Today we’d like to introduce you to Amy Collins and Alby Valadez.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Alby Valadez and I worked for the same organization. One spring day, I approached Alby and asked if he would like to play music together, just for fun. We started getting together during our lunch breaks. Alby would play guitar while I sang. Little did we know that would be the beginning of the duo, Amy N’ Me! Soon, we were writing music together, and had a few performances. These live shows let us know we were on to something. Alby was already established in the music business. He had toured with the band, First Wish and also wrote, recorded, and produced music for himself as well as other artists. I, on the other hand, followed a different path. While I loved singing as a girl, I never considered myself a natural-born singer. I went to college and then graduate school to get my Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy and enjoyed a successful career helping children with special needs to learn at school. It took Alby’s gentle encouragement to try and see myself as a professional singer, and then as a songwriter and recording artist. I admit I did not have much confidence in myself at first. It took a lot of practice. In the first couple of years, every gig we played was a learning experience for me. I would analyze with Alby what went well, what didn’t, what I needed to improve, etc. I also had to battle pretty bad anxiety, especially social anxiety. Fast forward to the present, and Amy N’ Me is a busy power duo, performing all around Texas and surrounding areas with a growing fan base from around the world, thanks to our social media presence on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.. We love the chance to share music from our current album, “Embers” with people. Of particular note, our adaptation of Steve Earle’s “Copperhead Road” has enjoyed over 1.5 million views and resonates deeply with many. Alby and I are currently back in the studio recording a new album that we’re very excited about.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Any professional musician will tell you it’s not an easy road. The challenges for me were learning to believe in myself as a singer and dealing with social anxiety. Since I already had another established career, it was difficult to see myself as anything different. And hard for me to believe others would see me as a legitimate singer. Alby was always there to help and support me to master my craft (which I don’t think we ever really do) and to transition from an amateur to a professional. He’s really the best music teacher anyone could have. Social anxiety comes into play in literally all aspects of a music career. The ability to talk to complete strangers and sell yourself in order to get booked at venues or connect with agents, promoters, and others is critical to success…and completely terrifying. I’d like to say I have overcome that anxiety, but I’m not sure that’s realistic. It’s more something you just live with and sort of push through as best you can. For me, the anxiety doesn’t give me “stage fright” like you might assume…singing in front of people is actually the easy part…because I get totally lost in the music and at the same time, really connect with people I don’t even know. But the space in between the songs, well, that’s a different story, and I’ve had to work hard to learn how to command the room WITHOUT singing.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
We are primarily a duo, but we occasionally perform as a trio and full band. We are based in the Houston area, but we perform all over Texas and beyond. We play at festivals, bars, wineries, restaurants and private parties most frequently. The duo performances are quite unique in that Alby really creates some incredible and unique things on his acoustic guitar that create a really big and full sound. He brings in bass lines, rhythm lines, and even percussion parts into his playing. It’s how the duo earned its reputation as a “ power duo,” making them well-suited for playing large venues and big stages. The band tours in support of their “Embers” album with a great light show complete with fog and geysers.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://amynme.bandzoogle.com/
- Instagram: http://www.Instagram.com/amynmeband
- Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/amynmeband
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@AmyNMe
- Other: https://linktr.ee/amynme
