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Flagpole Premieres: Half Gringa, “Miranda”

Half Gringa

Half Gringa, the songwriting project of multi-instrumentalist Isabel Olive, takes its name from a childhood term of endearment, “la Gringa,” used in her Venezuelan family and references her own bicultural experience growing up in the U.S. Equally informed by Latin American and midwestern folk, the Chicago indie artist uses her music as an outlet to both explore identities and process her experiences.

Today, she shares a music video for “Miranda,” the first single off of her upcoming EP Ancestral Home, in conjunction with the kickoff of her fall tour. Half Gringa will visit Athens to perform at The Globe on Tuesday, Oct. 11.

“This song is about many things: mirrors, perspectives, the past, the future, love, longing, homeland, identity, characters, and relatives,” says Olive. “Basically, all the things I love writing about. ‘Miranda’ is representative of who I am, who I could be, who I was, who my ancestors were, how I love, how I grieve, and all of the different versions of me that exist in between.”

The video resembles a play and aims to illustrate what it’s like to have multiple artistic roles: a writer, director, performer and individual. Visually, the video takes inspiration from Josh Cassavetes and Gena Rowlands’ 1977 film Opening Night.

“There’s so much turmoil in this film about past selves, present selves, doppelgängers, people you could have been, pretending to be someone else, and changing as you age,” says Olive. “A lot of those themes feel relevant to the song and its imagined protagonist.”

Half Gringa On Tour:
October 4 – Milwaukee, WI – Cactus Club
October 6 – Madison, WI – The Bur Oak
October 7 – Champaign, IL – Nola’s Rock Bar
October 9 – Nashville, TN – The East Room
October 11 – Athens, GA – The Globe
October 12 – Asheville, NC – The Grey Eagle
October 13 – Durham, NC – The Pinhook
October 14 – Richmond, VA – Get Tight Lounge
October 17 – Boston, MA – Middle East Upstairs
October 18 – Brooklyn, NY – TV Eye
October 19 – Philadelphia, PA – Dolphin Tavern
October 20 – Cincinnati, OH – MOTR
November 7 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry*
November 8 – Chicago, IL – Beat Kitchen*
November 9 – St. Louis, MO – Blueberry Hill*
November 10 – Davenport, IA – Raccoon Motel*
*supporting KILTRO

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