"...explaining the shape of feelings within me."
Photographed by Carrie Cox
Interviewed by Wendeya
Violet Helm
She/Her
4/19
Brandi Richardson grew up by the Ocean in north Carolina. On the way home from the hospital while her parents were trying to pick out a name, Brandy by The looking Glass came on the radio, her dad immediately declared that Brandy was her name. Brandy has been in Salt Lake since she was 19. Her Stage name is Violet Helm
W. “How did the name Violet Helm come to be?”
The energy of the ocean is in every piece I write.
And I’m a pirate. At the helm of the ship.
My Grandmother's name was Violet. She was very quiet. I wanted the world to know her name.
W. “When did your love of creating music birth?”
I was in a trance when I saw my sister play the keys. She’d play and play and she’s a gorgeous sight reader. I would try to put my hands where her hands were and make similar sounds.
It was a very early onset love. I was writing songs about my stuffed animals on my bed.
I didn’t even know it was art. It just made sense to me. It was just what you did when you were a kid. Making art was such a mysterious world that I didn’t know I was tapped into.
I don’t feel like I was exposed to a lot of unique art. I had to realize that what I’m doing was actually art.
W. “Were you self taught?”
I was put in lessons when I was like 12. My parents got divorced and it was so important to her that my mother cleaned the house of the woman that taught me so that I could have lessons.
Because it was so important to her. I saw how important it was for me.
I was always trying to change the songs I was learning. I was always trying to write.
W. How would you describe your flow of creating a song?”
Every piece is different. It’s kind of like
It comes from different directions. I think in terms of lyrics. They don’t always make a lot of sense because they come from different feelings I’ve had. So I’m trying to create a feeling that doesn’t always flow into a story that others can understand. The process is explaining the shape of feelings within me. Is the way lyrics come about.
And melodies it’s either something coming to me. Like I’ve made a song
But it sounds like it’s in my head.
Following what I feel like is my muse in the moments. It feels very mysterious like I’m being communicated to.
W. When/ how do the songs come to you?
It’s when I’m half asleep. When my ego has gone to sleep and I can hear my inner voice.
And I’ve started to go over the tune in my head a few times. Sometimes when I want to write it down the energy wants to leave when I initially try to record it.
It try to trust that being will retain the music for later.
But it doesn’t always want to be written down.
It doesn’t want to be imprisoned if it’s not a complete thought.
I’ve recorded my songs before I had a phone that would record me. I would call my voicemail to record a song. Before my phone could record.
W.“Can you tell me about your baby”
I’m writing an album called Ophibian. Another word for Serpent.
Dante’s journey.
It’s honestly Dante’s journey in my life. But it’s in the perspective of a man. It has a very masculine feel. So it’s interesting that it’s from that perspective.
But I’ve often found that I’m writing from his young perspective. And I’m like the big feminine divine energy. It’s called Ophibian because I watched a documentary about voodoo. And one of the sacred rituals is a woman holds a snake above her head and dance. And the snake represents heaven.
One thing I care about more than anything is bringing perspectives together.
It sounds like heaven and whole a lotta hell. And it’s metal as shit. But there’s no metal in it at all.
W. “Can you tell us when Ophidian releases?”
I hope to have it done by the time I finish this Music Production program that I’m doing in L.A. I do want to do the majority of the production myself. I hope to have all the songs reproduced and released after that.
W. Backstory
" My background was music and being married. And then not married. And really just trying to calibrate myself to be brave enough to fully pursue music.
I fell like that’s been the last 10 years of my life. Going from job to job. Trying and hesitation. Leaving the religion of my youth has been a huge influence on my life. And finding mindfulness and Budhhism and trying to find the prime theology between it all. Then discovering I am the prime theology in it all.
I just feel like that’s what I’m always looking for. The link between all of them. We’re all looking for the same thing, I think. That’s what I think. "
W. Which is?
Me, you, all of us.
You can find Violet Helm on Spotify
She released a full album in 2014 called Tide.
Right now she has 4 singles on Spotify.
You can also catch Violet Helm performing live at Temple of Honeys upcoming event PURPLE - stay tuned
