Today we’d like to introduce you to Aieshia Dickey.
Hi Aieshia, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hello, my name is Aieshia Dickey and I am born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. I grew up in the Whitehaven area by way of South Memphis. I am the daughter of Duane Dickey and Patricia Webb. I have a beautiful daughter named Lavender that I am truly inspired by daily.
I graduated from Kirby High School in 1999 and went directly to the Air Force in 2000. I served in the Air Force for eight years, four active and four as a reservist. After my military career, I went to school to become a computer engineer and I graduated from Southwest Tennessee Community College in 20005 with a Dual AAS in Computer, Electrical, and Electronic Engineering! I feel that my love for science is what attracted me to fire.
Growing up, I was not naturally someone that was attracted to the element of Fire. In the area where I grew up fire was considered a negative thing. Being from a city that was responsible for the Death of Martin Luther King it was a negative stigma with riots. I related fire to the many things that we’ve seen happen in our history like burning homes, burning crosses, or just the lesson that you don’t play with fire unless you want to get burned.
In 2019, I attended a political event, where I met a young lady that owned a circus company. After discussing some of the things that she offered I wanted to come and learn some things about aerial silks and aerial hammocks because I was on a fitness journey to lose weight all naturally.
We set up a time for me to come out and train and after training with her for one day she felt that my skills were up to par to be a part of her circus company so she asked me to join the circus. After joining this collective it gave me the opportunity to learn so much about circus arts in flow arts. I learned how it is used to heal the mind and the spirit and so I truly fell in love with it because of how amazing I felt while I did it!!
I eventually became a fully insured fire dancer and begin performing in the local Memphis area as the only POC fire performer in the collective.
We Begin traveling the Florida coast and abroad. Performing for different events truly was an amazing experience. I am now a Fully Insured, independent fire performer and have been for over two and a half years. Ibd performed on stages of some amazing places such as Cafe Instanbul in New Orleans, The Royalton Hotel Negril Jamaica, Memphis Gay Pride Parade, and Dallas Caribbean Festival.
I truly enjoy performing for my community and sharing my light through my art. It has been a healing journey for me and I love sharing that light. It is a blessing to give something back to my community that I’m from
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
This definitely has not been a smooth Road I have encountered many obstacles in my journey.
I definitely can say one obstacle was trying to get more knowledge about flow arts when I began my journey. The history behind where it comes from was very vague. As I begin to study history, I started to understand the relative background of where it comes from and I found that is very prominent in Africa, India, the Caribbean as well as in Polynesian.
I was not familiar with this art before it was introduced to me and I noticed that it is not a very active community in Memphis. I found it hard to find places to practice and others to practice with. So I found festivals that I could attend that would allow me to learn and meet other artists.
There were also struggles with finding out that I was the only person of color that has ever become a fire performer from Memphis. Although this was a struggle it made me want to learn more it made me want to be a better artist and it made me want to share it with my community one day.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a fully insured fire performer. I specialize in fire-eating, fire fleshing, fire blowing as well as burlesque dance. I am most known for my creative way of bringing the element of fire into dance. My fire-eating always amazes the audience.
I am also an Award-Winning Burlesque Performer. I won the Title of Best Alternative at Best of burlesque 2020 based out of the United Kingdom. I am currently the only burlesque performer from Memphis Tennessee to win a Burlesque title from the UK!
I am most proud of the accomplishments that I have achieved without even setting goals to achieve them. I’m truly blessed to have been given a gift to help uplift myself and uplift others and encourage them to know that they could do anything that they want to!
It is my goal to continue to learn more and be the best artist that I can be. What sets me aside from others it is my will to be open to learning daily, and my drive to never give up.
Being willing to be vulnerable and patient with myself as I learn more.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
Something that is surprising to most people that don’t know me is that I am a PTSD veteran and the reason that I begin falling in love with fire dancing is that it helps with my anxiety. I continue to utilize my art as a gateway to release any bad feelings. These truly grounds me and remind me that the universe is in control.
Another surprising thing about me is that I am an internationally published model. I love the fashion industry. I’m also a runway model, model coach, and fashion show producer.
Fashion has played a major role in my life leading up to me becoming a fire performer and I have been a brand ambassador and print model for some amazing Brands locally as well as internationally.
Pricing:
- Bookings begin at $375
- Prices Vary Based on Client’s Needs
- Booking Page https://www.entertainersworldwide.com/blue-flame-flow-artist-profile-106853
- Performances are booked in 5 to 1hr increments.
Contact Info:
- Email: Blueflameburlesque@yahoo.com
- Website: https://www.entertainersworldwide.com/blue-flame-flow-artist-profile-106853
- Instagram: @blueflamefireburlesque
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MODELSONAMISSION
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UC-_DwaTily9me1Z6k37rgvQ
- Other: https://allmylinks.com/blueflamefireperformer
Image Credits:
Brennan Austin and Tavarus Bady
