Bridge: Thanks for taking the time to chat with us! Give our readers some insight on how you came about on the music scene…
Andie: Oh, wow. Okay. I’ve been singing since I was a kid. When I was old enough I ended up auditioning and singing for Disney World and Universal Studios in my hometown of Orlando. I was also doing backing vocals for cover bands, never in a million years did I think I was ever going to be the frontwoman of a rock band. But the way it happened, was kind of a perfect storm that involved a very painful breakup and the encouragement of KMFDM’s Lucia Cifarelli. It made me take the leap and start The Key of F with my songwriting partner Marie Pettit.
Bridge: What are you doing to push a positive narrative as an artist and with your music?
Andie: I am all about stoking the fires of empowerment in our listeners. If you’ve found yourself in a duplicitous relationship and you are just being swallowed by that emotional pain, I want to throw a lifeline to you with our music and help you heal.
Bridge: Could you talk about an UP you had in your career?
Andie: I was at my dentist office having a procedure and waiting for the Novocaine to take effect. Since I was alone in the room I decided to flip through emails on my phone while my face was slowly going numb. I spotted this email from Music Connection Magazine and opened it. At first I thought it was going to be some sort of sales pitch but the more I read, the more in shock I was. Our band, The Key of F, has been selected by Music Connection as one of the Top 100 Hot Unsigned Bands and Artists of 2020. I screamed. Literally screamed. Right there in the dentist’s office. Then proceeded to call my bandmate Marie Pettit and with a face full of novocaine tell her “Hoey Sith, Mawee. We mape Moosic Cunnexions Hop 100 Bambs and Arphis Wist”. It was pretty hilarious and definitely a wonderful UP.
Bridge: Could you talk about a DOWN you had in your career?
Andie: I remember I started taking voice lessons from this guy who was supposed to be one of the best in the business. I was just starting to put my “book” together and wanted his assistance in finding songs that were good for my vocal style and to help me improve the quality of my voice. He started by telling me that none of the songs I had chosen ( the songs I enjoyed singing ) were a good fit for me. He began picking all my material and had me start learning them for our next session. When I arrived the following week and started singing one of the songs he’d chosen for me. He slams his hands down on the piano and demands to know ‘Why I’m singing it like that’. I responded that I didn’t know, I just wanted it to sound pretty. This vocal guru tells me “But you aren’t pretty, you’ll never get cast in ‘pretty’.” I nodded slowly and started collecting my things without saying a word. He then demanded to know where I was going because we weren’t done. The last thing I said to him was “Oh, but we are done”, and I walked out.
Bridge: How do you think your experience has helped you shape your career and approach your music?
Andie: I’ve been bullied a lot in my youth and even as an adult. Those experiences have not only helped me stand up for myself but helped me connect more with my own empathy and compassion. Those experiences have taught me to trust my instincts too. If I feel a song should go a certain way, I will trust that, because it’s usually right.
Bridge: How did you develop your community of fans over the years?
Andie: Social Media is such a wonderful tool for this, it’s helped Marie and I get to know our fans on a deeper level and that’s been amazing. We have some kickass fans out there and we adore them!
Bridge: Talk to us about ANOTHER LOVE LIKE MINE. Where did that angst come from?
Andie: Haha! Oh, that angst came from raw emotion. I was in a really bad place when I wrote this. A long term relationship had ended and I started finding out more and more the deceitful things my ex was saying and doing. Pain turned to fury and I wanted to write a song that would hopefully be empowering to anyone going through the same thing.
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