India.Arie
Hero
- Peacemaker - Role Model
UNITED STATES [map]
CO
Denver
Atlanta
Born in Denver, CO, to parents from Memphis and Detroit, music was always in Arie's life. The family moved to Atlanta when India was 13 and after high school she began playing guitar at the encouragement of her mother. Involvement in the fertile Atlanta urban music scene led to the formation of an artist's collective called Groovement and an independent label, EarthShare, which released a compilation CD featuring Arie's first songs. A second-stage slot on the 1998 Lilith Fair tour garnered major-label interest, but Arie eventually signed with Motown after being assured of having full artistic control.
Female
1900-Present
Involvement in the fertile Atlanta urban music scene led to the formation of an artist's collective called Groovement and an independent label, EarthShare, which released a compilation CD featuring Arie's first songs.
Her discovery of the guitar at college in Savannah, Georgia, led to a personal revelation about songwriting and performing. "When I started tapping into my own sensitivity, I started to understand people better. It was a direct result of writing songs," she said at the release of her first album.
In 2005, India.Arie and actress Ashley Judd visited separate African countries grappling with the plight of AIDS. India.Arie went to poverty-stricken sections of Kenya and met with people infected with AIDS or HIV and comforted children orphaned by the disease.
In one heartbreaking scene of VH1's documentary "Tracking the Monster," India.Arie asks a 14-year-old girl if she could have anything in the world, what would she want? The girl, an orphan, tells the singer she wants to come home with her, and bursts into tears.
"She was the same age as my sister," the 29-year-old singer said. "I was not only feeling for her but also feeling that there were millions of girls like her. I can't take home a million girls; I can't take home one. What would I do with a teenage daughter? . . . It's a profound conflict because I really could bring her home but I couldn't."
Heroic
Characteristics of India.Arie
Strong character and belief system
Personal power thru example and deeds
Advocate of Human Rights
Promote nonviolence
/ Oppose violence
Support justice / Confront Injustice
Advocate Freedom & Democracy
/ Oppose Oppression
Lead others / Teach others / Become involved
Manage conflict by building relationships
Manage conflict by solving problems
