Anjimile

Anjimile was born in 1993 and raised in Dallas before eventually moving to Boston. Growing up, they started playing guitar at 11, and sang in choirs starting in the fifth grade and continuing until college. Their early musical influence came through listening to their dad's Oliver Mtukudzi albums in the car, and early Sufjan Stevens. Later influences were getting sober and connecting with their Black Malawian roots. Anjimile identified as a lesbian for 10 years, before coming out as trans. They self-describe as "queer/trans/boy king" and use both they/them and he/him pronouns.[3][4]

Anjimile began writing songs when they were a music industry student at Northeastern University, and wrote most of their most recent album Giver Taker while in rehab in Florida in 2016, where they got sober. In 2018, they entered NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concert contest, and a panel from Boston affiliate WBUR named them the best entrant from Massachusetts. The following year, a Live Arts Boston grant from a pair of local non-profit foundations gave them the budget to make Giver Taker.[3][5]

NPR named the album one of the best 50 albums of 2020.[6] Anjimile released their first full-length album in 2020 titled Giver Taker on Father/Daughter Records.[7] According to Rolling Stone Magazine, Anjimile is an "artist you need to know"[8] and their song "Baby No More" was a "Song You Need To Know" by the magazine.[9] Anjimile was also Consequence of Sound's Artist of the Month".[10] Prior to releasing the full-length album, Anjimile had self-produced and released numerous albums of their own.[11]