Page 19 - BiTS_04_APRIL_2023

MA: Oh wow. Proudest achievement? That's a really interesting question because I look at things
differently. You know, me as a solo artist I'm proud of what I've accomplished in different things.
And yeah, there have been number one hits and there
have been really cool tours and making music with
cool people like Gregg Allman or Joe Perry from
Aerosmith or Trombone Shorty, you know, all these
amazing people. I think the thing I'm probably

proudest of is the fact that I'm still here? You know
[chuckles], I look at people who have a fleeting career
and they do it for a couple of years and then it's gone.
And we made a record last year “The Best Of Mindi
Abair”, and you know the pandemic allowed me to
kind of look back. I'm usually looking forward. You
know, what are we doing? Where are we going? But
during that time I kind of looked back and went, wow,
we've been doing this a long time, me making music
Clockwise from top left:
Gregg Allman, Trombone with my friends and with people I love, and I'm still
Shorty, Joe Perry
doing it, and we're still here after, you know, after all
these years. So yeah, that record kind of marked the
21st year of me as a recording artist, I mean, I've been touring for a lot longer than that, but
that's what I'm proud of, that I'm here and still doing it and making music and that everyone has
embraced me and that it turned out OK [laughs].

BiTS: What are your plans for the immediate future? Are you working on an album or anything?

MA: You know, I'm writing with a few people right now. There's no album in the works yet. We're
touring an awful lot going to different places and I now host my adventures. They're called Mindi

Abair’s wine and jazz adventures, and we take really small groups of people around the world.
So we take 40 people maximum and we just create this whole curated adventure. So we went to
Tuscany two years ago and took 40 people. And my musical guest was Jim Peterik, who wrote
the song ‘Eye Of The Tiger’ and ‘Hold On Loosely’. He was one of the founders of the group
Survivor and the Ides of March. He's just a songwriting genius and so he came, I mean, we played
this rock concert in this 12th century palace for our 40 people, you know, so it's just great wine,
great food. We stay in five-star resorts and it's just a concert a night of really interesting stuff
that I curate with my friends. We're doing that again in Sonoma here in wine country in California
in April and we're taking another group of people to Bordeaux for our wine and jazz adventure
this year and that's going to be just a blast. So you know, it's just kind of celebrating life and doing
that. I'm going on the Dave Koz cruise in Europe and we're doing Spain and Portugal and Morocco
and some cool places, so that'll be fun. And uh, we're just touring, getting crazy, [laughing] being
on the road.

BiTS: What about the United Kingdom? You haven't mentioned the UK in all that stuff.

MA: Yes, I will be in the UK because right after our wine and jazz adventure in Bordeaux, I'm
coming to play Pizza Express for a couple of nights.

BiTS: Ah, wonderful.

MA: I will be back, so please come out. We love coming to the UK. You know, it's just one of my
favourite places. I have to eat my Indian food and shop and walk the city [laughs].

BiTS: Tell me something about working with Aerosmith, which I gather you did for a while.