User:NotesandTrivia/sandbox

Rustik Spirit is a female rapper who has blended rap with alternative and jazz styles.

Early Life
Not much is known about her early childhood other than her family moved frequently. Somewhat gypsies by nature, most of the family belongings fit in the trunk of a car or the back of a pickup. Always being the new kid and being a Tom-Boy resulted in also being an outcast among peers. This chaotic, unstable existence provided the motivation to graduate at 16 and break out into the world.

Adulthood
During her early adult years, she travelled and lived overseas for a short period followed by spending time alone in the virtual nothingness that is the American Southwest. She graduated college with a degree in Anthropology/Sociology and Writing from Eastern Oregon Univeristy and moved to the Central Coast of California. Her musical tastes varied widely, from jazz to alternative, folk to rap, and she listened to Gregorian Chant while writing short stories. Two of her stories, "Reaper Behind the Grim" and "Until Death Do Us Part," were published in fantasy magazines - Futures Short Tales for Story Lovers, Vol 3, Issue 25 and Romance and Beyond, Summer 1998.

Creating Music
About 2008, she combined her love of writing and music. She would hear a tune in her head and create the sound on an Ovation guitar that she found at a second hand music store. Then she started hearing beats, strings and sounds that were not possible with a mere acoustic guitar. Wanting to broaden her lyric writing to match the music playing in here head, her songs became more rhythmic and began to morph into a mixture of jazz, alternative and rap. Also, during this time, she found serenity and peace through the study of Buddhism. Thus, was born Rustik Spirit, and a white female rapper. Her first song that incorporated this new style was “White Girl,” which, disappointingly, has not been released.

Her unique sound and vibe accomplished through the blending of alternative, jazz and rap is accompanied by whispery vocals. The unusual vocal intonation is due to a rare speech disorder – spasmodic dysphonia. To control the vocal cord spasms, she underwent vocal cord surgery, which paralyzed one vocal cord. After a number of years, the paralyzed vocal cord atrophied, resulting in the deeper, softer tones.

Some of her songs are lighter and upbeat, but other rhythmic messages have darker emotional undercurrents, and one song, Joker’s Wild, has been described as “disturbing,” “scary stuff,” and “haunting.” Life serves as her muse for her music, and through music she searches "for harmonic balance in a world of chaos and confusion.”

Influences
Rustik Spirit has been musically influenced by: Maggie Estep, Ursula Rucker, Doomtree, Dessa, Eternia, Imani Copolla and even Black Sabbath and Godsmack