Sydney singer-songwriter Ariyah has offered a shining light of hope to those suffering depression with her latest single 'I'll See You Smiling'.
'I'll See You Smiling' was originally a song and video, both created by Ariyah in tribute to the late Chester Bennington who took his own life in July of last year.
Though not the first, nor the last, musician to commit suicide, Chester's sudden death caused an outpouring of grief and put an increased focus on mental health in the arts.
At the time, Ariyah had refused to sell the song for the reasons that it was a tribute. But after much demand from her audience to purchase the song she decided to remix the song featuring rapper Unchained. She also reshot a video, which was then dedicated to anyone suffering from depression.
Ariyah has been growing in popularity and gaining the attention of the public over the past few years with her melodic and original pop music as well as the music videos she produces.
Growing up in Sydney, Ariyah first showed strong signs of musical talent at the age of four becoming her family’s singing diva. Her parents later enrolled her in a music school when she was eight where she began playing the piano.
A rebellious student, Ariyah would ditch the books and spend much of her time composing her own original music. Initially writing an extensive selection of poetry, it was only at the age of 15 that she started putting the words and music together to create her songs.
In recent years, she has earnt herself five song curations and three awards, her latest being the 'Award of Merit' from the Global Shorts in LA, for her previous short film release 'Don’t Come Back'. The track is a stunning trip-hop ballad Ariyah had performed at the World Top DJs Awards in 2016, which earned her a standing ovation and much praise after showcasing her gifted vocal ability.
Greatly aided by the artistic visuals created for the song, 'Don't Come Back' was written, directed, co-edited and financed by Ariyah.
