2021 Recap...
[GIF DESCRIPTION: Marge, Bart and a Black man stare at Homer, who is dancing by shaking his hands and smacking his behind.]
I don't know how to fully approach a recap for this year. There are many angles I could take with this quick article. I have a decent year personally, a pretty good year musically but everything else has been atrocious.
January started off with me shielding out of the blue (thanks to the government's last minute U-Turn) and coming to terms with the severity of my disability. It was scary as I had a couple of flare ups that had me contemplating if I needed to go to hospital or not. Several blood tests did reveal that I had a viral infection which I would later realise that I suffer from post viral fatigue.
After I got my first single back from Fred - the producer of Someone I Never Wanted - but at the time we were still in lockdown which meant that recording a music video or any sort of promotional material outside was out of the question. (Un)fortunately, one thing about me is I don't like to hear the word "no". So, without much money and much less experience, I shot my first music video. It was a trying period as simultaneously my 9 - 5 was starting to become more demanding, I had just moved house and that was an adjustment to say the least. But I did it. And I'm proud of it!
Now would I have done it different, yes! But we move...
In the next few months; I released my first single, I left my job at the school, started recording my second single and started experience what South London has to offer after being a North London girl for the past 4 years.
In early August, I had an idea of re-working "Someone I Never Wanted" into a classical piece. This was such a fun idea in principal... I should have waited a couple of months though.
The whole recording was rushed and it meant I ended up working with people who were so unprofessional. A performance that was supposed to be fun, ended up being a chore. We also suffered from some technical difficulties which forced me to dust of my video editing hat that I purposefully hid in the back of my drawer due to the fact that I HATE VIDEO EDITING.
However the video itself, came out so beautifully. I took inspiration from Baby Keem's Family Ties music video and I realised that pushing the envelope a little really pays of creatively.
Now would I have done it different, yes! But alas...
Then we get to LOSER, probably the most fun I've had releasing a single. Juniper is such a lovely person and helped me gain perspective in this fast paced music industry. I executed the most technically demanding music video to date (which gained 100 views as I've checked last week, thank you so much for the support!). The fact that I pulled this out the bag in three months is no small feat.
Upon reflection, I've realised that there's a running theme with all my music projects. I took on the majority of the burden. Whether it be organising a listening party with very little help. Or not finding alternatives to funding my songs compared to funding it through not eating dinner for a couple of odd nights.
And this is not a flex. I'm not trying to brag about how I've done all of this by myself. No, this is a self-drag. I need to ask for more people's input. Ask for favours or for co-collaborations. We're all in this together so why not ask for a bit of help.
Thank you for the support and for the love shown this year. I had to really get out of my head to realise where I want to be. For now, I'm a little bit burnt out but I have a few mini projects before I even think about releasing something new. But my main mantra for 2022 is go hard or go home (with friends)...
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