Algie Aldona Powers, 71, became a viral sensation during the Covid pandemic when she began uploading her renditions of various pop songs on TikTok. The Lithuanian-American was even noticed by the pop star Billie Eilish and built an online following of millions of people.
I got in touch with Aldona, or Algie, who lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, after seeing some of her videos on TikTok. When she sang in Lithuanian, like many others, I was surprised – I had no idea that the popular TikToker was born and raised in a Lithuanian family.
She wrote back in Lithuanian, immediately clarifying that she was actually Aldona, not Algie. It turns out that “Algie” was a popular version of the Lithuanian names “Algis” and “Algimantas” in Chicago when Aldona was growing up there. Aldona eventually also chose this nickname.
Her parents left Lithuania during the Second World War before the second Soviet occupation.
“[My father] had a lot of siblings – 10 or 12, and half of them left. There were a lot of German planes flying at that time, and when they saw a big line of people, they would just shoot them. My father and his family kept to themselves, they said, ‘Let’s look like farmers minding our own business’,” says Aldona.
Upon reaching a checkpoint, Aldona’s father noticed train carriages lined up on both sides. A German soldier told him to separate from his family and go the other way, but he decided not to obey.
“He hoped that the soldier would not look back, because he wouldn’t expect to be disobeyed. There was a hill nearby, so they directed the horse toward it and hurried until they reached a forest. There they kept crying that they had run away,” Aldona says. “My whole life could have been different if he had listened to the soldier and gone to the side.”
This is how Aldona’s family ended up in Germany, where, like many other Lithuanians, they found themselves in a refugee camp. They spent six years there.
Later, they took a boat to the United States via Ellis Island, which was the gateway for millions of immigrants. Aldona’s grandmother had already lived in Chicago and helped them settle in. Aldona was born in Chicago in 1952.
“There are many Lithuanians in Chicago. I lived in the Market Park area, where almost everybody was Lithuanian, the shops were Lithuanian, and there were also Lithuanian schools. We went to a Lithuanian school on Saturdays where we learned about history, geography, and to write in Lithuanian. There were also folk dances and singing, but folk dances were my favourite.
“We had all kinds of celebrations at the youth centres, and you could immerse yourself in Lithuanian culture. And my father didn’t allow me to speak English at home at all, so I learned English when I started playing with other children outside,” she recalls.
Aldona was proud of her Lithuanian heritage, but she also felt American. She describes herself as a combination of both cultures.
Her parents never returned to Lithuania, because her father was afraid that he would be arrested. Aldona has also never visited her ancestral home.
“I never had the money for such a long journey. Besides, I married an American when I was 19, and he wasn’t interested in Lithuania. I still dream of visiting someday, but now my second sister’s health is not good and I help her a lot, so I can’t go anywhere,” says Aldona.
Attention from Billie Eilish
Aldona says she has loved singing since she was a little girl. She also liked to draw, so she followed this path at school. But the music never went away – she kept singing and taught herself to play the guitar.
Although Aldona chose a career in drawing and worked for years in advertising, she eventually gave it up when she married and had two children. Music then came back into her life.
“My husband bought me a small studio. He told me if I wanted to sing and make an album, I had to start writing songs. So I did. I made an album but I didn’t sign a contract with any record company, so I released it myself, and the songs were played on the radio.
“I sang on stage many times and many times I thought it was my big break, but it wasn’t. I wanted to spend time with my children, I knew that if I got serious about music, it would probably take me down a different path,” says Aldona.
Aldona’s musical journey gained new momentum four years ago when she started sharing her cover songs on TikTok. She gradually built up a following of some 1.9 million people.
The world-famous singer Billie Eilish also noticed her work, sharing Aldona’s cover of her song Getting Older.
@algiepowers GETTING OLDER 🔸 BILLIE EILISH #billieeilish #finneas #gettingolder #music #cover #acousticcovers #acoustic #guitar #singlelife ♬ original sound - Algie Powers
Aldona still finds it hard to believe that she has caught the attention of a superstar.
“It doesn’t fit in my head. I just started getting messages that people were commenting underneath the song that Billie Eilish had shared it. I went to see it and I couldn’t believe it,” she recalls.
Aldona says she discovered TikTok during the Covid pandemic when she started seeing more and more images of people dancing on the new app. Then she got interested and started making videos herself.
As Aldona points out, she didn’t want to get too involved in social media, but after one nice comment, she decided that she could create content to bring joy to others.
“I noticed that the people who reacted first were young people. I sang, and I got a lot of followers,” says Aldona.
She already has a whole wish book where she keeps track of her followers’ requests. Once she uploads a song, she tries to send it to the person who requested it. Aldona stresses that it is important for her to stay in touch with her listeners.
“There’s a story: a man walks along a coastline that is covered in sea stars. They were washed ashore during a storm and now they can’t get back into the water. The man sees a girl who takes one starfish at a time and puts it in the water.
“He goes up to her and says: ‘Little girl, why are you bothering with this, you can’t help it, there are too many.’ The girl takes one, throws it in the water and answers: ‘I have just made a big change to this one.’ I thought, if I can give back to just one person and bring a little joy, it’s worth it,” she says.
Aldona has now grouped her songs on TikTok by category – from 1960s music to Lithuanian songs. She is happy that so many people from all over the world are listening to her them but assures that she doesn’t feel like going on stage anymore.
“At my age, I want peace,” she laughs.
And even though she has several million online followers, Aldona stresses that she lives a very simple life.
“My TikTok world doesn’t match my real life, because my real life doesn’t really have big things. I have friends, people like me, they know I can sing, but they don’t know I have TikTok at all because most people my age don’t use it,” she says.
Aldona remembers the moment she appeared on stage with Ben Abraham, an Australian folk singer and songwriter from Melbourne. At his concert in California, they performed a song together.
“I was playing the guitar and he was singing with me, and it was a big event for me, like a life-changing moment,” she recalls.
Aldona names South African-born American singer Gregory Alan Isakov as her favourite artist, saying she would like to record a song with him.
However, Aldona no longer writes music herself. According to her, when people send her so many offers and requests, there is no need for that, and it seems too lonely to do it alone.
“When you have a partner, maybe that’s when it gets interesting. I think I’m still waiting for someone to find me,” she laughs.
Aldona’s repertoire also includes Lithuanian works. The first one uploaded on TikTok is called Tėviškėlė, an endearing version of the word fatherland.
@algiepowers TĖVIŠKĖLE 🔸 VASARIO 16, 1918 🔸 Lithuania’s Independence Day, Lietuvos Nepriklausomybės Akta. My parents escaped Lithuania towards the end of WWII. My dad and his brothers and sister would always sing this song (written by Bronius Budriunas) when they got together during their reunions, harmonizing about their love & longing for their homeland. Tėviškele means homeland. And congratulations to @giruckas on his wonderful performance and arrangement of this song at his Utena Art School’s “Volunge Šauk Ąžuole” festival in Lithuania. I got to watch during a WhatsApp video call! Dovydas, I hope you got a good grade on this assignment. #lithuania #lietuva #independenceday #music #broniusbudriunas #utena #artschool #teviskele ♬ original sound - Algie Powers
Aldona calls it her favourite Lithuanian song.
“When my parents and brothers used to get together, someone would always start singing that song and everyone would cry. They all had very beautiful voices and sang about the homeland they left behind,” says Aldona.
She admits that she doesn’t know much about Lithuanian popular music, but a friend who lives in Lithuania showed her Gabriele Vilkickytė.
“I plan to keep on sharing Lithuanian songs,” she smiles.
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