realized that my love for dance was fading away, it was not helping me to cope with the loss. There was also a shift when I danced on stage in March of 2013, I was the lead dancer and I recognized the fact that I enjoyed that. That is when I knew I wanted to be a solo act, with my own back-up dancers. I remembered what I was told about singing and decided that it might be worth a try. My mom found me a local vocal coach, he happened to be a Classical Trainer.
It was definitely a challenge, but I enjoyed learning from him. I started to discover a lot about myself and my ability to sing, though I struggled to hear the tones and stay on key. This is where the real work began. After working with a Vocal Coach at my former elementary school, I met my current Vocal Coach, Jason Sylvain and we have been inseparable ever since. At the age of 18, I recorded my first song and started to perform locally. I recorded a Soca (genre) song and looking back, I can honestly say I “stayed in my comfort zone.” I pushed myself and truly started to embrace MY voice and my abilities, so I have been recording others genres of music. I have had the pleasure of performing on many stages, big, medium and small. I have had the opportunity to perform at various events in GA, other states and even other countries. The largest crowd had 3-5 thousand people. My family and I have made a lot of sacrifices throughout this part of the journey, for me to be doing what I love.
Before I started being compensated, I performed for free, but we had to know when to stop doing things simply for exposure. I’ve done so many things in between to help me better my craft. I’ve done a lot of background acting work, internships and formed a dance program to give back to the community at my former high school, just to name a few. In the last couple of years, my mom (also my Manager, Ms. Roxanne James) and I have had to restructure and treat what I was doing as a real business, instead of a hobby. I often have fun because I truly enjoy entertaining, but there is a lot of work and preparation that goes into each performance and recording. And we are just really getting started.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has not been a smooth road. Some of the struggles along the way include, but are not limited to:
The challenges I face as a female in the industry, there is no doubt that I have to work harder to prove myself. It’s a bit more complicated to form a solid team as well due to this, in my opinion.
I have a lot of great ideas and they sometimes come to me quickly, but I am forced to be patient, which isn’t easy for me. Due to limited budgets, I often have to compromise, feeling as though some of my ideas are a being stifled.
Balancing my professional and personal life is also a challenge. It seems like I am always working and have very little time to spend with the small group of people I truly consider friends. People think that I am always busy. In a sense they are correct, there is always something to do to maintain the business and though I love what I do, I am young and still think about simply having fun.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Imani Ray – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I am an Atlanta based International Performing Music Artist. The main thing I do is entertain various crowds with my singing and dancing. I am known for my high energy on stage and for my crowd engagement. I thrive for crowd interaction. Caribbean music, Soca and Reggae are the two genres of music I have performed the most. Last year I started to incorporate some Pop/RnB music in some of my sets. The performances are customized to the event, crowd, etc. As a company, the thing I am most proud of is the fact that I am paid to travel to new places to perform/entertain, this is a dream come true. I love to travel and I love to perform.
The thing that sets me apart from others is how important being vocally sound on stage is to me, while keeping my energy high. I am also able to read the crowd and get them to interact. It does help that I can dance and sing without losing my breath. I am also able to sing multiple genres of music.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
My plans for the future is to finally release my LP or EP (we are still trying to decide) by the Spring of this year. I am excited about the new sound my audience/fans will hear. It’s very different from the music that I have out now, but it does still incorporate a Caribbean vibe (I just can’t let go of my Trini roots). I am looking forward to doing more traveling this year, hopefully to cities and countries I have not been to yet.
I am really looking forward to putting on more complex shows, with more dancers, background singers, lights, etc. Doing full productions is a dream of mine! We are hoping to release more videos this year as well. There is a possibility that I may incorporate my deejaying skills when doing certain shows. As far as big changes, I have an additional Manager, Mr. Darren Gilbert on board and though he is very “nice,” he Doh Stick (as I say in latest song). This basically means he intends to push me to the limit!
Contact Info:
- Website: http://imaniray.com
- Phone: 6789644067
- Email: bookings@imaniray.com
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/therealimaniray
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/therealimaniray
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/therealimaniray
Image Credit:
Nice Media, DJ Natural Touch, 106 Live Radio, Passport Caribbean Clothing, A.D.R. Productions, Youtopia Branding
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
