Asa

Asa

Psychic, Speedy Gonzales, Daddy

“My gift is to really listen and experience a person in an extraordinary way. I have clairvoyant ability. I can see energy. I am an empath which means I have the ability to feel other people. I am also a medium, meaning I can listen to dead people.”

“ When I was 13, I had this very particular psychic experience with my mother. We were hiding from my stepfather who was a very dangerous person. We were in the car, when I had a flash vision and saw that we were being followed by one of his kids and his friends in three cars behind us. I saw that if we drove home they would tell my stepdad where we were, and he would come and steal the car that night. My mother ignored it and I was pissed—I knew this was going to happen. I was watching it. The next morning the car was gone. That was the first moment I woke up and understood I was psychic.”

“I came to New York when I was 31 and I only had three clients. In a year, I was earning more money than I ever had in my life. It spread like wild fire. I have never had a business card. Never had a website. Now I work in 18 countries.”

“When I was younger, I used to sneak out and go to New York City when I was a kid, just to hang out and be in the city. The people here felt real. I had a hard time relating to the suburbs. To the houses. To what people were doing there. I was gay. This was before I understood I was psychic, but I understood I was different. In the suburbs I was surrounded by people that seemed to be wanting to dress the same, be the same, do the same. So, I came to NYC and saw people being themselves. Sometimes they were real assholes, but I was still glad that they were being themselves. I’ll take that asshole being themselves any day, instead of someone trying to be like everybody else.”

“Over the years, I’ve seen that many of my New York clients who date experienced guys who talk about themselves all night long without asking any questions. New Yorkers are all driven, but don’t take the time to transition, to change gears. They are performers 24/7. Being around eight million people all the time makes it hard to exhale. I think the lack of ability to just be is an obstacle to many people here.”

“The thing is that New York City is an extension of your home. You don’t just live in your apartment in New York City. Your apartment houses you, but in many ways your home is more the city than it is your apartment. A big part of choosing a home in New York City is a question about what neighborhood can give you access to what you want. The city is why I am here. It’s this character in your life and it changes your personality.”

“ No New Yorker I’ve ever met is okay with just being boring or average or normal. They are looking for that edge.”

Q&A

What neighborhood do you live in? Upper West Side.

Best thing about living there? Riverside Park and Central Park.

Favorite neighborhood in NYC? West Village.

Favorite street to stroll? Any street in the West Village.

Why? It feels like home to me. I like that it still feels local.

Favorite restaurant? The Mermaid Inn, Upper West Side.

Favorite bar? Bar Centrale, Midtown.

Hidden gem? Cafe Habana, Nolita.

How to be(come) a New Yorker? You are an original, feel it, be it, live it. The outsiders are the ones who are imitating.

Your New York soundtrack? “So Much to Say” by Dave Matthews.

5 THINGS THAT TELL A STORY ABOUT ASA

CRYSTAL “I just got this from a woman I met at a spiritual conference when I was 19. She had a radio show, and after talking for five minutes, she said ‘you’d be great on the radio. Come on my show.’ I became a regular, then co-hosted and did spiritual readings. We became real friends. She is crossing to the other side soon, so she gave me this.”

BOYFRIEND “He is my partner. We’re almost eight years in, and still going strong. I don’t think I’ve ever had someone show up for me quite like he has.”

EAGLE FEATHER “I guided a girl spiritually for a while who got married to a medicine man from Texas. They came to New York and asked if he could get a reading, so we did a trade for this eagle feather. It is sacred.”

FRAMED GODSON “I have helped raise him and have participated in his life since he was two. He is just very special to me.”

DRUM “I used to run a metaphysical store and I got this from a crystal dealer. He traveled in a pick-up truck full of crystals and a shot gun. He was a spiritual-medicine kind of guy, who also was an artist. He drew on this drum and gave it to me.”