Jackson Heights Life

From Patch:

Local Legend: Singer Ali Dineen On Jackson Heights Inspirations
Singer Ali Dineen has no shortage of musical inspirations — Lin-Manuel Miranda was her teacher — but Jackson Heights is chief among them.

By Maya Kaufman, Patch Staff
Feb 21, 2020 1:53 pm ET | Updated Feb 21, 2020 2:07 pm ET

JACKSON HEIGHTS, QUEENS — Folk singer Ali Dineen has no shortage of musical inspirations — her seventh-grade English teacher was Lin-Manuel Miranda, who went on to compose the award-winning Broadway musicals "In the Heights" and "Hamilton"— but the most significant may be the rich cultural diversity that surrounded her as she grew up in Jackson Heights.

The meaning of home is a major theme in Dineen's soulful lyrics. And, for her, home is Jackson Heights, where she developed a fascination with the musical traditions of other countries, particularly those in Central and South America.

"I am always trying to write about larger histories, and a larger human condition than just my own," Dineen told Patch. "Maybe growing up around so many ways of life influenced that."

Dineen has performed at festivals across the country, including the Brooklyn Folk Festival, the Caramoor American Roots Music Festival and the Savannah Music Festival. She teaches at the Jalopy Theatre and School of Music in Brooklyn.

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