Wé Ani

City Winery NYC presents Wé Ani on Thursday, July 17th, at 8:00 PM As a child, young Wé balanced her time between Harlem, New York and Paterson, New Jersey, with her entry into music happening pretty early on. Raised on the greats like Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, and even Freddie Mercury, Wé Ani’s passion for a wide range of ‘70s and ‘80s artists became the direct inspiration for the music she would later make. However, she didn’t even realize that she could sing because everyone in her family could. “I was maybe like ten,” she recalls of her first realization. “My voice has always been really high when I speak, and when I sang it was deeper. And I'm thinking that everybody can carry a tune, because everybody in my family can carry a tune. So, if you're at a cookout, everybody's singing in key.” As a student of the world renowned Harlem School of the Arts, she truly learned the fundamentals of being classically trained. By 16, she was ready for The Voice, packing into the Jacob Javits Center with thousands of other contestants before later placing third in the highly competitive reality competition series. She kept the momentum going, dropping a series of singles, including an intoxicating cover of “To Sir, With Love.” By 2023, she was back on the reality competition platform, placing in the Top 5 on American Idol. From performing at the Apollo Theater, to the Gershwin Prize Tribute concert, and even off-Broadway in Rocktopia alongside Dee Snider, there are dimensions to her craft, and it shows. Her 2023 viral single “Disgusted” (off her critically acclaimed Frantic EP) was proof that Wé Ani had the staying power of a star, with over 11.7 million streams on Spotify alone. Wé Ani’s current single “Passport” (penned with the famed singer/songwriter Sebastian Kole) is the first taste of what will come from her upcoming EP Harlem Girl In A Perfect World. With a ‘70s slant, the project boasts both the sound of the era and the sentiment of the societal climate. “The ‘70s had a lot of political turmoil, and I feel like we're in a very similar state, right now,” Wé Ani says of the project’s ethos. “Things are really heavy right now, everybody is expressing their feelings of depression and sadness, and it’s really good that people are very self-aware. But, you also have permission to feel good.” The project is a testament to Wé Ani’s goal to touch people through her art, while expanding their horizons. “My mission for myself is to get to as many people as possible, touch as many hearts as I can, to make the best music that I can make, and to give the best performances,” Wé Ani expresses. “I love to do that because it gives you a chance to feel free and it gives me a chance to feel free as well. And, you know, hopefully one day I’ll get on those Billboard charts.”