Blimes and the soul of song

Nestled on a picnic table in a playground underneath the Hollywood sign, I realized while interviewing Blimes that I had stopped interviewing a musician and started experiencing a soul.

That was my experience with Blimes, a Bay Area born artist and emcee who can speak as freely about the spirit and the soul and she can rip rhymes about the grittiness and beauty of life. It’s why she attracts crowds across every demographic; she’s a uniter whose music connects people on a human level.

She describes songwriting not as creating something from scratch, but as receiving something. Her job, she explained, is to keep the channel clear. That means journaling, breathing, moving her body, spending time in nature, practicing gratitude, and removing whatever noise keeps her from hearing what wants to come through.

There is something ancient in that idea. Across cultures and throughout history, artists have described themselves less as inventors than as instruments. The work already exists somewhere beyond them. Their responsibility is simply to become quiet enough to hear it.

Most of us spend our lives trying to fill an emptiness we assume exists inside us. We chase achievement, approval, romance, success, or distraction, hoping one more accomplishment will finally convince us that we matter.

Blimes seems to be walking the opposite path.

Not toward becoming enough.

But toward remembering that she already is.

One moment especially stayed with me. We began talking about purpose, and I asked whether the person on stage was somehow different from the person she is off stage. She paused before answering that she no longer really knows where one ends and the other begins. She tries to move through ordinary life with the same spirit of service that guides her performances. Music is simply one expression of that larger purpose.

I think that is why the title of out interview became The Soul of Song, and you can watch the full interview here.

Near the end of our conversation, we wandered into something neither of us had planned. We talked about God, gratitude, and what it means to receive abundance without losing humility. She said something beautifully simple: if greater success allows her to serve more people, then she welcomes it. But if this is all she is ever given, she already feels grateful. This present moment is enough.

There is remarkable freedom in someone who wants more without believing they need more.

In an industry that often rewards performance over presence, Blimes reminded me that the most powerful music may not be the loudest. It may simply be the music made by someone who has done the difficult inner work of becoming available to it.

The interview ended with bees hovering around our picnic and hummingbirds passing overhead. We laughed about their symbolism before returning to the simple joy of the afternoon. It felt strangely appropriate. Bees gather nectar. Hummingbirds find sweetness in unlikely places. Both remind us that life asks us to keep searching for what nourishes us.

After speaking with Blimes, I left believing that perhaps the soul works much the same way.

It is always singing.

Our life's work is simply learning how to hear it.

You can find Blimes on IG at @blimesbrixton and see her perform with her band @blimesandthebando.