‘Something will happen’: Washington-born folk rocker Amelia Day to take Chameleon stage
Amelia Day spent a good chunk of her youth infatuated by music.
As a toddler, Day was dancing to any beat, attempting to create her own with a clutter of pots and pans, and trying her best to sing along to “The Girl From Ipanema,” standing on her toes to explore the keys of her parent’s upright piano. By age 5, she began learning the classical ways of the piano.
Although it would be false to say Day’s love for music dimmed into her teenage years, fear has its way of holding people back. She began writing her own music and expanding into other instruments such as the guitar, but wasn’t sure she “had what it takes” to record and release songs, let alone pay the bills.
“I had the perception that it had to be a somewhat famous person to be able to make a stable living off it,” Day said. “I had no idea of all the gradations between that.”
Day, born and raised in Sumner, Washington, was accepted into Vanderbilt University and went to Nashville to study English while music lingered in the back of her mind. Toward the tail-end of her freshman year, this persistent sentiment of creativity had finally clawed its way out.
She released her first song in early 2021, fully mixing and mastering the track herself. In retrospect, it’s now easy for her to see that production isn’t exactly her strong suit, but it took another year to fully decide this and release more music.
Since this initial release, Day has released many singles and multiple EPs. Her music has also morphed and matured in various areas.
Day considers herself a folk artist (the genre she grew up loving the most), but has ventured into integrating aspects of rock, soul and jazz – the latter she learned while earning a minor in jazz vocal performance.
Her lyricism has done some shifting, too. Although Day still writes about love, heartbreak and the many variables of a romantic relationship, she has found herself writing about journeying into adulthood, climate change, omniscient perspectives and more. Day has also acquired a story-telling style featuring wordplay, double-meanings and rhythmic variations.
“I try not to make all of my music about (relationships), because I think there’s so much more to life and the human experience than whatever relationship happens to fail a certain year,” Day said.
After releasing multiple singles and EPs in 2023, she spent most of 2024 focusing on playing shows and touring (while also graduating in May). This included a monthlong West Coast tour with Spokane’s own Bed Heads opening on select dates.
Day is looking to have a big 2025 with many releases and bigger shows in the works, but she’ll be playing her first show of the year at the Chameleon on Friday. The set will also feature the Bed Heads’ lead singer, Landon Spencer, as well as local staples Vika & The Velvets.
Although she has since overcome the fear of chasing music as a career, it’s still somewhat difficult for Day to believe everything that has happened so far. And through this process, Day is still learning what it takes.
“We’re people-pleasers, and we care a lot about what people around us think, so it’s hard to take that step back and pursue this really unconventional career that oftentimes doesn’t work out successfully,” Day said. “But it really is something where if you’ve got the interest and the passion and you’re putting everything in, something is going to happen.
“It might not be what you expect, but something will happen.”