Dizzy Fae performs in The Current studio
by Andrea Swensson and Dizzy Fae
April 05, 2016
"This is what I'm supposed to be doing," Dizzy Fae says calmly, pausing between songs in the Current studio to reflect on her burgeoning career as an artist.
The 17-year-old St. Paul Conservatory of Performing Artists student has only released one song and video, "Color Me Bad," but already she has had the opportunity to open for big-name R&B and pop acts like the Internet and Polica. This weekend, she'll embark on a short tour opening for Caroline Smith.
The way Dizzy tells it, this is all just the way it's supposed to be.
"I've always sang. This is all I can see myself doing," she says nonchalantly. "You know how some people are like, 'I want to be a doctor,' and they go to school to be a doctor, and they can see themselves doing that, and the steps? I just see goals. So this is a start. I'm on the Current right now, freaking out. This is definitely a start."
As soon as she starts to sing, it becomes clear why everyone wants more from Dizzy Fae. She has already developed a distinctive style, delivering breathy, wavering notes with the cadence of a loose flower petal floating down a stream. You never know where her melodies are going to end up, which words with be drawn out into delicate warbles and sighs. And with the help of keyboardist and producer Tasha Baron (best known for her work in Black Blondie), Dizzy has constructed an undulating underworld of beats and textures to augment her wandering voice.
Dizzy says her first song, "Color Me Bad," came to her while she was in the bathroom. ("I rehearse whole performances in the bathroom," she says, "it's like my sacred place.") It started with a single word, "silk," emanating out into the ether, and before long she had a verse and chorus. Most songs come to her this way, in bits and pieces, taking shape in the space between her conscious and subconscious mind.
"It just kind of comes. It just kind of comes to my noggin," she says nonchalantly. "Over time, we add in more and more things that make it boom."
More music will be on the way soon from young Dizzy, who graduates high school in June. For now, enjoy Dizzy Fae's radio debut -- and catch her at the Minneapolis Institute of Art on Thursday, April 21, when she performs at my Local Current Showcase during Third Thursday with Dives, TABAH, and Ana Tuiran.
Songs Performed
"Floater"
"Color Me Bad"
"Aftermath"
Hosted by Andrea Swensson
Produced by Andrea Swensson
Engineered by Mike DeMark
Web feature by Andrea Swensson
Visuals by Bridget Bennett
