WE LOVE BILINGUAL ARTISTS, and Dinorah delivers that and so much more with her sultry voice and enigmatic interpretive sound. Performing a range of genres including alternative, R&B, soul, Latin rock, psychedelic jazz and Reggae, Dinorah lends an eclectic mood to our favorites playlist. Her expressive raspy voice flutters around the notes with precision and control in songs like "Over You," giving her instant unique identity. "Night Like This" is a deep and dark sensual R&B track, while “Déjame Caer” is a soulful Latin balled fit for the pop charts. Her signature vocals cry with edge and emotion in the alt-rock song "Whatever Happens," just one of the notably listenable tracks on her Cosmic Vision EP.
Born in La Paz — the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur — she grew up during her first years in between borders of Tijuana and San Diego, then later moved to China with her parents. Now based back in California, she has performed in many countries, including China, India, the Philippines, Mexico and the U.S. With exposure to so many different countries, musical tastes, languages, and cultures, it's no wonder that Dinorah delivers a transcendent sound that is all her own.
Dinorah - San Diego, California
Latin Soul, Alternative
Song Submitted: “Déjame Caer”
ABOUT THE ARTIST: Growing up, melodies haunted me and writing came to me easily, as well as being in love with magic, always having questions and believing in the “supernatural.”
I started doing music professionally since I was 12, and since then my music has definitely progressed as much as I experience life in its moments. I never thought I’d be where I am right now, producing my own songs 100% myself and really discovering my sound as I go. I am magically lost in finding my stories, dreams, etc. in that creation process and I’m growing more and more impatient (if that’s even possible) to finally release these vibes I’ve been going through while creating.
Thank you Deitra Magazine for accepting my submission, I am always grateful to be in a platform where all kinds of artists get a chance to share their story.
MUSICAL BACKGROUND: I come from a Mexican household, ended up moving to the U.S. and becoming a citizen when I was five, then moved to China when I was ten, because of my dad’s work. Throughout those years, a moment that really impacted me musically would be days of waking up to "family cleaning days" and the radio would always be playing Smooth Jazz 98.1. It was a truly happy situation and an uplifting way to wake up, that vibe still resonates in my life today.
Another of many moments that impacted me, would be growing up in China with no car and having to listen to Chinese taxi radios etc. and downloading music illegally (oo shhh). Sometimes I didn’t know what I was downloading and I’d end up with something really cool and underground. I guess my musical background is a mix of all the wonders I’ve discovered so far, a mix of vibes that made me feel something special and truly connect to the art, whether it was the melody, the chord progression or the lyrics, there was always something that really took me to another dimension.
MUSICAL INSPIRATION: Sadly to say, pain. But proudly to say, pain. I do get inspired most times when I’m sad and crying and whatnot. I’d rather unleash the pain through a positive way other than drown in the emotions and never saying anything. The thing about music that I love, and being involved in every part of the song creation, is that I get to shape the outcome of the story this time. I get to take my pain and make something beautiful come from the mud, just like the meaning of a lotus flower.
SIGNATURE SOUND: My sound these days consists of many details, and many colors and moods as well. There can’t be a rainbow without all the colors, so for me, there can’t be happy songs without sad ones and angry ones.
My lyrics sometimes can be a ‘read-between-the-line’ metaphoric vibe but also I can be straight to the point, even joke in the person’s face vibe and it could be taken really, in any way. I am a lover of details, sarcasm, lucid/clear but otherworldly sounds, and cinematic moods.
There’s a moment in time that I think about sometimes in order to inspire my creativity. Taking it back to when I was a teenager in China and chillin' with my two best girlfriends, a cool British South African girl and a groovy Texan Taiwanese chick, smoking weed for the first time, on our favorite building rooftop, humid warm summer air and the feeling of freedom. Just sharing moods and listening to our music and dancing to the sounds. I always think back to that moment there, almost like a distant dimension of pure love and energy. I want to create that vibe when I make music. I want to be able to feel to it and connect to it like those girls in my nostalgic dreams did and how those nights made me feel.
ON SONGWRITING: My songs are about what I feel and go through in this human experience, how I cope with it, how I didn’t cope with it then but I do now, maybe just dreams I have, stories and whatnot — lyrically. The themes/moods for songs are always changing, like life.
Ah okay so... I might just tell you the title of an unreleased song... it’s called “Exotic Life.” It is one of my favorites right now that I’m currently working on and it might be the next single.
I am always writing. If I’m not doodling lyrics on papers, or anything I find around, there’s probably thousands of notes on my phone, computer and a lot of voice memo recordings.
The process is always different, too. Sometimes I am really inspired to write and after two hours later of feeling like complete shit, I find that magic moment, the melody, chords and lyrics coming together and creating a mood. A message in a bottle.
FAVORITE MUSICAL ERA: Right now, I think I’d say the 90s. There was a lot of dope stuff around, old and new, and I just feel like it was a cool transition era. A lot of classic stuff fused with new waves, rebellious spirits and the next step in technology.
ON PERFORMING + RECORDING MUSIC: For performing, I’d have to say [my favorite thing is] the people and a good band. Having an awesome chemistry with your band and just having fun with the audience and getting to talk to them after, it’s all a vibe. Performing is such a public yet personal thing, it’s the perfect fusion for an introvert/extrovert situation. You are on stage, sharing your deepest moods and you’re emotionally naked, even with your outfit choice you are saying something. You are like admitting and confessing to all these things in front of people who know you and some who don’t. It’s an adrenaline rush, especially when you get to connect in person. Good live music is the best.
For recording, it’s a tough one because I can be really impatient as well as a perfectionist. It’s a beauty because you get to work on that piece of art for as long as you want to keep “perfecting” it but also, you gotta let go someday. There’s not much to say about it yet, I guess I’m still working on that.
ON FASHION: Omg thank you for this question. Yes. Always. I love fashion, I love any form of creative expression. I’m just now learning to use a sewing machine because I have many many ideas that I want to bring to life when it comes to presenting myself visually. Having a message, making a statement and standing up for something is one of the things I enjoy most about this human experience. I love props and all that as well, especially for live shows and music videos.
I love entertaining and being entertained, so anything that I feel I would love to see and decipher its meaning, that’s what I want to create.
OVERCOMING OBSTACLES: Of course, I think anyone who’s ever had a passion for something from a young age, or even now discovering their passion and feeling so ambitious over it and having all these ideas that you want to bring to life… it’s not easy.
There’s people who won’t believe in you at first, there’s people who want to see numbers and budgets before anything, there’s people who take your message the wrong way and there’s people who don’t even try to understand it.
Being a songwriter/producer while being the artist and while being a woman, isn’t easy. The music business is a dimension I’ve barely started to understand the last few years. Being an internationally raised Latina, knowing that I might be put in some stereotype, scares me.
But truly, being an artist is a blessing in that case, because thanks to these hardships I am able to say something about them, from experience. I am able to grow that flower out of the mud over and over. And if that means I’ll have a garden by the end of it all, then so be it.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS: One big accomplishment in my career was when we threw an event and performance in Tijuana Mexico called “Tijuana Kong." Our special guest was the one and only, El Brujo, Javier Batiz (who was Carlos Santana’s former guitar teacher). We raised money from the event to help talented kids who couldn’t afford getting an education in the arts in Mexico. We managed to get 27 kids scholarships to go to school and study something they love. For me that was such an amazing and inspiring outcome, it makes me crave to do more.
Another exciting moment in my creative journey so far is probably just a fangirl one… but I did an acoustic cover of Cigarettes After Sex’s “Affection” in 2017 on SoundCloud and they followed me on Instagram! They haven’t unfollowed since so... It’s an exciting moment for sure, lol.
FUTURE HOPES + DREAMS: My hopes and dreams are just to add my little grain of salt to the vast ocean of this human experience. I just want to help as many people as I can, including my family right now. I want to help myself for once too, just by doing what I love and being free in my creative expression. DM
WEB + SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:
Official Website: dinorahofficial.com
ReverbNation
Instagram
Facebook
SoundCloud
Spotify
Deezer
YouTube
All photos property of Dinorah. Photographed by Isaiah E. Kajumba & Angel Gerardo.
Song Submitted: “Déjame Caer”
ABOUT THE ARTIST: Growing up, melodies haunted me and writing came to me easily, as well as being in love with magic, always having questions and believing in the “supernatural.”
I started doing music professionally since I was 12, and since then my music has definitely progressed as much as I experience life in its moments. I never thought I’d be where I am right now, producing my own songs 100% myself and really discovering my sound as I go. I am magically lost in finding my stories, dreams, etc. in that creation process and I’m growing more and more impatient (if that’s even possible) to finally release these vibes I’ve been going through while creating.
Thank you Deitra Magazine for accepting my submission, I am always grateful to be in a platform where all kinds of artists get a chance to share their story.
MUSICAL BACKGROUND: I come from a Mexican household, ended up moving to the U.S. and becoming a citizen when I was five, then moved to China when I was ten, because of my dad’s work. Throughout those years, a moment that really impacted me musically would be days of waking up to "family cleaning days" and the radio would always be playing Smooth Jazz 98.1. It was a truly happy situation and an uplifting way to wake up, that vibe still resonates in my life today.
"I am magically lost in finding my stories and dreams..."
Another of many moments that impacted me, would be growing up in China with no car and having to listen to Chinese taxi radios etc. and downloading music illegally (oo shhh). Sometimes I didn’t know what I was downloading and I’d end up with something really cool and underground. I guess my musical background is a mix of all the wonders I’ve discovered so far, a mix of vibes that made me feel something special and truly connect to the art, whether it was the melody, the chord progression or the lyrics, there was always something that really took me to another dimension.
MUSICAL INSPIRATION: Sadly to say, pain. But proudly to say, pain. I do get inspired most times when I’m sad and crying and whatnot. I’d rather unleash the pain through a positive way other than drown in the emotions and never saying anything. The thing about music that I love, and being involved in every part of the song creation, is that I get to shape the outcome of the story this time. I get to take my pain and make something beautiful come from the mud, just like the meaning of a lotus flower.
SIGNATURE SOUND: My sound these days consists of many details, and many colors and moods as well. There can’t be a rainbow without all the colors, so for me, there can’t be happy songs without sad ones and angry ones.
My lyrics sometimes can be a ‘read-between-the-line’ metaphoric vibe but also I can be straight to the point, even joke in the person’s face vibe and it could be taken really, in any way. I am a lover of details, sarcasm, lucid/clear but otherworldly sounds, and cinematic moods.
"my musical background is a mix of all the wonders I’ve discovered so far..."
There’s a moment in time that I think about sometimes in order to inspire my creativity. Taking it back to when I was a teenager in China and chillin' with my two best girlfriends, a cool British South African girl and a groovy Texan Taiwanese chick, smoking weed for the first time, on our favorite building rooftop, humid warm summer air and the feeling of freedom. Just sharing moods and listening to our music and dancing to the sounds. I always think back to that moment there, almost like a distant dimension of pure love and energy. I want to create that vibe when I make music. I want to be able to feel to it and connect to it like those girls in my nostalgic dreams did and how those nights made me feel.
ON SONGWRITING: My songs are about what I feel and go through in this human experience, how I cope with it, how I didn’t cope with it then but I do now, maybe just dreams I have, stories and whatnot — lyrically. The themes/moods for songs are always changing, like life.
Ah okay so... I might just tell you the title of an unreleased song... it’s called “Exotic Life.” It is one of my favorites right now that I’m currently working on and it might be the next single.
I am always writing. If I’m not doodling lyrics on papers, or anything I find around, there’s probably thousands of notes on my phone, computer and a lot of voice memo recordings.
"There can’t be a rainbow without all the colors..."
The process is always different, too. Sometimes I am really inspired to write and after two hours later of feeling like complete shit, I find that magic moment, the melody, chords and lyrics coming together and creating a mood. A message in a bottle.
FAVORITE MUSICAL ERA: Right now, I think I’d say the 90s. There was a lot of dope stuff around, old and new, and I just feel like it was a cool transition era. A lot of classic stuff fused with new waves, rebellious spirits and the next step in technology.
ON PERFORMING + RECORDING MUSIC: For performing, I’d have to say [my favorite thing is] the people and a good band. Having an awesome chemistry with your band and just having fun with the audience and getting to talk to them after, it’s all a vibe. Performing is such a public yet personal thing, it’s the perfect fusion for an introvert/extrovert situation. You are on stage, sharing your deepest moods and you’re emotionally naked, even with your outfit choice you are saying something. You are like admitting and confessing to all these things in front of people who know you and some who don’t. It’s an adrenaline rush, especially when you get to connect in person. Good live music is the best.
"I am a lover of details, sarcasm, lucid/clear but otherworldly sounds, and cinematic moods."
For recording, it’s a tough one because I can be really impatient as well as a perfectionist. It’s a beauty because you get to work on that piece of art for as long as you want to keep “perfecting” it but also, you gotta let go someday. There’s not much to say about it yet, I guess I’m still working on that.
ON FASHION: Omg thank you for this question. Yes. Always. I love fashion, I love any form of creative expression. I’m just now learning to use a sewing machine because I have many many ideas that I want to bring to life when it comes to presenting myself visually. Having a message, making a statement and standing up for something is one of the things I enjoy most about this human experience. I love props and all that as well, especially for live shows and music videos.
I love entertaining and being entertained, so anything that I feel I would love to see and decipher its meaning, that’s what I want to create.
"Having a message, making a statement and standing up for something is one of the things I enjoy most about this human experience."
OVERCOMING OBSTACLES: Of course, I think anyone who’s ever had a passion for something from a young age, or even now discovering their passion and feeling so ambitious over it and having all these ideas that you want to bring to life… it’s not easy.
There’s people who won’t believe in you at first, there’s people who want to see numbers and budgets before anything, there’s people who take your message the wrong way and there’s people who don’t even try to understand it.
Being a songwriter/producer while being the artist and while being a woman, isn’t easy. The music business is a dimension I’ve barely started to understand the last few years. Being an internationally raised Latina, knowing that I might be put in some stereotype, scares me.
But truly, being an artist is a blessing in that case, because thanks to these hardships I am able to say something about them, from experience. I am able to grow that flower out of the mud over and over. And if that means I’ll have a garden by the end of it all, then so be it.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS: One big accomplishment in my career was when we threw an event and performance in Tijuana Mexico called “Tijuana Kong." Our special guest was the one and only, El Brujo, Javier Batiz (who was Carlos Santana’s former guitar teacher). We raised money from the event to help talented kids who couldn’t afford getting an education in the arts in Mexico. We managed to get 27 kids scholarships to go to school and study something they love. For me that was such an amazing and inspiring outcome, it makes me crave to do more.
"My hopes and dreams are just to add my little grain of salt to the vast ocean of this human experience."
Another exciting moment in my creative journey so far is probably just a fangirl one… but I did an acoustic cover of Cigarettes After Sex’s “Affection” in 2017 on SoundCloud and they followed me on Instagram! They haven’t unfollowed since so... It’s an exciting moment for sure, lol.
FUTURE HOPES + DREAMS: My hopes and dreams are just to add my little grain of salt to the vast ocean of this human experience. I just want to help as many people as I can, including my family right now. I want to help myself for once too, just by doing what I love and being free in my creative expression. DM
WEB + SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:
Official Website: dinorahofficial.com
ReverbNation
SoundCloud
Spotify
Deezer
YouTube
All photos property of Dinorah. Photographed by Isaiah E. Kajumba & Angel Gerardo.
Deitra Magazine has teamed up with the world-renowned online music platform, ReverbNation, on a mission to find standout artists from around the globe. To get featured in this series, head to ReverbNation.com to submit to our current campaign! Your submission is free with a ReverbNation membership.
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