{"id":224598,"date":"2026-05-08T14:50:41","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T14:50:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/224598\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T14:50:41","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T14:50:41","slug":"a-quick-artists-journey-brooklyn-based-musician-ava-quick-on-being-a-small-artist-in-a-big-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/224598\/","title":{"rendered":"A \u2018Quick\u2019 artist\u2019s journey: Brooklyn-based musician Ava Quick on being a small artist in a big industry"},"content":{"rendered":"

In 2015, after rounds of online auditioning, a 14-year-old Ava Quick made it to the in-person try-outs of NBC\u2019s hit show \u201cThe Voice,\u201d<\/a> which offers young talent a chance to get discovered and break into the music industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While waiting in line, she took out the guitar she brought with her, and began to play \u201cLove Yourself\u201d by Justin Bieber. This led to a crowd of people joining in and singing along with her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to do this forever,\u201d Quick thought at the moment. \u201cI want people to sing my songs back at me, with me.\u201d\u00a0\n<\/p>\n

Although she only made it to that first round, that didn\u2019t stop now 23-year-old Quick from pursuing music, something she\u2019s wanted to do from an early age. She even recalls an early memory of singing on stage at a kindergarten talent show, with a stuffed animal on the stage next to her for comfort.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cEver since I could walk, talk, probably out of the womb, I always knew music was something that I wanted to do,\u201d Quick said. \u201cIt was always just a feeling I had.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a society where marginalized voices are suppressed, Quick is making her way as a queer female independent artist. Growing up on Long Island, New York, it left an impact on how she wants to create music. \u201cBeing a young gay kid in a conservative town is a huge reason why I wanted to pursue music,\u201d said Quick. \u201cI felt like I could be a voice for people in similar situations.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

After attending Purchase College in Westchester \u2013 which Quick endearingly compares to Hollywood Arts High School from the show \u201cVictorious\u201d<\/a>\u2013 she moved to Brooklyn to continue her music career.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Quick understands firsthand the struggle of independent artists trying to make their way in a society that heavily values mainstream artists. A lack of resources, accessibility, and finances can prevent indie singers from getting opportunities that more commercial artists may receive.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSmall artists are the backbone of the music industry,\u201d Quick said. Most of the time, smaller artists are left to do the songwriting, producing and promoting alone. \u201cIt\u2019s almost like working a full-time job that you\u2019re not getting paid for.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Being openly queer can add another burden. According to a USC Annenberg report<\/a>, there is a strong misconception that the music industry is more inclusive than it actually is. In a report by the Musicians Union<\/a>, the music industry appears more inclusive than it actually is, and in another Musicians Union<\/a> report over half of women in the music industry have experienced gender based discrimination. Musicians Union<\/a> states in another report that queer artists also face the same.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat queer people bring to music is so important, I feel like even in history you see it,\u201d said Quick. \u201cWe get noticed the least, but contribute the most in the music industry.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Quick emphasizes the importance of supporting female and queer artists, especially in a world built against them. She highlights that female artists have to not only work twice as hard as male artists, but have to be media trained, as male artists get away with more than women can.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

During college, she formed a connection with writer and journalist, Belle Martinelli, who remains one of her closest friends. Martinelli and Quick have collaborated on songwriting for some of Quick\u2019s music, including her song \u201cI Got a Girl,\u201d<\/a> released in 2025. Martinelli remembers them spitballing and throwing lyrics back and forth putting the song together in two hours, and being in awe of Quick\u2019s work ethic and talent. \u201cShe\u2019s like if Charlie Puth was a Brooklyn masc lesbian,\u201d said Martinelli.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe felt like that video of Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff writing \u2018Getaway Car,\u2019<\/a> that is exactly what the process is like,\u201d said Martinelli. That\u2019s why it\u2019s one of my favorite memories with her,\u201d said Martinelli. \u201cJust how amazing it is and how great you feel to create something, and to share that with her. I\u2019m honored to be part of her process and part of her music.\u201d<\/p>\n

Outside of music, Quick considers herself to be a very loyal, loving and creative person. \u201cI love a good laugh, I love a good espresso martini with the girls,\u201d said Quick. Her favorite trait about herself is her personality, and she is spending her year working on her fear of being perceived, and her self-proclaimed time blindness. \u201cI was on time today, though!\u201d Quick laughs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Quick also doesn\u2019t hesitate to give her friends and family credit for the support they give her, viewing her friends as her biggest inspiration and her parents as her heroes. Martinelli describes Quick as someone who is extremely true to herself, and the type of friend you can depend on in every situation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the future, Quick hopes to see herself all over the Times Square billboards, selling out Madison Square Garden and having the opportunity to travel the world performing. \u201cMy motto in life is if it\u2019s meant to be, it\u2019ll be,\u201d says Quick. \u201cI just let the universe do its thing, I\u2019ll put in the work, and what\u2019s mine will be mine.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a queer woman, as an artist, I feel like it\u2019s so important for me to put myself out there, even if I think other people won\u2019t like it, it doesn\u2019t matter, I like it,\u201d she adds. \u201cFor other artists out there, that\u2019s the most important thing to do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In 2015, after rounds of online auditioning, a 14-year-old Ava Quick made it to the in-person try-outs of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":224599,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[88294,98,100,99,157,2538,65032,9,24,63],"class_list":["post-224598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-ava-quick","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-entertainment","tag-music","tag-musician","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=224598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224598\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=224598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=224598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=224598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}