We were lucky to catch up with Indigo Violet recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Indigo thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I always knew that I wanted to pursue a creative path, however, I originally thought that writing or perhaps even acting would be my primary focus. While I still enjoy writing, I realized about 10 years ago that music is what my heart desired as a professional career.

It wasn’t the allure of money that attracted me to music, naturally, but the experiences I had with music and the community centered around it. Growing up, I was an especially introverted and awkward child. I much preferred to bury my face in a book or spend time writing one, rather than go to the movies or partying with friends. Retrospectively, it makes sense being that I am autistic and have ADHD. It was much easier and less stressful to spend my time fantasizing and pursuing creative pursuits than it was to socialize in a neurotypical world. Not to mention some of the traumatic experiences I had, which were only more impactful due to the way I was wired.

The older I became, the more music became an escape for me as well. I still can remember going to school on the bus, being mentally transported to another realm as I listened to Star Guitar by The Chemical Brothers. And once I was old enough to go to a proper rave, I decided to go to Ultra Music Festival. And there, I was instantly hooked on the atmosphere and energy. Immediately, all my life stressors, anxiety, and whatever else weighing me down was released from my mind. I was suddenly comfortable being my unrestricted self; unafraid of being misunderstood, seen as weird, or being rejected by my peers. I wanted to live in this experience for the rest of my life.

I became enamored with the house and techno scene in Miami, and was only more confident that I wanted to exist in this world of love for music, love of dance, and love in community forever. And what better way to do this then to create and perform music for others?

It is only due to the doubt seeded in me from family and peers that it then took me so long to pursue music professionally. Now, after playing my first online stream about two years ago and my first live venue only a year ago… I am as confident as ever that music is what drives me and is what I want to devote the rest of my life to.

Indigo, 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?

My name is Indigo Violet, and I am a Denver based music producer and performer from Miami, Florida.

I learned a lot about music, the culture around it, and the scene created by it back home. I started to produce music there as well, though it took me some time to build confidence in myself before I shared my music.

After moving to Denver and separating myself from much of what was weighing me down back home, I eventually devoted myself fully to producing music and learning how to DJ. I had a setback when my computer, with all my projects, was ruined by someone’s spilt drink. But the break only fueled the fire inside me.

At the end of 2021, despite financial and emotional hardships due to the COVID pandemic, or perhaps because of, I was so eager to take the next step in my musical journey. I bought an iPhone mini and using that, I produced my first single. In 2022, I went on to produce an EP and a full album as well, a lot of it having been produced and mixed live between an iPhone and a cheap Pioneer controller.

My projects were very raw, emotional, and experimental in nature. They were laced with leftover emotions from COVID, and charged with my beliefs and desires centered around the electronic scene. They were meant to express feelings and thoughts on what I thought it took to be not just what some call a ‘press play DJ’, but an actual live performer; a modulator of sound, who curates and drives the experience necessary for true release and enrichment of spirit on the dance floor.

Although I intend to remaster these projects at some point due to technical and workflow limitations at the time, I am proud that I was so determined and disciplined in their creation. These projects and my mixes are what led to professionals here in Denver noticing me and reaching out with opportunities for live shows at local venues.

Today, I have the resources, the gear, and the experience necessary to really elevate myself and accomplish my larger goals. And so I’m dialing in deeper to my core, to my passion, and to what I want to give to my listeners and followers. So, I am excited to share all that I have on the horizon and am grateful for all those that have supported me up to now.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

A lesson I had to unlearn, to some degree, is having reservation with professionals and peers in the music scene.

Back in Miami I was accustomed to this duality, where there was a passionate and supportive community of music enjoyers, yet also a large presence of superficiality and materialism. On one hand, there was much love and kinship to experience in music and dance. On the other, there was great potential for abuse, manipulation, and deceit.

That, along with the fact that world renowned musicians often frequented the city, pushed me to be more hesitant in opening up to professionals and peers both in Miami and here in Denver. Being a minority in many ways, I was afraid of gatekeeping, being taken advantage of in the largely white male dominated industry, or simply not being up to par with my own experience.

Yet, the culture and community is much different in Denver compared to Miami. While there is potential for harm anywhere in the world in regards to the music scene, the community here in Colorado as a whole is vastly more open minded, supportive, and inclusive. Community-more so than profit, status, and appearance-is what drives the music scene here. And as such, the professional community gave a much warmer welcome than I had expected.

Even now, as a neurodivergent and introverted individual, I am learning to push myself more in terms of leaning on others and connecting with my peers.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being a musician for me is knowing that my music somehow brought joy or comfort to another; myself included.

Of course I want to earn a living with my music, so that I can continue to devote myself as much possible to it. However, income will never be a factor that prevents me from creating and performing music, nor is it what fulfills me deep in my heart.

Seeing a dancing crowd, an intimate group of friends smiling and laughing, or even a couple people swaying to my music as a club opens makes all the time and effort spent honing my craft worth it. When strangers and friends alike applaud and approach me to express gratitude at the end of a set, I walk away feeling accomplished and grateful myself.

So I will keep moving myself and others both out at shows and throughout their daily lives; ideally for the rest of my life.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: indigovioletmusic