We were lucky to catch up with NEAVV recently and have shared our conversation below.

NEAVV, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?

I don’t exactly remember the first dollar I made as a creative but I do remember the first time I made way more than a dollar and it was all thanks to a chance meeting in a pool. I grew up as a competitive swimmer and although I don’t compete anymore, I still swim lengths pretty regularly. At the time I was living in Toronto, Canada, and liked to train at one of the public outdoor pools in the west end. I usually keep to myself but that day a man in my lane commented on my butterfly stroke and asked about where I used to compete…. this is a very common thing in the fast lane of a public pool. We exchanged swimming histories and got to chatting. Turned out that he was visiting Toronto from LA to direct an ABC TV show that was filming in the city. I had just got back from LA after five months of living there, so our conversation naturally led to the fact that I was an artist. He asked me what my artist name was and then told me he would check out my music. We quickly exchanged pleasantries and went back to our workouts. I had zero expectations that this successful director would remember my artist name, let alone follow through with listening to any of my music. Keep in mind we met swimming in a pool, there was nowhere to write down anything. Later that day I got an email through my website from my new swim friend. He had found me, listened to my music, and loved it. He told me it was a long shot he would get the final say but he thought it would fit perfectly in the episode he was directing. As an independent artist, this was a pretty big deal but once again I was grateful he had reached out but did not expect anything to come of it. A couple of months passed and I had completely forgotten about the exchange when I got an email from him. Turns out he had put two of my songs forward for the episode and one of them was approved. I received the contracts shortly after and it was for a lot more money than I had ever made. In the end, almost my entire song was used and it was front and center in a scene with no dialogue. For years after, people would reach out to me because of that placement. It was an incredible gift and it is a constant reminder that anything is possible.

NEAVV, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is NEAVV and I am an alternative pop artist, songwriter, and producer currently living on Vancouver Island in BC, Canada. My musical journey began at the age of six after begging for three years to play the violin. Violin led to many more instruments, choirs, musical theatre groups, private voice lessons, bands, and eventually a Master’s degree in Opera performance. I had never anticipated I would end up as an alternative pop artist but I started writing songs while at music school and once I started I couldn’t stop. I always say that songwriting chose me and after that, there was no other option.

I have always had a hard time describing my music or comparing it to anyone else’s. Years of singing classical music combined with my obsession with mainstream pop and 90s alternative music has inspired me to create from a bit of a different place. I think that’s what makes my music and sound so unique. I have spent years studying pop music but it has never been my goal to sound like anyone else or recreate what is already happening. Over the years I have continued to work on my craft and learn new skills to remain current and self-sufficient when creating. Over the pandemic, I taught myself how to produce music, something I never thought I could do. Being able to release songs I’ve written, recorded, and produced is something I’m incredibly proud of. I hope that I can inspire more women of every age to do the same.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I think sometimes it can be hard for non-creatives to understand that for me, being an artist is a calling, not a choice. For years my mum would tell me I was getting too old, it was my last shot, or that it was time to get a real job. I know it came from love but she was so fearful of my potential to fail, that she couldn’t see my success and so neither could I. It took a lot of work to silence her voice in my head but I learned a lot from her. She was an artist herself but she was too afraid to fully commit herself to it. She couldn’t let herself believe that being an artist and pursuing a dream didn’t come with a deadline or that it could look different for everyone. For over ten years now I have supported myself entirely through my talents. It took a long time to be proud of that fact because in my head I hadn’t yet reached the milestones I thought I should have to deem myself successful. Being an artist is often a lonely, hard path to take. It’s filled with disappointment, self-doubt, and both societal and self-imposed pressures to succeed … don’t get me started on the impossible balance of being an artist and having to deal with social media. Trust me, there are days I wish I could give it all up but it’s just not an option. I am highly educated and know I could pursue a “normal” type of career if I wanted to but life would be unbearable. I’m just not designed that way. Ultimately my journey as a creative is about freedom. Creating, performing, and connecting with others through music is something I can’t live without.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I have had to pivot many times in my life and career but the most obvious one happened when the pandemic hit. I was living in Toronto at the time, a city full of musical opportunities, art, and connections but when the world shut down that was all gone. There were so many things I was grieving as an artist at the time but I was also recognizing so much possibility. For many years I had lived across the country, far from my family because up until that point Toronto was the logical place to be as a musician but the pandemic shifted all that. It no longer mattered where you were. Writing sessions became remote, my vocal students moved to online lessons and all of a sudden I could be anywhere I wanted. I had also recently lost my mum and being closer to family became a major priority in my life. Within a week of the shutdown, I gave notice on my apartment, sold most of my things, left Toronto, and headed out on a cross-Canada drive to go live with my dad on Gabriola Island in BC. Like most artists, I still struggled with the new norm but I made it my goal to use that time to learn how to be a music producer. With so much uncertainty in the world, I promised myself that I would become the type of artist who could write, record, and release new music no matter what the circumstances were. The financial demands of hiring a producer had always stifled my ability to release the amount of songs I was creating, so that was also a huge factor in my decision. At the end of the lockdown, I had completed several fully produced tracks and started releasing them. One of those songs, “White Flag” is being released February 23rd.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.neavv.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/iamneavv
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/iamneavv
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/iamneavv

Image Credits
Jumping photo & double exposure photo- Stephanie Artuso Live shot – Chanel Wase Headshot & Laundrymat shot – Gillian Thorne