Singer Felicia Alima sings against human trafficking
International Blues
International Blues
By Jonathan Gramling
You wouldn’t think that Felicia Alima, a 2007 MAMA Award winner, was an Aussie by the way she sings.
Listen to any track on her website, www.feliciaalima.com. Her clear, silky voice is definitely steeped in
American musical intonations. But during our interview, Alima’s voice is all Aussie.
“When I talk, obviously I have an accent,” Alima said during an interview with The Capital City Hues. “And I
can’t do an American accent to save my life. However, when I’m singing, I can pronounce words with an
American accent. I don’t know why that is. Perhaps it’s because I’ve listened to so much American R&B and hip
hop. I think it is something that I picked up when I was younger. But a lot of artists are like that in Australia.
When I was growing up, I listened to a lot of my mom’s records. So it was Kenny Rogers and the Beatles, Bernie
M. who is really big in Europe. I was influenced by her music. But then in my teens, obviously, I got my own
personality and my peers. We all basically listened to R&B and hip hop. We listened to TLC, SWVB, and Mary
J. Blige. And of course, I listened to Tupac and Notorious B.I.G. I listened to them a lot too. The American
influence was there. Australians loved it. We were always looking for more new music to come out of America.”
Alima grew up in the land down under, the daughter of a Czech father and Indonesian mother. Her father, who
died when she was seven years old, played the acoustic guitar. While Alima exhibited a love for music and
performing early — she set up her own recording studio in her study — her mother was always the voice of
reason, mandating that Alima focus on her education first.
“When I was seventeen, I started recording my own music in a home studio,” Alima said. “I had a DJ and he
| Felicia Alima, a 2007 MAMA Award winner, is releasing her CD called Trade on May 22 at The Frequency |
gave me all of the subwoofer. My mom knew. She came into the study. She would say ‘Aren’t you supposed to be studying?’ I would say ‘Yeah, I’m just taking a
break.’ I was studying economics for an exam and I was busy recording a song. It’s just funny to think about it that way now. She would come in and out and
check up on me to see if I was really studying.”
Her mother’s admonitions would someday pay off for Alima. She got a management degree from Curtin University of Technology in Western Australia and
then headed to Madison, Wis. for an 18-month internship with Chamberlain Research Associates. Alima fell in love with Madison and seven years later, she’s still
working with Chamberlain.
After establishing her professional career, Alima could finally also pursue her passion for music. She began singing at open mics around Madison. By 2007,
Alima was invited to perform for the Madison Area Music Awards (MAMA).
“That was huge for me,” Alima said. “That was going to be one of the biggest audiences I ever performed before. Open mic is different than performing live
at a venue like the Barrymore. There were 800-1,000 people in the audience. They were involved in the music industry and they were all going to be looking at
you. We had an all-star band, people from different bands like the drummer from Natty Nation. That was the first time that I was able to perform with a band. I
liked it so much that from that day forward, I wanted a band. It’s just so much more dynamic. Granted we’re not really a band because they’re just playing my
original music. We didn’t write any music together or anything like that. But it’s just the idea of performing live and providing live music at my shows. More or
less, they are hired musicians. But we’re a team. And everyone on board is dedicated. I really need that in order to go forward.”
Alima formed a seven-piece band with whom she performs in the Madison and Milwaukee markets. Since she was still a relative unknown in the Madison
music scene, Alima became, in essence, her own executive producer. She financed the performances of her band out of her earnings from Chamberlain.
“We did my CD release party at the King Club in 2007 with my band,” Alima said. “I had to pay for my band members to play, for the DJ, for promotion and
everything else. It adds up. So we did a lot of little venues like that and it was just becoming more and more of a struggle for me. I loved doing it, but I had other
commitments too. I couldn’t just pour all of my money into it. It got to the point where I had to figure out other options. So I started looking at paying events at
different venues in Milwaukee where they want bands to come in as the opening act. A lot of the venues that I do now are booked venues actually want to pay
for an artist to come and play. Of course, I still need to put a little into it for promotion.”
Alima writes and produces her own music, part of the reward of focusing on her education first. “In order to be an independent artist and put your music out
independently, you really need your own record label,” Alima said. “So I created Chantik Soul Entertainment. Chantik means beautiful in Indonesian. That’s
what I use as a basis to publish my music and release it to the world. Obviously my corporate background has helped me implement that. It definitely goes hand-
in-hand. I’m definitely grateful that my mom forced me to finish college. At the same time, it would be difficult to pursue the music career on its own without
having that ‘real’ job because that is the income that is funding my dream.”
Alima is very conscious about the impact that music has on young people and strives to have a positive message in her music. “I understand that music
obviously is an art,” Alima observed. “ However, I do feel it is important to be positive. I grew up listening to the radio. And it is nothing like it is today. The media
is a huge influence. As a role model, as an artist, I feel it is important for me to put out a positive spin in my music. That’s not to say I discredit any other artist
that is being real and explaining their side of the story. That’s fine. But for me personally, yes, I want to stay positive, talk about positive things and give people
that inspiration and education that they need growing up. Obviously I listened to some gangsta rap when I grew up. I appreciated it and I understood it. I
understood it was for that person. I didn’t go out and try to imitate it. I just want people to know that it is about education. If you are a parent, make sure you know
what your children are listening to. Talk to them about it and let them know ‘Hey, this is how it is over there, this is how it is for this person, in this situation. It’s
okay to listen to it. But it doesn’t mean you should think this is how it is going to be for you.’ They have to understand that it is art.”
Near the end of 2007, Alima saw the movie ‘Trade,’ which highlights the human trafficking that goes on between Mexico and the United States and
beyond. The movie had a profound impact on Alima. “It opened up my mind, which isn’t to say that I wasn’t aware that human trafficking existed,” Alima said. “I
was aware, but I didn’t understand how it was a worldwide phenomenon. It is obviously very lucrative. It just got me really thinking. My mom’s from Indonesia. I
know human trafficking happens in Indonesia on a regular basis. A lot of them become housemaids and are sent overseas to different countries, particularly
Saudi Arabia. But there is a huge epidemic there where they are then forced into prostitution because they are in a strange country and their passport has been
taken away. That is huge in itself. That really hit home because I knew of that background. I also know that up to 50 percent of those who are trafficked are
minors. That is absolutely disgusting and despicable.”
Alima wanted to do something about it. So she hooked up with a rapper friend, Chino XL and they decided to collaborate on a song they wrote called
‘Trade.’ “We did a real pointed song, very sad when you think about it, but it is very real and honest,” Alima said. “In order to appeal to a larger audience, I didn’t
want it to just be hip hop. We did a Latin mix and I had one of my Hispanic friends talking in Spanish a little bit. And we did a Euro mix as well. So we have a
couple of different remixes so it would cater to almost every audience. So when they listen to the song, they may not necessarily know what it’s about. But when
they start hearing my verses and the lyrics, they’re going to go ‘Wow, that’s deep.’ People don’t really talk about this. When it comes to the human trafficking
epidemic, I wanted to help create that awareness.”
Alima also hooked up with the Coalition Against Trafficking of Women (CATW), an international non-governmental organization working to prevent
trafficking, who loved what she was trying to do. On May 22, Alima will be hosting a Trade CD Release Party at The Frequency, 121 W. Main Street, 9 p.m. – 2 a.
m. Part of the proceeds will be donated to CATW.
“This isn’t about making money or for me,” Alima emphasized. “It’s about making a statement. It’s a very deep project for me and it means a lot. This is a
very different release than any I have done in the past. There needs to be a process. I know the opportunity for people to come to a different country is important
because they want to get out of the situation they’re in, they want to provide for their family and most of the time are working just to put a roof over their heads.
When something like a kidnapping happens, it’s just crazy. We really need to make everyone aware that this is happening and it is very real. We need to educate
people about it.”
break.’ I was studying economics for an exam and I was busy recording a song. It’s just funny to think about it that way now. She would come in and out and
check up on me to see if I was really studying.”
Her mother’s admonitions would someday pay off for Alima. She got a management degree from Curtin University of Technology in Western Australia and
then headed to Madison, Wis. for an 18-month internship with Chamberlain Research Associates. Alima fell in love with Madison and seven years later, she’s still
working with Chamberlain.
After establishing her professional career, Alima could finally also pursue her passion for music. She began singing at open mics around Madison. By 2007,
Alima was invited to perform for the Madison Area Music Awards (MAMA).
“That was huge for me,” Alima said. “That was going to be one of the biggest audiences I ever performed before. Open mic is different than performing live
at a venue like the Barrymore. There were 800-1,000 people in the audience. They were involved in the music industry and they were all going to be looking at
you. We had an all-star band, people from different bands like the drummer from Natty Nation. That was the first time that I was able to perform with a band. I
liked it so much that from that day forward, I wanted a band. It’s just so much more dynamic. Granted we’re not really a band because they’re just playing my
original music. We didn’t write any music together or anything like that. But it’s just the idea of performing live and providing live music at my shows. More or
less, they are hired musicians. But we’re a team. And everyone on board is dedicated. I really need that in order to go forward.”
Alima formed a seven-piece band with whom she performs in the Madison and Milwaukee markets. Since she was still a relative unknown in the Madison
music scene, Alima became, in essence, her own executive producer. She financed the performances of her band out of her earnings from Chamberlain.
“We did my CD release party at the King Club in 2007 with my band,” Alima said. “I had to pay for my band members to play, for the DJ, for promotion and
everything else. It adds up. So we did a lot of little venues like that and it was just becoming more and more of a struggle for me. I loved doing it, but I had other
commitments too. I couldn’t just pour all of my money into it. It got to the point where I had to figure out other options. So I started looking at paying events at
different venues in Milwaukee where they want bands to come in as the opening act. A lot of the venues that I do now are booked venues actually want to pay
for an artist to come and play. Of course, I still need to put a little into it for promotion.”
Alima writes and produces her own music, part of the reward of focusing on her education first. “In order to be an independent artist and put your music out
independently, you really need your own record label,” Alima said. “So I created Chantik Soul Entertainment. Chantik means beautiful in Indonesian. That’s
what I use as a basis to publish my music and release it to the world. Obviously my corporate background has helped me implement that. It definitely goes hand-
in-hand. I’m definitely grateful that my mom forced me to finish college. At the same time, it would be difficult to pursue the music career on its own without
having that ‘real’ job because that is the income that is funding my dream.”
Alima is very conscious about the impact that music has on young people and strives to have a positive message in her music. “I understand that music
obviously is an art,” Alima observed. “ However, I do feel it is important to be positive. I grew up listening to the radio. And it is nothing like it is today. The media
is a huge influence. As a role model, as an artist, I feel it is important for me to put out a positive spin in my music. That’s not to say I discredit any other artist
that is being real and explaining their side of the story. That’s fine. But for me personally, yes, I want to stay positive, talk about positive things and give people
that inspiration and education that they need growing up. Obviously I listened to some gangsta rap when I grew up. I appreciated it and I understood it. I
understood it was for that person. I didn’t go out and try to imitate it. I just want people to know that it is about education. If you are a parent, make sure you know
what your children are listening to. Talk to them about it and let them know ‘Hey, this is how it is over there, this is how it is for this person, in this situation. It’s
okay to listen to it. But it doesn’t mean you should think this is how it is going to be for you.’ They have to understand that it is art.”
Near the end of 2007, Alima saw the movie ‘Trade,’ which highlights the human trafficking that goes on between Mexico and the United States and
beyond. The movie had a profound impact on Alima. “It opened up my mind, which isn’t to say that I wasn’t aware that human trafficking existed,” Alima said. “I
was aware, but I didn’t understand how it was a worldwide phenomenon. It is obviously very lucrative. It just got me really thinking. My mom’s from Indonesia. I
know human trafficking happens in Indonesia on a regular basis. A lot of them become housemaids and are sent overseas to different countries, particularly
Saudi Arabia. But there is a huge epidemic there where they are then forced into prostitution because they are in a strange country and their passport has been
taken away. That is huge in itself. That really hit home because I knew of that background. I also know that up to 50 percent of those who are trafficked are
minors. That is absolutely disgusting and despicable.”
Alima wanted to do something about it. So she hooked up with a rapper friend, Chino XL and they decided to collaborate on a song they wrote called
‘Trade.’ “We did a real pointed song, very sad when you think about it, but it is very real and honest,” Alima said. “In order to appeal to a larger audience, I didn’t
want it to just be hip hop. We did a Latin mix and I had one of my Hispanic friends talking in Spanish a little bit. And we did a Euro mix as well. So we have a
couple of different remixes so it would cater to almost every audience. So when they listen to the song, they may not necessarily know what it’s about. But when
they start hearing my verses and the lyrics, they’re going to go ‘Wow, that’s deep.’ People don’t really talk about this. When it comes to the human trafficking
epidemic, I wanted to help create that awareness.”
Alima also hooked up with the Coalition Against Trafficking of Women (CATW), an international non-governmental organization working to prevent
trafficking, who loved what she was trying to do. On May 22, Alima will be hosting a Trade CD Release Party at The Frequency, 121 W. Main Street, 9 p.m. – 2 a.
m. Part of the proceeds will be donated to CATW.
“This isn’t about making money or for me,” Alima emphasized. “It’s about making a statement. It’s a very deep project for me and it means a lot. This is a
very different release than any I have done in the past. There needs to be a process. I know the opportunity for people to come to a different country is important
because they want to get out of the situation they’re in, they want to provide for their family and most of the time are working just to put a roof over their heads.
When something like a kidnapping happens, it’s just crazy. We really need to make everyone aware that this is happening and it is very real. We need to educate
people about it.”