We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Edith Arroyo . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Edith below.
Edith, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. One of the toughest things about progressing in your creative career is that there are almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?
Any professional singer can tell you that taking care of your voice is super important. Unfortunately, sometimes we come across some issues we can’t prevent but we learn to manage. For me specifically, for as I can remember I’ve had issues with my breathing. I remember playing outside during recess and I would get winded so fast. It was really frustrating really, growing up with frequent trips to the hospital for treatments. As I grew older, I learned how to manage it but it never went away. If anything it got worse. Singing has always been a part of my life since then and I always remember to make sure I have my inhaler on hand whenever I sing. Personally, I like to think that singing has helped manage my breathing. I’ve learned to be self aware when I have sudden asthma attacks. I stop – take slow deep breathes – pray and remind myself I’m going to be o.k. I’ve had real close calls due to asthma. For example, at the age of 18 I was sick with bronchitis. Due to the strain on my lungs, I ended up with a small puncture in one of them which resulted in a collapsed lung. Honestly, It was a pretty scary moment in my life but the experience helped me in a big way. I learned so much more about how my lungs work and as silly as it sounds it helped me tell the difference between asthma and anxiety, which helped me a lot when I had Covid. Now, I try my best to engage in physical activity to help strengthen my lungs as well as going into steam rooms, doing vocal warm ups, deep breathing, and the occasional breathing treatments. Over all, I’m amazed at how far I’ve come but most importantly l’m in awe of God and how despite having this condition, He continues to use me in such a beautiful way.
Edith, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Well first off my name is Edith Arroyo. I was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley to immigrant parents and I’m a first gen Mexican-American. I’m a worshiper, singer/songwriter and currently attending and leading worship at In His Presence Church in the Woodland Hills area. Music has always been part of my life growing up with musicians, singers and others who had a big appreciation for different genres. Which pretty much explains my variety of playlist. I’ve been singing since I was really young with influences like Selena Quintanilla, Sade, Lauryn Hill just to name a few. I was in many talent shows and in chior growing up and then eventually I started auditioning for singing competitions like The Voice, American Idol and even for spanish singing competitions. Later on, after rededicating my life to Jesus, I decided to sing for Him. Now I lead worship and have started writing and releasing Christian music. I released my first single ‘ Sound of Revival’ in 2021 (available on all streaming platforms) and am planning on releasing more in the near future. I think what sets me apart is most definitely the type of music I sing now, especially in the day and age where music has a huge negative influence, I believe God is using many to sing songs to bring Him Glory and to restore people though worship and I want to do the same in bringing a message of hope and faith to everyone. What I’m most proud of is how far I’ve come and the main thing I want everyone to know about me is that even through obstacles in life I continue to have faith in God and trust that He’s working out everything for my good.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My current goal at the moment I would say is sit down and write more songs. I have so many recordings on my phone, it’s just now taking the time to write and compose them all together. My mission is for people to really know what a real relationship with the living God looks like. That’s why i’m encouraged to write and record more songs for people to have a moment to worship, cry, have a moment of gratitude and build up faith.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
Honestly, I love when I hear testimonies of people when they come up to me and say things like ” Hearing you sing this song really encouraged me” or ” I’ve been battling this thing and when you sang that song I felt like a weight lifted up off me”. When i hear that it brings me so much joy. Like, I’m really doing exactly what I was created for.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://direct.me/edithajimenez#
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/_edithajimenez?igshid=MmIzYWVlNDQ5Yg==
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100075743757667
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/user/bugaboo2113
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@_edithajimenez?_t=8d84gIURi4w&_r=1 https://open.spotify.com/track/4gt1RXak4T8YtBqtMENxMV?si=cEdbm6XXSK-73DfMRLMy_g
Image Credits
Briana Jean Dodd Dayspring Church In His Presence Church