Mississippi is well-known for its gospel and blues music, but one country songwriter is striving to prove that she can make it in the Magnolia State.
Elsie Alford, who prefers to go by her artist name Elsie, is a country music artist and songwriter from Columbia, Miss. She is a USM graduate and now lives in Hattiesburg. She started her career in the music industry at 22, and she has grown her brand to what it is today. She said she chooses to stay in Mississippi despite how it’s overlooked for its talent.
“Mississippi is one of the most overlooked states when it comes to talent outside of blues and gospel,” she said. “I think, as for me, I decided to stay, because I feel like Mississippians are just as good as any other city in the world. And you don’t have to leave in order to make it. That’s literally my goal. I want to prove to myself and other people that I can make it from right here in Mississippi.”
Elsie’s song “Ghetto Cowboy” has generated several views, likes, and streams. She wrote the song seven years ago because she was frustrated with people telling her she wasn’t country. She said she felt like it was time for her to show the world that there is more than one way to be country music artist. She said she hopes that when people listen to this song and relate, they will feel seen.
“I just decided to highlight the Black men in Mississippi that I saw coming up as a kid,” she said. “I want the people who listen to it and resonate with the song to feel seen. I feel like a lot of times in country music, I didn’t always see people that looked like me.”
After she reached a wide audience with her song “Ghetto Cowboy,” Elsie created the Ghetto Cowboy Cypher to feature and highlight Mississippi rappers. One example is rapper and songwriter Vitamin Cea.
“I loved working with Elsie. She is such a genuine soul, and it was really, really cool that she brought different girls from each side of Mississippi, and we still got regions untouched, of course,” said Vitamin Cea. “But she was always really kind and supportive of me as well.”
Vitamin Cea said she decided to stay and build a career in Mississippi because it’s a way to give back to where she is from. “There’s something really special about being from Mississippi. It’s an ode to my personal heritage and my way of giving back to where I’m from,” she said.
Vitamin Cea described her most proud moment as being the opening performer for Grammy Award-winning artist Durand Bernarr.
“The Sweet Magnolia Fund put together this stellar, amazing show and celebration exhibit. It was one of the dopest things I had been a part of. It was just a bunch of queer Black people in the Mississippi Museum of Art,” she said.
Elsie said that the most challenging things she has to face to make it to where she is in her career are having audacity and coming back to music after having children.
“To put your art into the world for people to judge is really hard, but if you know that it’s the path you want to take, you have to have audacity to do it,” she said. “Coming back to music after having kids almost felt impossible, but I kept putting one foot in front of the other.”
Elsie said that seeing people connect with her art has been the most rewarding part of being a music artist. She said that to know other people enjoy her art has been really fun for her.
For the near future, Elsie hopes to collaborate more with Mississippi artists, do more shows and continue to bring other people up with her. She said she hopes to release another EP and an album.
“I think my overall goal is to put out new music. I want to put out an album and release another EP. And really just make sure I have Mississippi behind me as far as my fan base goes,” she said.
Elsie’s next show will take place in Philadelphia, Miss., at the 16th Annual Open Black Rodeo.