Alimah is the main character of my novel Ungrateful. She is a singer-songwriter, composer, and producer that was signed to Aten from 2006-2015. She recorded music in the genres of alternative rock, industrial rock, R&B, and funk. Starting out as an R&B singer and dancer, she has transitioned into rock alternative on her sophomore album, showcasing her genius in creating a unique sound that combined both R&B and hard rock that was radio-friendly for urban, pop, and rock radio stations. She is considered one of the pioneers of the dark, industrial, and somewhat gothic and trap-beat infused sound popular in the alternative R&B, indie rock, and emo rap of the 2010s. She often wrote music based on a range of heavy topics such as toxic romantic relationships, childhood trauma, drugs, revenge, and mental illness, as well as sexuality and spirituality. Her lyrics were criticized by more conservative fans for glorifying drug abuse and toxic love.
I had featured three short stories about her childhood:
When I first gave birth to my brain-baby Alimah, over ten years ago, she was a rapper. Don’t even ask me why. 🤦🏽♀️I took a couple of years away from her and recreated her into a child prodigy pianist who grew into a world-renowned singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer. While she debuted as an R&B artist, she fought to transition to rock music despite the record label’s apprehensions because of her race and gender. Although she rose to stardom as a rock artist, she still incorporated R&B and hip-hop into her music. This helped her to sustain support from her original Black/urban fanbase and crossover to international audiences at the same time.
I will be posting blogs later about my process in creating her, amongst other interesting things…
Ungrateful is available on Amazon (eBook only). Paperbacks will be coming back soon!
Kenya Nelson | Writer 
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