Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Chellcy Reitsma. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Chellcy, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
My latest double album has been the most meaningful project I’ve worked on in 2024. Meaningful in content, in life and in taking the next step in my music career.
The albums are called ‘Momento Mori’ and ‘Carpe Diem’. The first one is a play on memento mori, meaning “remember there is death”, but for me changing it to momento means remembering that there is death but only for a moment, don’t dwell on it. Then the first album will be followed shortly by ‘Carpe Diem’ which means seize the day. So after you remember death let it fuel your lust for life and go seize the day!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I was born in California. I have 3 degrees in art, art history and gallery operations. I lived and studied art in Florence, Italy, in Arcata, California and eventually landed in Chicago, IL where I graduated from SAIC. All along I was also a professional dancer and choreographer. Upon graduation, my dance career was doing so well that I decided to focus on that full time and put my visual art on hold. I opened a dance company and started touring North America and Europe. On one of my European tours I taught and performed in Malta. They loved my work so much they kept bringing me back every year and I eventually had a dance company in both Malta and in Chicago. In 2012 I decided to immigrate to Malta. Eventually, I became extremely injured and ended up in a wheelchair for over a year. This is when I started exploring singing and songwriting. A year and a half later I released my first single.
My journey into music is both sad and happy. While I was sad and depressed over my dance career ending, I was happy to discover a new talent I never knew had and focusing on music helped me battle the depression and gave me a new creative outlet to be inspired and hopeful for the future.
With my unique story and journey into music so late in life, I hope to inspire others to know it’s never too late to try something new, to follow your dreams and to reinvent yourself.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
Losing my dance career and spending over a year in a wheel chair and even longer on crutches, going from an athlete to barely walking, and being in pain 24/7; all has really taught me perseverance and resilience. I had to discover new things about myself and reinvent myself quite late in life. So my goal and mission in my creative journey is to inspire myself and others to face thier fears, never take life for granted and to seize every moment. I want people to know that it is never too late to start over and to reinvent yourself; that it’s never too late to chase your dreams and to discover new ones. That is why I wrote my new double album ‘Momento Mori’ (out now) and ‘Carpe Diem’ (coming soon).
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
The best way to support creatives and the arts and music scene is to show up and buy if you can. Go to local performances, art exhibitions, lesser known artist’s concerts and buy their products, follow them on social media and music and art platforms. Spend time discovering new artists and stop always and only going back to the famous ones. Share photos and videos of thier work, performances, your purchases and tag the artists in your posts and stories.
These are some of the best ways to support artists and the scene. If you want more art and music in your life and in your community you need to show up.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chellcyreitsma.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chellcyreitsma_official/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chellcyreitsma/?_rdr
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chellcy-reitsma-299ab12?trk=contact-info
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/chellcy
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-461252854
- Other: https://linktr.ee/ChellcyReitsma
https://open.spotify.com/artist/14omswT9KLjd6CxqPJSjTN?si=vaZr30bxQiuB1XyWNhNL1g
Image Credits
Federico Peltretti color stage photos.
Keith Muscat (a.k.a Kiko) black and white photos.
Cool Mike for the last photo at Notte Bianca festival.