I’ve just come from another mobile phone mishap and am slightly late arriving at the home of singer and songwriter simA for her interview. Shooting off a quick text to her that I will be there in 5 minutes, I get a response back asking if I’d like coffee and cookies – of course! Who doesn’t want cookies!
This sets the laidback mood of our mostly conversational dialogue.
Sitting down with the fresh coffee and cookies that simA’s partner, Jen, had prepared we dive right into her music, and the parts of her life that have kept her inspired through the ups and downs.
simA’s journey as a musician started as she entered her teenage years – inspired by the music found within Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘The Phantom of the Opera’ even though her traditional music of choice at the time was punk rock.
simA, inspired, immediately started experimenting with her voice as a singer in private until she discovered a flare for guitar at the age of 16 which was amalgamated with her self-developed vocals and sound to write her first single ‘Every Shade of Red’ at the age of 18.
Not yet understanding how to pursue a career in music, but driven purely by her passion and love of sound and music – simA continued writing.
Her first exposure to encouragement from the music industry came a few years later when simA was advised her grandfather’s health was deteriorating and she returned home to her place of birth, Iskenderun, a small town in southern Turkey along the Mediterranean coastline.
It was there and during this trip to her grandfather’s side that her sound and music was heard by producers who invited her into their studio to record what would be a 4 track demo EP from an entire album’s worth of material that would be shelved and not utilized in her music career due to a loss of inspiration from her grandfather losing his battle with cancer.
After returning to Canada and taking an extended artistic break to gather herself, simA discovered electronic music and immediately fell in love with the synthesized and multi-layered sounds of underground dance music.
Reinvigorated by Toronto’s underground dance music scene, simA started recording custom sounds of her own, and produced an exclusive catalogue of over 700 unique samples to draw from in her work to include in the start of her studio reconstruction.
Using the custom samples, new technology she had discovered in her research of electronic music production, incorporating acoustic sound, and continuing with the inclusion of her own vocals – simA started performing as a one woman show – quickly booking a fundraising benefit to perform alongside Ashley MacIsaac in Toronto.
In the summer of 2008, simA and her partner Jen reunited after a 3 year break from their relationship. Both of them explain to me that they had initially met at Pride in 2005 and instantly fell in love -just from how they looked at the other, ‘She’s my inspiration’ simA says of Jen.
Since then they’ve both been working at simA’s career; collaborating their talents on track production, sharing connections, and continuing to unify through their love of music.
Together, they’ve managed to position simA at a few venues around the city including:
Drool Lounge, Just Thai, The Opera House, Hard Luck Bar, as well as been involved in Exquisite Beat Theatre and participating in Long & McQuade’s ‘Guitar Wars’ showcase of local musicians.
simA has also collaborated with local electronic DJ & Producer, Christian Poulsen (Unabomber), and musicians Pro-Ef and the UK’s David McMillan.
Also proving her love of Toronto and her local community, simA has contributed performances of her talents to Epilepsy Toronto, The Kidney Foundation, and Parents & Friends of Lesbians & Gays [PFLAG] Toronto.
More recently, simA has been working on an EP that she hopes will be released later this year – the first single, ‘Inadequacy’, was just turned into a music video with the track being available for free download at:
https://sima.bandcamp.com/track/inadequacy
To keep up to date on simA and her developing music career, you can find her fan page on facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/heysima/
Header Image:
Singer and songwriter, simA, performs a hybrid acoustic-electronic music performance on the South Stage during World Pride 2014 Festival Weekend.
This photo was taken Q2 during the early summer month of June in 2014.
Photo Credit: Sean Young aka SERIAL SEAN
Note:
A version of this article was originally written and published online by a Rebel Media publication in February of 2011