Afrodile Trane is originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. She currently resides in Boston Massachusetts and attends the elite and prestigious institution of Berkeley school of music. Her music is clearly influenced by soul, jazz, and hip-hop and her throwback nineteen-sixties look is just as alluring as her music. She has recently released her first single titled In a Sentimental Groove which she wrote, arranged, and co-produced. I spoke to the artist over the phone about her music this past week.
Was moving to Boston everything that you expected?
Oh yeah, I originally went to a school in Chicago called Columbia. I went thinking that it would be like what Berkeley and Boston have provided for me and it wasn't. So I had like a mini mental breakdown when I was in Chicago and that is why I applied to Berkeley. I got accepted, moved out here, and it has been amazing ever since.
What does Berkeley School of Music have to offer you?
You can get whatever you want from it really. I personally am interested in composing and producing so that is where I have directed my education. You are totally thrown into the industry and are connected with tons of people whether they are awesome teachers, incredible players, artists, or musicians. You get to meet people who do the same thing as you. It is like your own little cultural hub.
Why do you go by the name Afrodile Trane and what does it mean?
Afrodile is the French term for the word daffodil which is the flower of new beginnings. That for me represented the rebirth of my music. I used to not make soul music, I used to do like....other stuff. So basically I wanted to set myself apart from what I used to do. One of my main influences is Amy Winehouse and something that I learned from Amy is that I watched how fame destroyed her. So I wanted to make sure that wherever this project would lead me, I would keep it separate from my personal life. I didn't want to end up like that.
So who else has influenced you besides Amy Winehouse?
Definitely Earl Hines and also just like a lot of jazz artists.
Why do you think you connected with Amy Winehouse so much?
I have been listening to her my whole life but I reconnected with her when I was having a mental breakdown in Chicago. I was using drugs and I had a change of heart with the music that I liked. She was an accessible way of me getting into jazz and I could just really relate to her.
So what inspired your single "In a Sentimental Groove?"
It was really just about a falling out I had with a friend. It is kind of an ode to John Coltrane's "In a Sentimental Mood" and the piano part is a tribute to that. So it is basically just me being sentimental about this friendship that I had. It is a sad song, but it was empowering for me to write. It captures going through, this tumultuous thing that I had to get through and the falling out of one of my best friends.
Did you produce "In a Sentimental Groove?"
I co-produced it with another student named Daniel Alvarez de Toledo and a guy named Chris Plante. I wrote it and arranged it, and produced it with these two guys.
Do you find that producing is a very male dominated area?
Well, when I think about it yeah. I think I know like two or three female producers. I think we totally need more women in music production. I don't know why women feel like they can't do it, maybe because it has just traditionally been all men.
What are you listening to right now?
Right now I am listening to this band called Hiatus Kaiyote, Amy Winehouse, Erykah Badu, but I also listen to lots of old stuff like Marvin Gaye and Chet Baker
Have you faced any obstacles navigating the music industry because you are a woman?
Oh yeah, especially I think in jazz specifically. I think that when I first came to Berkeley it really hit me that it is really frustrating. You have to really overcompensate your skill just to get into a conversation as a woman in music. So that is what I have done and I have tried to educate myself further than what I know.
Did drug abuse affect or change the way you write?
Well, I was smoking weed a lot and it definitely changed the music I listened to. I realized that the music I was listening to before was really shitty. Whenever I would get high I would feel so angry. So I just started listening to feel good music which for me is like soul and jazz and hip-hop. It sounds kind of cheesy but I started getting high off of the music instead of the substance. So yeah, I think it has totally changed the way I play and listen and stuff.
What is some advice you would give to other girls trying to get started in the music industry?
My advice would be to learn everything you can. If you can really master your craft you will always be set apart even if you are a girl. If you are good, people will pay attention to you. So invest in yourself and educate yourself and that will take you pretty far.
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