We were lucky to catch up with AINARA recently and have shared our conversation below.
AINARA, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
I worked on the Audiobook production of Black Miami in the Twentieth Century as the audio producer and editor from the beginning of 2021 through 2022. The project stands out as something larger than me because of its historical weight, but also because of the relationship I built with the author, Dr. Marvin Dunn, and the skills we both developed in the process.
In 2020, I was reading The History of Florida through Black Eyes. It made such an impression on me that I reached out to Dr. Dunn, and asked him if he had ever thought about releasing it as an audiobook. I felt the story needed to be shared with the world and that an audiobook would expand its reach.
Dr. Dunn agreed, so we set out building his home workspace and workflow, recording, and editing all the audio. Initially, we spent full days recording, and re-recording where we felt edits were warranted. It was fun and we learned how to do it all together, so towards the end of the project Dr. Dunn was recording, archiving, and transmitting the audio files to me seamlessly. His wife became part of the team too.
Taking this project from start to finish boosted my confidence in my workflow and production immensely. It also helped me polish my understanding of how to process and edit the human voice – there’s a lot of it in an audiobook. The relationship I built with Dr. Dunn and his wife also extends beyond the audiobook. We partnered with lululemon for events during several Black History Months, and to this day, they will occasionally come out to support my live music.
Finally, and maybe most importantly, the project strengthened the relationship between my father and I. My dad leaned in to help teach me the basics of editing with ProTools, he leant Dr. Dunn one of his mics, and he sat in during the final mixing process. Our relationship today is stronger because of this project.
We released the audiobook, Black Miami in the Twentieth Century, in April of 2022, with excerpts available for free on Dr. Dunn’s website (https://dunnhistory.com/). The full versions are available in both print and audio copies online.
AINARA, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Music runs in my family. The earliest photos of me performing are in a clown costume with a stuffed-pig sidekick, so you could say my desire to entertain is deeply ingrained in me. I continued to perform all through college (Wendla – Spring Awakening 2013, travel choir 2014-2017, sporting events, etc).
After graduating, I started providing live sound engineering services to bands and for corporate events in 2018. I was writing music and performing, but got injured on the job in 2019. It is poetic in retrospect. My Achilles’ was crushed and that phase of my life ended; the following year was transformative.
I needed to focus on self-development and purpose, so I shifted to retail, working a career that provided me a chance to heal, learn, and grow. It took a couple years, but I’ve started playing shows regularly again and in the interim I learned what a quality experience looks like, how to spearhead event planning, and got a handle on marketing and promotion. I also took on audio editing projects, which have been an exciting way to expand my skillset.
Earlier this year, I opened Over the Moon Entertainment, where I provide music services (editing, songwriting, performing) and sound services. I’m releasing a single in August of this year with The Amory, and will be releasing more music on a monthly basis going forward.
Taking a step back, I really swam upstream to figure out where I fit in, but in the process I’ve learned to combat being uncomfortable with spunk and laughter. There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing an audience lean into a musical experience, dance, or fully enjoy the company around them. I’m proudest of myself right now.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
We should all do what we can to support artists and creatives directly. Sign-up for the email newsletter, buy the t-shirt or the album, go to the show. There are so many ways artistry can fall into the hands and pockets of others with little benefit to the original artists. Streaming numbers generate little to no income for example. Then TicketMaster and LiveNation charge fans extra fees along with variable ticket prices, while also imposing restrictions to artists on options and venues. There are so many hoops and hurdles that artists face these days, but I have faith in the process and I’m expecting more disruption in the industry soon.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
That you have to be young to be successful in music. To a certain extent, age makes things easier. You can be more relatable to the up and coming age demographics. Plus, your joints hurt more the longer you go, the voice can lose strength, but success is relative and comes when it’s ready.
Most of the adult influences I had growing up used examples of child stars that grew into pop/rock phenoms, or anecdotes that once a woman had kids, they didn’t continue along with their artistic career. The fear that I didn’t start young enough, started when I was young, and I almost let it hold me back from ever starting. And now there are more women and people defying these stories.
Unlearning that lesson has been a great gift and I tell everyone that my goal with my music career is to be playing to sold out amphitheaters at age 60.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ainaramusic.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theainaramusic/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_-AN1lBT4rxhRvwHo6EguQ
- Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theainaramusic
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@theainaramusic?xmt=AQGzIfBReWPFc5Mwoo0g3edURXAGubjiv28P475LEAQrklE
Image Credits
Photo Credits:
Personal Photo
– Juan Carlos Castañeda
Additional Photos
– Camila Saldarriaga (1)
– Jonathan P. Woods (6)
– Eric Garcia (5, 7)