Idyllwild Arts Academy (IAA) is an environment that nurtures arts exploration — a place for high school students to hone their art of choice while completing the necessary credits to graduate high school. 

Idyllwild Arts Academy senior Aminta Skye
PHOTO COURTESY OF AMINTA SKYE

Four-year student Aminta Skye spoke with the Town Crier via Zoom over the weekend, telling her story about how IAA has shaped her musical talents. 

At 8 years old, Skye started music and vocal lessons. She brought her talent and training with her as she entered IAA. 

Idyllwild Arts Academy (IAA) is an environment that nurtures arts exploration — a place for high school students to hone their art of choice while completing the necessary credits to graduate high school. 


Four-year student Aminta Skye spoke with the Town Crier via Zoom over the weekend, telling her story about how IAA has shaped her musical talents. 
At 8 years old, Skye started music and vocal lessons. She brought her talent and training with her as she entered IAA. 


“Ever since I was a little kid, I always knew I wanted to do music,” Skye said. “I kind of had this idea of going to art school for high school. When it came time to apply in eighth grade, I did. It’s been an invaluable experience just to grow as an artist.”

Idyllwild Arts Academy senior Aminta Skye during a school performance.
PHOTO COURTESY OF AMINTA SKYE


Skye is now preparing for graduation as she propels into the world of college life. She will be attending her top choice school, the University of Southern California (USC), in the fall.


As a songwriting major in the music department at IAA, she was able to explore her passion for music — planning to continue that quest after she graduates. 


Skye found inspiration from her fellow students,
“Before coming to Idyllwild Arts, I had never composed for classical musicians or notated for a horn player,” she explained. “Now, I’m writing songs for bands with horn sections and string players. These are all things I might never have thought of until I saw another student doing it. Just seeing everyone’s style is really inspirational and cool.”


Coming from Eugene, Oregon, Skye learned to adjust to the smaller community of Idyllwild. Before high school, she was a self-proclaimed city student who wrote songs that nobody heard. Now, she is in a community where she is surrounded by musicians of the same age with similar goals, which helped drive and change her original thoughts on going to art school. 


“Honestly, the kind of more technical writing aspect of it is something I discovered more coming here,” Skye explained. “I think it was more about performance for me originally, but I’ve really found a love in writing for other singers and co-writing which I had never done before. I think my strength in writing has gotten better coming here.”


While attending USC, she will be majoring in music performance with an emphasis in songwriting.


Learning more about music production and developing her skills will help her work with other artists and be more self-sufficient with recording. 
“I learned during quarantine that I need to have some of those skills for myself,” she said. “I’m really excited about USC, and professionally, I really want to be a recording artist with a band, hopefully, and a top line writer for other artists, so I can have behind-the-scenes work as well.” 


Skye has already found herself on a professional music career path, standing up and sharing her beliefs for the future generations.


In 2019, she gave a TEDx talk in LA about why it is so important to keep arts in education, especially in the public school system that Skye feels doesn’t encourage individual creativity. 


“A lot of times in the public schooling system, we train children to be cookie cutters of each other and followers,” Skye explained. “Then, people who are educationally divergent or neurologically atypical are forced into that mold instead of being praised for their creativity.


“As an adult, you’re expected to have all these creative skills and solve problems outside the box that you’ve never been encouraged to do before. It’s equally important to nurture creativity with knowledge. Those make the best adults and entrepreneurs, I think.”


Despite her young age, Skye is seemingly well beyond her years, tackling issues before she is even out of high school — wanting to help pave the way for the younger generations while still forging her own path.