Vie Chimère

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BLOGGER MAIN PROFILE ~ ROSIE VIE CURRENT BLOG DIARY ~ ROSIE VIE VERSE (SONGS&POETRY)

 

About Vie Chimère

 

Promoting and supporting the uniquely talented, award-winning indie pop music artivist, poet, writer/vlogger and budding style icon in her own way, Vie Chimère. Her eclectic, melodic and catchy homegrown pop music spans retro (particularly 80s\/90s) synthpop, EDM, anti-folk, rock, a little R&B, and at times little hints of musical theatre, jazz, country/folk and worldbeat (depending on the song.) Vie's original debut release Dreamer Queen: Not Under the Machine was the 2024 recipient of the rampage music awards' Best Pop Album - by vote!

(photograph of Vie with her award above!)

 

Hailing from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada (Vancouver Island) Vie Chimere, aka 'Rosie Vie' (nickname from her given name and stage name) is an artistic reflection of passionate defiance and vindication amid a lifetime of unique and immense challenges, and determination to be - in her own way and through her art - part of the driving-force toward much needed change. Beaurocratic and socialized systems remain inadequate when it comes to folks who are marginalized by limited income and/or varying disabilities and health challenges, especially when the two are combined. Even amid all the noise when it comes to identity politics and semantics, this supposedly 'modern' society is fraught with ongoing discrimination - particularly when it comes to under-addressed issues with classism and ableism. Hypocrisy, divisive-ness and quiet oppression seem to be a driving force that continues to frustrate many wonderful, sensitive, gifted souls oppressed by untapped potential. It's something many are stuck living with, but it's most powerfully felt by marginalized people, including Vie herself, and she feels passionately about change - particularly when it comes to bringing less addressed issues to light. 

 

However, Vie's appropach is one of balance and empowerment. Not toxic positivity, not victim culture, but a healthy, productive balance. She hopes to spread hope, love, empathy, bravery, and joy, with dashes whitty, comedic relief - to convey her uniquely objective and cutting edge perspectives through her own creative lens as a neurodivergent, a survivor, an artist, and as both an objective and compassion-based thinking being (we want to refrain from throwing around the term 'empath', while it's well-meaning, it's over-used!) while calling out previously unmentioned or minimized issues, when she feels its' important. She is often met with the voices of people who deeply understand, agree, and even want to hear more or chime in. She has inspired folks to advocate for themselves, for the right cause/s they believe in, and to not give up. At other times, as well, she simply likes to spread joy and have fun through things like fashion/make up, food/nutrition and cooking, art, nature and humor.

 

Vie conveys herself with her slightly raspy deep-but-young-sounding voice, subtly rapid speech and impish smile. Her mischieveous girly-tomboy belly laugh baring her apparently 'cute' over bite, both famously and infamously quirky teeth - which she tries her best to rock with confidence whilst admitted self consciousnes and dreams to get fixed, more professionally, one day soon she hopes...

 

Rosie Vie powers through a very challenging daily life walking a balance between learning and growing self confidence and self expression amid the insecurities brought upon her by sensitivies and maladies living with a challenging rare disease and subsequent disabilities. Her carved-out self assured-ness hard-earned, a glow in her aura, a style all her own and catchy, original tunes in the palm of her hand - waiting to be opened up, heard and even danced to. 

 

Vie's a true Canadian blend of French/Indigenous(Mohawk)/German/Scottish/Ukranian heritage and identifies as femme-androgen (she/her/vi/vir) and someone who romantically gravitates to any gender - as long as they're a beautiful human. She is proudly neurodivergent (diagnosed Autism One  - formerly known as Asperger Syndrome) and she is unashamed to be living with as well as valiantly battling and managing invisible disabilities on the daily, due to being a 'zebra' (a medical nickname term for a rare disease patient.) Being a zebra is doubly difficult in today's world as much of the medical system remains relatively ignorant in terms of properly treating such conditions, and Vie finds herself all too often having to advocate and educate - Though she is now fortunate enough to have a medical team in place who understands her, headed by a very esteemed Victoria doctor incredibly literate in rare/complex disease and treatment adequate enough to keep one functioning in society to a reasonable extent. This is a gift Vie does not take for granted, and is actively using to do what she is doing today.

 

 For many years Rosie Vie endured horrific and damaging discrimination which caused her to drastically lose weight becoming dangerously thin with an appearance of 'wasting away'; she was mostly-bedridden, weak and malaised, unable to participate in or progress much in life, and additionally she was having to endure a mouthful of pain when most of her molar teeth and pre-existing fillings began to crumble and loosen due to severe malabsorption - something she and her then husband scrambled to address with failing credit. All this was very frightening for her then school-age young sons and for that matter deeply concerning all of her loved ones - a community petition was even created about the neglect, and it was signed my hundreds of supporters of Vie's then popular autism blog "A Girl Outside the Box." In the end Vie fought for her rights, called out discrimination for what it was, and won - even adorning the scars resulting from that damage to her teeth when a large tax return afforded her the ability to. She now takes several medications, and has a port placed in her chest for weekly fluids to help her function better - another gift she does not take for granted.

 

From here, and with time, management of her conditions has improved enough for Vie to re-integrate into life and once again begin progressing - and she began with her original debut music album in 2017. 

 

It is a shocking, as well as inspiring story - even involving the act of having to leave Canada (twice) to hone the evidence needed to prove the truth - though Vie and her community all agree it should never have been necessary to go to that extent. it's enough to write a book about (which is something Vie intends to work on.) Many of Vie's songs reflect on her experiences with those years of systemic discrimination, abuse and subsequent medical neglect when she first became more seriously ill - gradually following the births of her two sons, and particularly from 2013 to 2019 when her rights and fair access to appropriate rare disease care were finally becoming more established. However, Vie tends to write creatively and poetically - in a generalized enough way that others can relate their own variated but perhaps vaguely similar experiences.

 

A little more about Rosie Vie's condition/s

 

 Rosie Vie's daily life consists of being immersed in a battle to live at the level needed to carry on with her life and life's work in the way she truly desires in her heart - which isn't easy considering all she's up against. Rosie Vie is physically affected in multiple ways; she jokes that because these odd but challenging conditions cause her to look much younger than her age of 40 (and it's true - she's even been ID'ed by patients in hospital while acutely ill, whom did not believe her true age) they are her life's 'Blurse' (Blessing/Curse.)

 

In all seriousness, however, Rosie Vie's day to day living remains discreetly impacted by rare endocrine issues such as a strange and milder form of diabetes called MODY4 (Maturity Onset Diabetes of Young, there are 12 types) as well as an adrenal gland imbalance, (suspected but unconcomfirmed congenital adrenal hyperplasia - a rare condition which causes adrenal imbalance as well as salt-wasting/need for a high salt diet among other things; it is technically considered a very mild form of being intersex - CAH is almost impossible to diagnose in it's milder, non-classic forms, and therefore is often 'assumed' based on traits and development patterns.) Vie treats these issues with adrenal gland supplements and, oddly, a high salt, higher fat diet, as well as medications to make her pancreas make produce insulin and digest fats more effectively (she also has pancreatic insufficiency also due to the affects of MODY and therefore takes pancreatic enzyme medication in order to effectively digest these fats.) This allows her to have a well-balanced body composition, but it can be a pain to remember for every meal/snack!

 

Most impactfully, however, Vie lives with the rare genetic connective tissue disorder Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (which causes ones' bodys' collagen - your bodys' 'glue' - to be weakened, and therefore multi-systemic issues throughout the body.) This comes with various complications such as POTS dysautonomia (a circulatory condition treated by medications and weekly fluids through a port implanted in her chest, and occasionally, compression socks which she likes to rock in style!), early onset osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia (treated by steroid injections, exercise, pain medications, funky bracing and her signature wooden walking sticks - electric scooter soon to come!), mild cervical spine instabilty (managed with nightly collars, exercises and gentle massage), an immunolgocial disorder called mast cell activation syndrome (managed with antihistamines and diet) a sensitivity to pyogenic infections such as bronchitis, sinusitis, pneumonia and, if not cared for (or if diabetes is able to be tightly managed) fingers, toes and limbs (managed with regular concentrated garlic aka allicin supplements, colloidal silver and probiotics cyclicly) as well as very soft and sensitive skin (which is the prime reason for delayed aging and wrinkling, though CAH is also known to cause 'youthfulness' as well.) EDS skin must be cared for cautiously, as does EDS-related compromised dental enamel and sensitive gums. This is all treated with vigilant hygeine practices, soft brushing and gentle flossing frequently, more frequent but more gentle dental cleanings, and regular vitamins C, A, B1, D, E and K2.) Vie likes to joke "normie bodies are like sedimentary rock... but I am lke shale, or soapstone." She also likes to joke that due to her EDS she feels like a "greenager" (granny+teenager.)

 

In spite of much hardship already present in her life, Vie must dedicate much of her time and energy to managing her rare disease situation, and though it can be taxing, she has no choice but to be the warrior she's had to become, and so she is. There are many more folks with EDS out there, some suffering terribly having been through similar discrimination and physical suffering - and Rosie Vie feels that, through her work, it's very important to give a voice to this issue.

 

Furthermore, EDS is a condition which is grossly under-diagnosed. Rosie Vie has already, through her work, guided several individuals toward their own personal journey with diagnosis and treatment. She has also done the same thing, in fact on an even larger scale, when it comes to adults - particularly women - with autism one (formerly Asperger syndrome.) It means a lot for Rosie Vie to know that she has truly made a difference in people's lives, in this manner, and to hear this reminds her of why she does what she does. 

 

Rosie Vie is open, unapologetically authentic and strikingly beautiful inside and out. She believes education, awareness, being real - and that being unashamed of ones' unavoidable challenges in life - is so important. Though she also enjoys presenting herself well, even flamboyantly, she does so for her own creative purposes, because she wants to, and not merely to impress or be 'good enough' for others. 

 

Rosie Vie enjoys expressing herself through her music, poetry, vlogs and posts, and through her creative, thrifted fashions and make-up art; She boldly prides herself on managing to be complimented on her thrifted/freecycled attire wherever she goes even if it's just for a walk - with one of her big, carved wooden sticks -down the block for simple coffee, all the while on a very tight budget. Rosie Vie is a passionate advocate for thrifting and freeclycling, believing it's better for the environment, pocketbook savings and humility too...she is not only unashamed but proud to broadcast whenever she may acquire a gorgeous piece of attire inexpensively or even for free. Vie has stated she would love to, one day, be present at a major event such as a music awards show, intentionally in a thrifted outfit in which has paid no more than 20.00 for - but is paradoxically fantastic - just so that she may get a kick out of publicly announcing as such. Standing at just 5'1' and despising high heels which she jokingly states she is 'allergic' to (for good reason in her case) she's also an advocate for accepting one's natural height over enduring pain and discomfort. She has joked that if she ever does happen to get married again she will be doing so in off-white combat boots with gold laces. Rather than buying additional make up tools, Rosie Vie opts to blend her own make up products together in various empty containers, in order to create new colours and looks; the dollar store or thrift stores being great resources for this, too. Being tired of seeing make up tutorial videos geared to folks able to afford designer products, she hopes to make her own for the crowd on a budget, in order to share hacks on how to avoid needing to buy additional make up tools as opposed to simply creating them. Rosie Vie has recently experimented with making her own hair products as well, and prides herself on the ability to cut her own signature 'femme mullet' (in which she vehemently states will be present throughout her life) herself, as well as modify her own jewelry using thing leather string and other odd and ends.

 

You may even notice that Rosie Vie is not afraid to bare her flaws (or in her case genetic curses) to the extent that when she smiles, or sings, you will notice flashes of visible gold as well as silver titanium - none of which has been as easy on the pocketbook as other presentational endeavors of hers - but this was medically best for the sensitive Ehlers-Danlos gums and need for chewing support. This also did cost Vie a modeling career she states she cares little about anyway; Many others love and compliment Vie on her smile, and she loves it. That's enough for her - a stuck up modeling agency insisting on a perfect set of straight, white teeth - and advertising designer clothing Vie doesn't believe in anyway - is irrelevent to the kind of work she does. 

 

Rosie Vie credits her autistic mind, as well as sensitivity and hyper-creativity, for her gifts when it comes to song lyrics, poetry, and applying rhythm and melody. She has been making up melodies and harmonies since childhood, though only seriously so since aged 15. 

 

Vie is a true survivor who has been through immense hardship, abuse and discrimination (childhood, school and systemic) and (TW) unfortunately due to late autism diagnosis as an attractive, naive young girl lacking safety skills - sexual assault. For this latter reason, she has an interest in opening up more and speaking out about the importance of safety skills for autistic girls and women.

 

Rosie Vie has worked very hard to both self-advocate in order to assert her rights and need for access to mandatory services required for her to live humanely, most particularly rare disease specific medical care, but also psychosocially, and she has also done a lot of work in order to heal from the trauma of the past - and to continue growing in character and in spirit, in spite of it all. She uses her music, writing, poetry, creative expression through thirfted style and advocacy, particularly in the form of education and awareness by way of calling out the wrong firmly and passionately (and sometimes with a darkly comedic flavor) but never violently or aggressively.... and encouraging others' to advocate for themselves, loved ones and for causes they too feel passionate about. All this is Vie's 'driving force' ship in order to transform complex trauma, chronic pain and damage into purpose. While social activism is close to her heart, she believes in compassionate assertion, positivity and looking to common unity over anger, resentment and community division. There is already too much divisive-ness going on in the world at this time, and Vie strives to not be a part of or become involved in that, preferring to ride on entirely her own wavelength, with her own lone-wolf brand of advocacy, as opposed to taking a specific 'side' politically.

 

While Rosie Vie is passionate about her artivism work, she is also a family gal and a homebody being just as passionate about home cooking; she is a protective 'mama bear' who has raised two strong-minded, bright, and caring sons who are both talented in their own individual ways; social butterfly Elliot is musical like his mother and enjoys making impressively catchy hip hop/pop music as a hobby (and maybe more one day) as well as preparing for trades school, and Pearson, who is moderately autistic and incredibly smart, is inquisitory and currently learning about history and the social sciences.

 

Through her work Rosie Vie inspires many to support themselves and each other, believe in themselves, and perhaps pursue their own talents, interests and to grow their own natural strengths. Her powerfully moving and catchy new demo beat, Windchill, speaks from the heart of a survivor. Vie is very keen to produce Windchill (and the other three newest demos) to perfection, once technological requirements to do so are achieved. She is certainly open to serious collaboration and production opportunities, and greatly benefits from your support to keep creating and sharing her catchy, melodic and lyrically moving music - sung with her distinct girlish-tomboy alto-rasp voice (vaguely comparable to the likes of Stevie Nicks, Joan Jett, and perhaps even a little Miley Cyrus, but with little dashes of folk/jazz-esque smoothness and playful pop princess glossed throughout.) 

 

Vie Chimere aka Rosie Vie merely brings herself and her message through a package of beauty, strength, vulnerability, uniqueness and unmistaken originality, and down to earth approachability, it is a magickal enigma. This message is one from the heart of a true survivor, a woman who cares about humanity and is able to see the good - and potential for even greater good - in it ... in spite of how much she has, at times, been terribly hurt by humanity... because she knows it was also the same humanity that saved her, too. 

 

So this message from the heart is one for the positive change we so desperately need through nonviolent but unrelenting assertion, hope and deep faith, bravery, kindness, truth, and unconditional love for the greater good.