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As a Songwriter, Lili Añel honed her skill in NYC's Greenwich Village' thriving music scene. Alongside peers like Cliff Eberhardt, Carolyn Mas, The Roches and Steve Forbert, to name a few, she successfully showed diversity within her musical ideas and sensibilities, performing both solo or with her band executing her music and voice with amazing power, rhythmically and melodically. Lili and her band opened for legendary acts, Etta James, Taj Mahal, Stuff (featuring the Saturday Night Live Band) and The Persuasions. In the early 80's, a group of singer-songwriters met at the Cornelia Street Cafe for the first time. Inaugural members included Cliff Eberhardt, David Massengill, Lucy Kaplansky and Lili Añel. It was called The Songwriters Exchange. Lili was nominated for a New York Music Award in the InchBest SongwriterInch category, winning in the InchBest Unsigned ArtistInch category; and has appeared across the U.S. and Canada in support of her first album InchLaughed LastInch, as well in New York at such venues as The Bitter End, The Bottom Line and Joe's Pub. InchPeople have often described my music as Joan Armatrading meets Joni Mitchell meets Steely Dan, Lili says. InchI agree and disagree. I do resemble Joan somewhat in my singing-we're both altos, my songwriting is influenced by Joni amongst many others, and I love the sound of Steely Dan. But I don't sing exactly like Joan, I don't write exactly like Joni and the album doesn't sound exactly like Steely Dan. I am influenced by a great deal of other songwriters and musical styles including Garland Jeffreys, Janis Ian, The Beatles, John Coltrane, Patato Y Totico, Celia Cruz amongst others. Born in New York City of Black/Cuban parents she utilizes rhythms primarily as the basis of her songwriting. InchI often play guitar as if I were playing a drum of some kind, keeping time, playing against time. It's what I grew up
