Aja Volkman

Aja Volkman
Birth name Aja Volkman
Born (1987-03-04) March 4, 1987
Origin Eugene, Oregon, United States
Genres Indie rock, alternative rock
Occupation(s) Musician, songwriter
Instruments Vocals, keyboards, synthesizer, guitar
Years active 2005–present
Labels Five Seven Music
Associated acts Nico Vega, Egyptian, The Glitch Mob
Website nicovega.com

Aja Volkman (i/ˈeɪʒə/) is an American musician, best known as the frontwoman of the indie rock band Nico Vega.[1] She has also released an EP titled Egyptian as a duo with Dan Reynolds (of Imagine Dragons) under the moniker Egyptian.[2]

Personal life

Born on March 4, 1987, Volkman is the daughter of James Volkman and artist Rogene Manas.[3] She is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[4] Volkman does not drink alcohol and is a vegetarian. She was married to the front man of Imagine Dragons, Dan Reynolds, on March 5, 2011. They have a daughter named Arrow Eve Reynolds. [5][6]

Career

Nico Vega (2005–present)

Volkman was approached by Mike Peña after a solo performance in 2005.[7] Although Peña later left the band to pursue acting, Dan Epand (drummer) joined and this formed the basic structure of Nico Vega in 2007.[7] The band released a series of EPs. They signed to now defunct MySpace Records. Two years later the band released their debut eponymous album. Three tracks off of the album were produced by Linda Perry (Pink, Christina Aguilera, Gwen Stefani) and the rest were produced by Tim Edgar. The album was mixed by Tchad Blake (The Black Keys, Sheryl Crow).[8] Nico Vega performed on Last Call with Carson Daly later that year and then toured for the next couple years. They toured extensively with artists including Gavin Rossdale (of Bush), Manic Street Preachers, Imagine Dragons, She Wants Revenge, and Blondie. They have also opened for No Doubt.[9] During this time the band signed to Five Seven Music. Single "Beast" gained popularity in 2013 through BioShock Infinite advertisements, resulting in more than five million combined downloads and streams.[10]

Sophomore album, Lead To Light, was released on July 22, 2014 and featured production from Dan Reynolds (Imagine Dragons, X Ambassadors), Tony Hoffer (Beck, Fitz and the Tantrums), and Tim Edgar (Nico Vega).[10] Single "I Believe (Get Over Yourself)" was co-written by Aja's husband Dan Reynolds.[10][11] Track "Lightening" was co-written with Adam Bravin and Justin Warfield of rock group She Wants Revenge.

Egyptian (2010-present)

Invited to perform an opening set for Nico Vega, Reynolds met Volkman in 2010. He invited her to help him finish some demos he was working on.[12][13][14] The two began a collaborative process which they titled Egyptian.[12] They recorded and released independently a four track eponymous EP digitally.[15]

They have performed this material once at the M Resort in Las Vegas.

Solo career (2015-present)

In 2015, Reynolds mentioned that Volkman is working on a solo project.[16] Volkman has released three singles since January 2016.

Discography

Nico Vega

Egyptian

Other appearances

References

  1. ↑ http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/nico-vega-unleash-heavy-hooks-on-fury-oh-fury-ep-premiere-20130130
  2. ↑ Darby, Heidi. "Imagine Dragons' Dan Reynolds and Nico Vega's Aja Volkman-Reynolds' Weirdly Perfect Romance - Los Angeles Music - West Coast Sound". Blogs.laweekly.com. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  3. ↑ http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/ae/music/2013/feb/05/nico-vegas-aja-volkman-marrying-imagine-dragons-da/
  4. ↑ http://www.purevolume.com/news/Imagine-Dragons-Dan-Reynolds-PureVolume-Exclusive-Interview-Night-Visions
  5. ↑ http://www.alternativeaddiction.com/musicnews/article/3886/Nico-Vega-Finds-The-Light-On-New-Album
  6. ↑ http://tothemotherhood.com/2012/12/aja-volkman-of-nico-vega/
  7. 1 2 http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/Feb/13/nico-vega-imagine-dragons-san-diego/
  8. ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/album/nico-vega-mw0000808526/credits
  9. ↑ http://www.indierockreviews.com/2012/11/video-nico-vega-we-are-the-art/
  10. 1 2 3 http://nicovega.com/press-release-nico-vega-launches-new-single-i-believe-kicks-off-tour-with-imagine-dragons/
  11. ↑ http://music-mix.ew.com/2014/02/14/nico-vega-new-song-album-imagine-dragons/
  12. 1 2 Darby, Heidi. "Imagine Dragons' Dan Reynolds and Nico Vega's Aja Volkman-Reynolds' Weirdly Perfect Romance - Los Angeles Music - West Coast Sound". Blogs.laweekly.com. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  13. ↑ "I'll Wait For You by Egyptian @ Rock N Roll Wine in Las Vegas". YouTube. 2011-07-03. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  14. ↑ Darby, Heidi. "The 11 Feature - Egyptian: A Modern Rock Romance". Lifeabove11.com. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  15. 1 2 "iTunes - Music - Egyptian - EP by Egyptian". Itunes.apple.com. 2011-04-18. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  16. ↑ http://www.purevolume.com/news/The-PV-QA-Imagine-Dragons-Interview-2015
  17. ↑ https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nico-vega/id624682271
  18. ↑ https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/lead-to-light/id897595442
  19. 1 2 https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/love-death-immortality/id771894691

External links

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