Meet Tiyonna Ámani Stewart

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tiyonna Ámani Stewart.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Tiyonna Ámani. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I started performing at three years old. My great aunt and uncle would clear off the coffee table and let me dance on top of it and that led to solo church performances and the school choir. By nine years old I was given the opportunity to perform at Carnegie Hall in New York and that led to an opportunity to perform for one of President Obama’s inaugural balls in 2009 when I was 13. By the time high school hit, I was getting bullied so bad that I drew into myself, praying to God to be invisible because being talked about and judged all the time made shrinking the best option. As I drew into myself, I started writing more music and poetry while also joining an artist development girl group called After School Pop Stars and later GPOW managed by Zelma Davis from C&C Music Factory.

Throughout high school, I put all my focus into music and getting out and away from people that could never understand me and I applied to Berklee College of Music in Boston. It was a huge blessing to be accepted to Berklee but the curriculum and environment were so challenging that this new habit of withdrawing into myself was safe and familiar. So I hid into my books, kept my head down because one bad performance meant a bad reputation and to an 18 years old girl no reputation was better than a bad one. I started to become restless, I was tired of letting the expectations and judgments of others rule over me and determine every step I made so I committed myself to complete honesty, first to myself. Being honest to myself permeated through all of my relationships and my life. Little did I know that the commitment to honesty was the birth of my debut EP “tbh.”. I stopped accepting the narrative others gave me and started taking up space because I am here and I have a voice. I graduated from Berklee, moved to Los Angeles, and released my EP that is a tangible representation of when I finally began to speak my truth.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
My journey has not been a smooth road but what has made my journey enjoyable regardless of the obstacles is that the foundation my parents gave me was deeply rooted in understanding there is nothing without sacrifice, hard work, faith, and prayer. Nothing that is worth something is easy. My biggest struggle is me, I am a perfectionist and this idea of being ready is an illusion. No one can tell you when you’re ready and I had to learn to believe in myself without the affirmation of others especially when saying no to opportunities because they didn’t align with who I was as a person.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I am an artist, singer/songwriter, performer. Ámani is my artist name and I create RnB/Soul music for black women and women of color. I’m most known for my single “Selfless” that is my declaration to being selfish with my love, my time, my future and not allowing anyone to distract me from myself. I’m most proud of my pen and voice, with a huge background in Musical Theater and Gospel, conveying emotion and telling a story are two things I am really passionate about. I want women to feel empowered to take up space, to say how they feel and be able to act on it and be free from societal pressures. That’s what sets me apart, finding freedom in my truth gives others the permission to be free within themselves. Music transcends and touches heart to heart and soul to soul and I am blessed that it is my tool to spread love, light, and life to all that will accept.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite memory from childhood is sitting in the car with my mom and dad singing Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan, Luther Vandross, Lauryn Hill, and Mariah Carey.

Contact Info:

• Website: amaniyours.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amaniyours/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Amaniyours/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/amaniyours
• Other: http://smarturl.it/tobehonest

Image Credit:
Deante Gray , Abdul Jabber, Dee Stewart, Sydney Vann

Suggest a story: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.