Well, how are you holding up?
When the pandemic first hit, I found myself motivated to greet the uncertainty with presence and connection. My days were filled with cooking and yard work and long walks and community organizing and phone calls and these lovely, intimate virtual concerts with friends across the country.
By the time May rolled around, I was in a much different place. Were you too? The social isolation and simultaneous lack of alone time (the joys of partnership!) compounded by the grief and economic strain just kind of knocked me off my feet.
I feel a responsibility, as an artist, to respond to the challenges we are facing as a nation. This moment is demanding something new of us - to finally confront and dismantle the inequities that our nation was built on. How do we hold ourselves accountable? What kind of effective solutions can we manifest to address racial inequality, wealth/power disparities, access to housing and healthcare and education? How do we foster a more compassionate, more generous society?
I am hopeful and determined and also overwhelmed.
I don't have any new work to share quite yet, but I am doing a better job of taking care of myself. I'm starting to answer my emails in a timely manner and I'm even calling my friends back sometimes! Most importantly, I'm singing and daydreaming and making adaptive plans for my career as an artist.
The music industry isn't going back to 'normal' anytime soon - most in-person performances are being postponed until fall of 2021. Touring artists like me are going to have to be more creative than usual in the coming months and years about how we share our work and make a living. People like you, who appreciate and value live music, are going to play a big part in keeping it alive until we can be together again.
Take care,
Rachael