Today we’d like to introduce you to Harley Mitchell.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I’m 26 years old, and I reside in Coral Springs, FL. I was born and raised in Clifton, New Jersey, and when I was 15, my family and I moved to South Florida. I started my sophomore year of high school at Coral Springs High. I received my Associate of Arts degree at Broward College and went on to receive my Bachelor of Arts degree in Multimedia Studies at Florida Atlantic University. During my college career, I was and still am, a working musician. Music has been with me my whole life. I play the drums, the guitar, and the bass. I never had a lesson for the drums, and I was never classically trained for guitar or bass either. When I was 12 years old, my stepdad taught me chords on the guitar, and from there, I continued to teach myself. After moving to Florida, my stepdad started a band, and they needed a bass player. I already knew how to play guitar, so it wasn’t much of a change to switch over to bass. From 15 years old and on, I started gigging in the South Florida circuit as a bassist. At 20, I joined an all-girl band. During that time, I was also asked to join a cover band called Project X, which I am still in today. I left the girl band, and Project X became my main group. In Project X, I got close with the singer, Heather Curi, and we are still best friends to this day. After getting to know each other, we both were interested in writing our own music. We started an original band called Day 4. We just got done recording our EP at Power Station Studios in Pompano Beach, FL. As of last year, I also started drumming for an 80’s tribute band called Rubixx. As you can see, music has been a constant for me. I couldn’t imagine not performing anymore. I absolutely love it. It’s my passion, and I hope to make it in the industry one day.
Please tell us about your art.
As I mentioned in the previous question, I am a musician. I write original songs with my band, Day 4. It’s a very collaborative effort. One day I may come in with a guitar riff or Heather may have a melody idea. There isn’t one way we go about it. When creativity sparks, we take it from there and work on it together. We write music from the heart and personal experiences, and I believe that if people can take anything away from our music, it’s that it’s relatable. Besides being a female-fronted band, what makes us unique is that we all come from different musical backgrounds. I grew up listening to music from the 50s, 60s, and 70s; the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, the Beatles. Most of the bass lines I first learned were from the Beatles. As I got older, I discovered my favorite band, Green Day. When I joined Project X, I was exposed to even more music, from Tool to Rage Against the Machine. Heather’s background includes musical theater, Selena, the 80s, R&B artists such as Mariah Carey and Beyonce, as well as her favorite band, Deftones. Other rock influences include Tool, Nine Inch Nails, A Perfect Circle, and In This Moment. Our guitarist, Adam Armaganian, comes from a thrash metal background, and our drummer, Doug Tackitt has similar hard rock and metal influences as well. With all of that combined, we write alternative/metal songs.
Aside from music, I’ve also worked on a few film projects while attending FAU. My first video project, Darkness Is Coming, was an assignment for class. I submitted it to the 4th Annual Flamingo Film Festival (2017), and it was nominated for Best Cinematography. For my senior project, my classmates and I worked on a short film together called DarkWaters, which is about a company’s recruitment strategy foiled by a warning hacker. We submitted it to the 5th Annual Flamingo Film Festival (2018). It was nominated for Best Visual Effects.
Given everything that is going on in the world today, do you think the role of artists has changed? How do local, national, or international events and issues affect your art?
I don’t think the role has changed. I think it’s whatever you make it to be and what you stand for. In 2019, I think the roles of artists are sometimes placed on them by the audience and what they should be doing with their platform. In other words, everyone expects artists to use their platform for what’s going on today, and more so, aligning with their beliefs, and I’m not sure that’s fair. They should stand up for what they believe in, but it shouldn’t be required just because they are an artist. If you want to use your platform for politics, then do it. If you want to write songs about love and heartbreak, then that’s fine too. It may sound contradicting because I am a female in 2019 trying to make it in the entertainment industry and we have the #MeToo movement and the overall rise of women, but I don’t want everything I do or what Day 4 does to be because of a bigger issue either. Sometimes, we just want to rock out and scream.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
The best way to see my work is on social media:
harleymitchell.com
Instagram:
@harleymitchell
@day4band
@projectxbandftl
@rubixxband
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/harleymitchellcreative
www.facebook.com/day4band
www.facebook.com/projectxftl
www.facebook.com/rubixxband
YouTube:
Harley Mitchell Music
Contact Info:
- Website: www.harleymitchell.com
- Email: harleymitchellmusic@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/harleymitchell
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/harleymitchellcreative
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/harleymitchell
- Other: www.youtube.com/harleymitchellmusic
Image Credit:
Alex Jenkins
Bob Kahl
Weekend Broward
Joshua Esponda
Ralph Notaro
Jay Morrison
Getting in touch: VoyageMIA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition, please let us know here.
