Adia Victoria Uncovers Old Truths in New LP, ‘A Southern Gothic’

When blues artist, Adia Victoria, was first introduced to music in earnest, it felt for her like a religious experience. This, though, was at least somewhat tragically ironic for the future songwriter. At the time, Victoria was part of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in her then-hometown of Spartanburg, South Carolina. She was also enrolled in the adjoining Christian school. For Christmas, the students would perform concerts for the congregation. For Victoria, learning the songs and performing with her friends in front of an audience felt like an epiphany. More than any Bible verse or bit of scripture, this is what actually felt divine to her. “That for me was a revelation,” she tells American Songwriter.