Lily Vakili

It might seem the most mundane detail in an artist’s profile is where they were born, but in the case of genre-transcendent singer/songwriter, Lily Vakili, it’s the best place to capture the start of a wild, expansive life journey. “I was born in Honduras during a military coup,” says the New Jersey-based artist, “At the hospital, my father made his way around injured soldiers to welcome me to the world. He said that set the stage for everything else in my life.”

An early career in theatre and dance was followed by a second career as a biotech lawyer. The third act – a return to creative life – emerged while raising her three children, one with profound developmental disabilities, and during her mother’s decline into Alzheimer’s. Poems written throughout her life began to come together as songs accompanied by the musical explorations of a self-taught guitar player.

Lily launched her recording career as a solo artist with two albums Lake City/Next 3 Exits and Meadowlands, before forming the five-member Vakili Band. That fruitful collaboration resulted in three studio albums, Oh Alright, Walking Sideways, and 2023’s Honey. Produced for the first time by Lily, the Honey album, described by Under the Radar as “an electric blend of Rock, Soul & Psychedelia…”, exemplifies the collaborative bacchanalia of her band, having honed their distinctive sound in the studio as well as on tour up and down the East Coast.

Her songwriting is described by Relix Magazine as “upp[ing] the emotional and political ante with … punchy tunes, delivered from a strong female perspective” and Postcard Elba says “The Patti Smith Group vibe is strong … both in the straight ahead rock n’ roll fire and passionate street poet vibes, and we’ll take that over ironic detachment … any day of the week.” Ink 19 adds “Vakili’s voice — yes, it is honey, in a cool glass of whiskey on the hottest night you remember…”

Lily says: “Returning to the stage as a solo artist feels like coming full circle as well as an artistic metamorphosis. I’m reminded of my beautiful mother’s words and the moment of my liberation as a creative person: ‘What is stopping you? No one else will do it for you’.”