Meet Stephanie Meyers | Musician & Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Stephanie Meyers and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Stephanie, have you ever found yourself in a spot where you had to decide whether to give up or keep going? How did you make the choice?
This question is particularly poignant for me because it’s one that I’ve grappled with especially in the last several years. I’ve struggled with existential questions surrounding my worth, the worth of my self-expression within the context of a seemingly oversaturated musical landscape, and whether or not my music-making is really in service to the world at large or merely a manifestation of my own vanity and narcissism. In all honesty, I anticipate grappling with these questions for many years to come. What I’ve realized through this questioning is the value of perseverance. Keep going, even when you feel like giving up. There are innumerable talented artists in the world and many of them don’t “make it” (whatever that means within an individual’s definition of success) because they give up on themselves. It’s one thing to give up a dream in favor of achieving another dream, but giving up a dream due to fear of failure is a surefire way to sabotage the immense efforts that have gone into cultivating an artistic practice. If I give up, I’m guaranteeing I won’t succeed. I’d rather keep trying, even when I feel like giving up. Personally, I’d rather spend the rest of my life working towards a chance of success than sabotage my efforts due to fear or exhaustion. I’d rather lead a life full of failures than a life full of inaction; at least it takes effort to fail. Whether or not a person chooses to keep going is entirely up to them, but I always hope that folks with a dream can find the strength to keep pursuing it. Success is far likelier for those who are brave enough to keep working towards it.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My music is a theatrical blend of ham-fisted classical and cabaret pop. It’s piano-driven, often wordy, and always attempting to balance harmonic complexity and simplicity. Lots of off-kilter chord progressions, lots of ambiguous jazz and classical influences, lots of trying to balance sarcasm with earnestness in the lyrics. I started writing songs as a teenager in an effort to subvert the debilitation of grief and trauma into tangible, musical affirmations that could help me reorient in moments of doubt. For me, songwriting has always been a coping mechanism. My biggest hope is that my own cathartic process of musical self-expression can strike others in a way that helps them feel witnessed and empowered through shared experience and musical connection. The past seven years of my life have been unfortunately marked by chronic illness, but music has been a consistent and invaluable lifeline in moments where my other capacities felt limited. Because of these health issues, I’ve been much slower than I’d hoped to be in building my career and releasing music. Even so, challenge is inherent to growth, and my experiences with adversity have helped me cultivate greater levels of patience and mindfulness, which in turn strengthen both my musicianship and personhood.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Born and raised in Los Angeles, I find it very difficult to narrow down the myriad gems in this city to a single recommendation. That said, Gilbert’s El Indio is one of my favorite restaurants on the westside. Family owned and operated since 1974, Gilbert’s serves incredible food with the utmost reverence for native Mexican culture and the indigenous peoples of Latin America.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d love to shoutout Urban Voices Project – a nonprofit organization dedicated to amplifying artistic expression through the healing power of music to improve wellbeing, strengthen social networks, and inspire individuals marginalized by homelessness to be their own best advocates. I’ve had the privilege of teaching with Urban Voices Project for the past three years, and working with this organization has been a continuous lesson on the importance of music as a vessel for healing. It’s an honor to work with such an exceptional community of artists who so beautifully utilize music as a means to transcend adversity and trauma. In a city with over 66,000 unhoused people, it feels increasingly important to emphasize the importance of homeless services that serve people holistically. Urban Voices Project centers the all-important lesson that music is an inextricable human right. The work they do is invaluable, and seeing the way UVP’s programming catalyzes individual and community healing is profoundly motivating. In a world where systemic oppression is consistently normalized and even lauded, it is incredibly meaningful to see an organization working to empower the often disenfranchised individuals and communities whose voices deserve amplification.

I’d also love to shoutout Jim Sher, and the Sher Institute of Astrology & Metaphysics. I’ve been practicing astrology since early childhood, but started studying with Jim when I was 18 years old. While I regard most popular astrology as overly reductive clickbait, Jim approaches the field with an astonishing degree of holism grounded in his previous history as a social worker and deep understanding of archetypal theory. I am a huge proponent of traditional therapy, but I would not be where I am today without Jim’s invaluable teachings. Whether or not you are a believer in astrology or a fan of the medium, I would strongly recommend his classes to anyone interested in comprehensive personal growth, existential inquiry, and a uniquely integrative approach to mindfulness.

Website: stephaniemeyersmusic.com

Instagram: instagram.com/stephaniemeyersmusic

Facebook: facebook.com/stephaniemeyersmusic

Other: stephaniemeyers.bandcamp.com

Image Credits
1) Gregory JM Kasunich 2) Jordan Piantedosi 3) Jess Graham 4) Jordan Piantedosi 5) Gregory JM Kasunich and 6) Cortney Armitage