Ever since I was little I loved to perform. There was always something so blissful and magical about it. I felt at home on the stage, singing my heart out, while I painting a picture with my words. As I got older, that love didn’t diminish – much quite the opposite – but there was one small thing I couldn’t get over. I really really loved singing slow, sometimes sad, songs.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I listen to all types of music, dance to all types of music. Bottom line, I LOVE music!
When I first started writing music, I quickly became aware of my affinity for slower songs. Almost every song that I wrote was focused around a feeling, an experience and they would regularly take on the form of a slow, sweet melody and thoughtful, stirring lyrics. I had a hard time playing these songs out at open mic and shows on a regular basis, because quite honestly, I thought that I would be boring my audience. I mean, who really wants to go to see a show of slow songs?
Just several years later I would find how grateful I am that this was where my heart lies.
I’ve found that we can very easily live in a society where we shun, belittle, and ignore our feelings. People tell us we shouldn’t feel a certain way or that we are over the edge, etc. Personally, I don’t think that we feel enough – at least not what truly matters – and that’s why I like my slow songs. They give a moment of pause, invite you to take a closer listen, feel with your heart, really feeeeeeel.
They broach all the “dangerous” subjects. Love lost, sticky situations, things that would rather be left swept under the rug. They bring all those feelings to the forefront and shine a big beautiful warm light on them as if to say “Hey, it’s alright. I’m here with you and we’re going to do this together.”. Slow songs make me honest, they help me get in touch with the things I’m not yet ready to say while helping me build the foundation on which to lay my own words. They help me to be real, human, compassionate and authentic. That is what I want to give my audience. The peaceful solitude of a slow song, to stir at their heart strings and to bring all that we truly can be into the light, all the while saying “I am here. We are in this together and thank you, thank you, thank youfor being brave enough to venture into the unknown with me.”
Sam Smith gave me the courage to finally embrace what has always been a beautiful love affair with slow songs. He helped me to realize that the absolutely beauty of who we are is when we make our own way instead of following the “shoulds”. His debut album is 90% slow songs and I could not be happier. Thank you for being brace and shining your beautiful light so that others may find the courage to shine their own. This one’s for you, Sam.
“All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken, the crownless again shall be king.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien
Spring is such a beautiful, radiant time. Life is popping up from the ground, blossoming on trees, singing through the air and chittering through the forests. Spring is a time for fresh starts, for cleaning out the stale and stagnant, for breathing new creation into old ways. I wanted to share a few of my favourite quotes and uplifting words from some wise folks to ring in this brand new season.
Happy Spring Y’all!
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“You can cut all the flowers but you cannot keep Spring from coming.”
― Pablo Neruda
“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.”
― Margaret Atwood
“Is the spring coming?” he said. “What is it like?”… “It is the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling on the sunshine…”
― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden
“On soft Spring nights I’ll stand in the yard under the stars – Something good will come out of all things yet – And it will be golden and eternal just like that – There’s no need to say another word.”
― Jack Kerouac
“She turned to the sunlight And shook her yellow head, And whispered to her neighbor: “Winter is dead.”
― A.A. Milne
“Spring is the time of year when it is summer in the sun and winter in the shade.”
― Charles Dickens
“It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.”
― Rainer Maria Rilke
“If people did not love one another, I really don’t see what use there would be in having any spring.”
― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables
“The splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not rob the little violet of it’s scent nor the daisy of its simple charm. If every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness.”
― Thérèse de Lisieux
“Spring is nature’s way of saying, Let’s party!”
― Robin Williams
