Meet Aria Elan | Writer, Singer & Attorney

We had the good fortune of connecting with Aria Elan and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aria, do you have a favorite quote or affirmation?
I’m honored to be interviewed and hope my words will uplift and encourage all who read them. My favorite quote “What you do to Earth, you do to you” is from a song I wrote titled “Free Mama Earth.” All life on our planet is interconnected. We are one. Burning, drilling, spilling oil; buying, wearing, disposing of “fast fashion;” corporate slaughter factories filled with diseased, antibiotic resistant animals; destroying the Amazon rainforests, and a host of other human activities, cause harmful CO2 emissions and the climate crisis. As an artist/activist, I do something everyday, no matter how small, to help save our environment and ourselves. Sometimes I feel like the little bird carrying a beakful of water and dropping it on a wildfire. The other animals are either running, trying to escape, or motionless, having given up hope. A couple of them mock me, asking what do you think you’re doing? I respond: “I’m doing the best I can.” Whether it’s writing and singing “Don’t let them get U down” that’s played on podcasts like NPR’s “Higher Ground” or speaking to students about other youths who have successfully sued governments to stop activities causing the climate crisis, I’m passionate about protecting and preserving our beautiful home – planet Earth.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
After years of rejection letters, in 2018, I won first place in a state of California poetry contest for my poem “A World Without Borders.” Never give up! Poetry was always my first love. Reading Pulitzer Prize winner Gwendolyn Brooks, Maya Angelou, and Langston Hughes as a child, inspired me to express my deepest thoughts poetically. All of the lyrics in my songs start out as poems, then I transform them into sound. I’m most proud of my daughter Eden who is a phenomenal artist (visual, pianist, composer, writer). We collaborated on several songs, including the social justice anthem “I Can’t Breathe” after police murdered George Floyd. Her beautiful piano instrumental “Drifting Rivers” was also featured on the NPR podcast “Higher Ground.” I want the world to know that I write and sing “feel-good” songs to uplift and inspire people to love and help each other.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I always take friends and family who visit Los Angeles to the Griffith Observatory where they can see real stars. Ironically, almost everyone wants to go to Hollywood Walk of Fame and take photos of the stars on the sidewalk, but most have never heard of Griffith Observatory. Hanging out at Venice Beach is not only a great escape from the heat, it’s also entertaining. They’re so many artists out there doing their thing. Driving down PCH north after leaving Venice Beach, you’ll run into Cholada restaurant in Malibu. They serve some of the best, reasonably priced Thai food in Los Angeles county. As a vegan, I love actor/comedian Kevin Hart’s Hart House restaurants. He has two locations – Westchester and Monrovia. Even my non vegan family and friends will check it out because they love his work as a comic and actor.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would like to dedicate my shoutout to my beloved parents, Reverend Alfred and Mrs. Loretta Edwards. Everything nice about me I owe to them. I take full responsibility for the naughty.

Website: https://ariaelan.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/ariaelan

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ariaelan

Facebook: https://facebook.com/ariaelanofficial

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMXAi-yOfM9ULO_lJ3j4Xlw

Image Credits
Phred Mosbey, Nuview Media