Wrapping up 2016

2016. What a year.

The Worst Year Ever, Until Next Year is an interesting read from The New Yorker:

“There is no limit to the amount of misfortune a person can take in via the Internet, and there’s no easy way to properly calibrate it—no guidebook for how to expand your heart to accommodate these simultaneous scales of human experience; no way to train your heart to separate the banal from the profound. Our ability to change things is not increasing at the same rate as our ability to know about them.”

— Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker

Despite the heartache and tragic events that happened in 2016, it was a great year for music. It provided me solace during moments of transitions this year and as always, gives me hope for the future. Thank you to all the artists, producers, engineers and writers working on their craft day in and day out.
 

16 of ’16

I selected 16 of my favorite songs of 2016. It’s a bummer Frank Ocean’s Blonde isn’t on SoundCloud, otherwise “Nights” would have been in there too. Anyway, peep the playlist.

Stillness in Wonderland

I've also been listening to Little Simz’s Stillness In Wonderland on repeat. In addition to the album, she has released a short film, a comic book series written by Eddie Smith and illustrated by McKay Felt and will be running her own mini music festival in February in London. I’ve had the honor to work with this hard-working, intelligent and talented artist. To see her grow over the years as an independent artist with an equally hard-working, passionate team is inspiring to say the least. Stillness in Wonderland is a testament to that growth and the journey of progressing forward. In every song, there are words that resonate with me immediately. It's an empowering album that's been comforting me and guiding me through my own journey. Cheers to artists who speak their truth. This Fader review "Little Simz's Stillness in Wonderland is the Year's Last Great Album" is a great read too.

Women’s Circle Panel

Ascension of the Female Artist: Mental, Physical, Spiritual + Emotional Health of the Woman

I attended a wonderful event on Sunday afternoon called Women’s Circle panel, organized by writer Denita Soleil that featured a panel of amazing women across various creative fields:
 

Tiffany Gouché, producer and singer-songwriter; Dana Washington, a photographer, director and writer; Kilo Kish, a designer, conceptual artist and vocalist; and Natasha James, a vegan pastry chef and owner of Rawcells, a vegan treats business.

Words from Denita in the program:

“The Women’s Circle was originally created to empower women through a foundation of sisterhood, encouragement, positivity and love. The goal is to always welcome my sisters into a safe space where we can be ourselves, express how we feel, share our work and encourage each other on a path to become the best version of ourselves. We live in a time where we need each other more than ever and this is why we have all gravitated to each other today. It is our time to speak up, it is vital for our voices to be heard. I spent so much time suppressing my voice because I didn’t know there were people out there willing to listen, it’s something I still do to this day, but I want you all to know that I am here for you. I hear you, I see you, and your voice matters to me. I thank you for taking time out of your schedule to be present with me and I hope it was worth your while.”

— Denita

It was awesome to share space with women of all walks of life and come together to build and share words and feelings openly, to promote the importance of community and self-care. It was also an energizing event that promoted reflection and positivity as the new year is on the horizon.

Here are some other takeaways:

• "There’s space for what you want to do." This was some of Tiffany Gouché's encouraging words in response to a question about accepting herself as queer that catalyzed her to write music for women and promote love through her music. It's a great reminder for those who are starting anew or consistently working at their craft, that there is space for you in any field or arena, wholeheartedly as you are. Even when you feel unsure of where you're going and your current path feels confusing or frustrating, don't give up and let fear of belonging get in the way. Create space, own your space and promote your space.
   
• Never compromise your integrity. Striving for success is great, but don't cut corners to get there. Be honest, do the right thing and stand by what's right and against what's wrong. Stay aligned with your moral compass. 
   
• Boundaries are important. Opening up yourself to people is great to build connections, but there are some things you should keep and protect for yourself. Little Simz sings in "Doorways + Trust Issues," "Everybody’s got some sort of faith inside them, gotta find where it lives.” This line stood out to me. I understood it two-fold: it’s about finding your light and faith that keeps you going and moving forward. It’s also the place inside your heart that you must keep sacred and golden so as never to compromise yourself. Maya Angelou has shared the same nugget of wisdom too as the best advice she's ever given: "There's a place in you that you must keep inviolate, pristine so no one has the right to treat you badly..."
   
• Calm the voices in your head when you find yourself overthinking and letting fear and doubt cloud you.  You are not your mind. The mind is so powerful that it can distort reality and narrate your experience in a way that you think you should be living. When you find yourself overwhelmed, step back, pause, take a deep breath and proceed.

With all this said, I hope your 2016 is wrapping up well. Thank you for supporting me and subscribing to these letters. As always, feel free to hit the reply button to say hello and share how you've been.  

Have a joyous holiday. I hope it's filled with lots of love, gratitude and rest. 

Much love,
Jane

Three Months in LA

It’s been three months since I left the Bay and have returned to LA. As 2016 nears its end, I've been doing a lot of reflecting. I'm grateful to keep things moving amid all the lows and highs experienced this year. How is 2016 drawing to a close for you? 

A few things and learnings since I've returned to LA:

• After all these years growing up relying on my family and friends for rides and relying on public transportation in the Bay, I purchased my first car. It’s an investment in my return to LA as I replant myself here. I also love any opportunity to drive for the sake of bumping music.
   
• Through this time of massive transition, I'm grateful to be surrounded by family and friends. Don't forget to tell your loved ones how much you love them. People ask me how it's like to temporarily live back home, often with a tinge of sorrow in their voice. Don't feel sorry for me, I say. It's certainly an adjustment after having lived independently and apart from my family for the past 10 years, but I’m saving money and there's nothing like my mom's cooking. Living back home doesn't deserve the stigma it receives especially given other cultural reasons as to why an individual might live back home. Anyway, as Busdriver sings in "Worlds to Run:" "I can run the world from my mama’s house."
   
• My dog Kiwi has been a blessing to be around every day. She has taught me to always show love, be present, take the time to pause and soak in the sunlight. These things are easy to take for granted. I want to start organizing some hikes and walks. Dog therapy is real.
   
• I’m reconnecting even more deeply with some great people I’ve met over the years but mostly knew through a professional lens when I was working at SoundCloud. Being independent has allowed more room for connection in other ways. Opening up to people can feel scary sometimes, but it also builds bonds of trust. In doing so, I’ve allowed myself to be even more comfortable with who I am and be proud of all my accomplishments up to this point. I've received different signals that have encouraged me to know that the leap I’m making now is the right one for me. Author Bob Goff's tweet is a solid reminder: "Everyone's leap looks different; make yours, not some else's. Comparison is a punk."
   
• Good vibes only: If you find those whose company you enjoy, stick with them. I’m grateful for new people I'm continuing to meet too. I've learned something new or interesting that's resonated with me from each new person I've met so far. I'm also meeting more people from the Bay Area than I thought I would, which is exciting because my time up there has shaped me into the person I am today. I do miss my peeps in the Bay (you all know who you are) and look forward to visiting again soon.
   
• Daily meditation practice has been transformative. I'm learning a lot about myself and teaching myself the importance of patience and self-love. It’s okay for me to take the time I need in my own pace. It's okay for you to take the time you need in your own pace too because your journey is yours, and my journey is mine. We're all experiencing different things.
   
• Writing has been rewarding, challenging, frustrating and therapeutic all at the same time. Ultimately, it feels good to devote my time and energy into my craft. I haven't felt this creative in a while. Being back home has also opened up the memory floodgates. I’ve come across all my old journals, creative stories, newspaper clips and more that serve as reminders that I’ve always been and will be a writer.
   
• I’ve been digging into my interviews I’ve conducted over the past few months and published two stories so far on producers D. Sanders and Free P (published this week, see below). It's also fun learning the ropes on audio editing and compiling interview clips. It's a lot of effort to do all this on my own, but it's fulfilling. I have more interviews to sort through, including some from my time in Atlanta, so stay tuned. If you have read or shared my post, or listened to the interview clips, thank you for your support.

Produced By: Free P
Channeling compassion and empathy into beats

I interviewed Free P on his journey so far as a creator. Check out the tracks he’s produced for artists like The Game, Wiz Khalifa, Lorine Chia, Isaiah Rashad, Michael da Vinci, Tut, Two-9 and more. 

From my writer's note I'll be including in my stories moving forward:

I was first introduced to Free P through rapper Rikki Blu whom I first met at SXSW in 2014. Free and I instantly connected about our shared sense of self-awareness and the journey of trusting the process, a major theme that’s come up especially this year and is the inspiration behind my pursuit of stories in music.

Free is also a good friend of D. Sanders whom I first profiled in this series, and they’re part of the same creative community that’s been bubbling up out of Tennessee, home to one of my favorite artists Isaiah Rashad.

In fact, Isaiah was a key motivator for me to write about producers since I’ve been as much a fan of his writing and rapping as his production; the story of his come-up with his producers has been inspiring to learn so you’ll hear from more of them.

I’ll be continuing to profile more artists with roots in the South and beyond from interviews I’ve collected in the past few months so stay tuned.

Thanks for being a subscriber to my letters and reading this. Reach out if you want to say hey.

More soon,
Jane

Settling In

Sun setting from the 5 freeway on my move back down to LA.

I'm humbled and moved with gratitude for all of you who took the time to read my post on reflections of 5 years spent learning and growing at SoundCloud. Thanks, too, for making it to the bottom of the post to subscribe to these letters that I’ll be sending out every now and then. As a reminder, they'll contain a random assortment of words, tunes and bits and pieces across the Internet that inspire me and/or spark vulnerability, courage and self-love. Thanks for joining me on the wave.

Takeaways

Publicizing my experience illustrated to me how important it is to share personal perspectives in one’s own words. Sharing personal stories enriches existing connections and opens up room for new connections to emerge. I had certain outcomes in mind but didn’t expect some of the reactions that the post ended up receiving.

I’m proud of my courage. Over the past few years, I never put out anything personally written into the web, largely led by fear. Acknowledging and journaling about my fears of failure and rejection overtime helped. Reminding myself that fear was preventing me from expressing my own creativity gave me the push I needed to challenge myself to find out how far I could leap without being too concerned with where I’ll land. Fears will inevitably continue to crop up, but we learn by doing, right?
 

From LA to the Bay to LA

I’m officially back in LA now. I harbor a mix of emotions. Everything feels familiar, and decompressing has been a blessing. On the other hand, there’s a lot I’m readjusting to–being back at my folks’ place temporarily (cue Busdriver lyrics "I can run the world from my mama's house"); needing to get a car soon (I haven’t consistently driven in 10 years); and learning to find balance among all the activity and energy that buzzes in this city. It feels like I’m going through adolescence again in a way.
I’m grateful for how much I’ve been bent, shaped and grown by the Bay Area in the last 10 years though. Saying goodbye to the Bay in my last week especially was heavy and bittersweet. Oddly and maybe sadly enough, my impending departure sharpened my ability to be more aware of the present moment. I tried to capture and store all the images, moments and associated feelings in my head as clearly as I could–studying the unique architecture of all the homes and buildings sprawled across SF a little closer and savoring final laughs, cries and hugs with loved ones.
 

Transitions

Goodbyes and transitions are never easy. Throughout these past few months of dealing with feelings of change, there were certain songs that resonated with me strongly, whether in lyrical or musical form. I’ve compiled them into a playlist here.

Artists featured:
Daniel Caesar, Childish Major, Dave B, Kenny Segal and Busdriver, A.CHAL, Max Wonders, Isaiah Rashad, Free P, Tilla, Jay Prince, Raury and Falcxne.

Question for you: What are some of your memorable songs you associate with times of transition or challenges you've experienced?

In support of...

If you’re based in LA, come out to support Tiffany Gouché’s headlining show with live band at The Echo on Monday, September 26. Growing up in a family of musicians in Inglewood, Tiffany Gouché is a true musical talent. Soulful, authentic sounds this way.

My friend Melissa is opening New Women Space in Brooklyn, a dedicated project and community event space for women. She's launched a Kickstarter to get things shaking, so please help support if you can.

That’s it for now. More random bits to come next time. I welcome your feedback and thoughts, so hit reply if you feel like it.

Thanks for reading. ‘Til next time,
Jane