We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ellie La Gringa a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Ellie, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

As a young kid, I always loved to sing and perform. Really anything that got me on a stage. I always said I wanted to be a singer and an actress, as I think many kids do. Once I got older though, I left a lot of that behind. I started to get a bit more shy, a bit less self-confident. I didn’t get a part in a play I really wanted, and I remember being so upset about it and hard on myself. I was only 11 years old, but I never auditioned for another role again. Which does make me sad now, but I think I just was lacking self-esteem and the knowledge that in this industry you are going to hear many, many no’s in your life!

So I kind of left that creative side behind, and started focusing more on sports and my athletic career in high school. Music was always a huge part of my life, but I wasn’t performing or writing or thinking of it as a career. It wasn’t until I actually went to Colombia in my early 20’s that I really started thinking about making music. I completely fell in love with the culture and the music there, particularly reggaeton. Once I got back to the states, I began writing my own songs over beats, and eventually got into the studio to record. From there, I’ve just continued forward as an artist, trying to grow and develop my skills more and more, and meet new people in the industry.

All of this is to say that I wasn’t sure of my creative path for many years. Even now, part of me thinks about other professions that I still want to pursue as well. I know some creatives are set on being an artist from a very early age and never wanted to do anything else. For me, that wasn’t the case. I have a lot of interests, passions and goals, and I’ve learned that for me, my creative journey may look a lot different than others. I just follow my heart and my curiosity and I go for it.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Ellie La Gringa. I make reggaeton and urban Latin music. I am an independent artist, which means I do everything by myself. I got into the industry just under 2 years ago, so am still fairly new to the game. I started out by just trying to create a following on social media, and then eventually worked my way up to being able to record and create music in professional studios. I think for me, what I am hoping to focus mostly on this year, is the actual skillset behind being an artist. Breathwork, songwriting, producing. I really want to feel confident in my skills as a creative, not just someone that is entertaining on social media and also makes music. I want my music and my legacy to be impactful, to make a difference in this world. That is my main goal in all of this.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Definitely meeting and connecting with new people. It is so rewarding when someone on the other side of the world reaches out and says, hey I love your music. Or I see people sharing my songs, or dancing to them. To me, it feels really good to know that I’m touching other people’s lives. That is definitely the best part, and I hope that that only continues to grow.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I think that there is an age limit to becoming an artist. Yes, this industry and be very judgmental and sexist, but at the end of the day you have to forget about society’s standards and timelines. Everything happens at the right reason. There will always be someone younger or hotter or a better singer than you, and that is okay. The idea is to look within, and value yourself and your own uniqueness, and that isn’t tied to an age or a dress size. The backstory to this, is that I didn’t even start creating music until my mid-20’s. So for a long time I felt like I was too old to be successful. That people would find me sexy or young or attractive. For women in the industry, it can be really challenging. There is a fine line between embracing your sexuality and exploiting yourself. I used to feel a lot of pressure to “make it” before I reached a certain age, but I’ve realized that my looks aren’t what should be selling my music. My talent should be.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lnk.to/luces_ellie
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellielagringa/
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0qAJfhrD0FKPA6aUTBJou8?si=Vi4w6k8qTCO7DKVf5JoS-g

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