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

Emily, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

A couple years ago, I had the privilege of creating one of the most meaningful projects I’ve ever been a part of, with a group of amazing women. It started when my friend Brianna Hall Nelson and I were just daydreaming. What if she choreographed an original dance for one of my songs? We decided to see if we could get grant funding to create a dance music video for my song “Do You Think You Protect Me,” a call for ending violence against women. We brought in our videographer friend Michelle Truax, and she took the dream to the next level. What if we invited a whole group of women to appear in the video? Over a year, countless hours, and a few obstacles later (who knew you needed to get liability insurance to film in a park?), we had a video. We brought together a multi-disciplinary team including a photographer, dancer, and producer, all focused on this project that allowed our voices to be heard saying “Enough.” We partnered with Native Lives Matter and the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault, and were able to use the video project to raise money and awareness for those organizations. I continue to hear from people of all gender identities who were impacted by the song and the video. Connections like that remind me why I write music in the first place. But the most powerful part for me was the day we filmed. We stood out in the northern Minnesota cold for several hours as we filmed shot after shot. The women, from all different backgrounds and walks of life, donated their time. Other businesses and individuals donated food and coffee. I kept thinking someone would decide to give up and go home because of the freezing wind. But when I looked in these women’s eyes, all I saw was fire. You couldn’t have paid them to leave. They had a voice – and they had something to say. You can see the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXDu04S32cc

When I started writing songs in high school, they were almost all these passionate anthems about social justice. I slowly found that people sometimes became uncomfortable at my shows (and granted, I was laying it on a little thick). I think I internalized some of that reaction that I got, and for a long time, I steered away from writing songs that felt heavy, or confronting difficult issues in my writing. I wrote mostly about love and loss. Over the past couple years, especially since I became pregnant with my first kiddo, I started to feel this re-emerging desire and responsibility to write differently. To speak out on issues that felt too important to ignore. I’m also a journalist, so I do not identify as an advocate and I’m not political. But human rights and civil rights are not a “political” form of speech. My new EP coming out this year was largely born out of the fury I feel as a woman in this world, observing and experiencing the violence – physical and otherwise – against women, along with many other groups of people who are routinely marginalized and silenced. I’m still finding the balance here but I know I want to write songs that teach my son how to live in this world. And of course I’ll keep writing love songs, because who doesn’t like a good love song?

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a singer-songwriter from Duluth, Minnesota, on the shores of Lake Superior – the world’s largest freshwater lake by surface area. I now live in Minneapolis with my husband and my one-year-old son. My dad taught me guitar when I was a kid, and I’ve been writing songs since high school. I think when I first started performing, maybe around 17 years old, I realized how a song can connect with someone in such an intimate way. I never stopped writing after that. I play shows around the region, mostly in the Minneapolis area, and I also sing and collaborate on the music of others. I’m part of a songwriting group that tackles one song per week, and that has revolutionized my writing – helping me become more disciplined and creative. They’re not all Grammy winners, as I like to say, but the more I write, the more diamonds come out of the coal.
I have also worked composing scores for podcasts and documentaries.
I am not a full-time musician. It makes up a part of my work, along with journalism and podcast production – other areas I’m also passionate about. As I’ve gotten older I’ve had to think about what “success” means for me in my music. For many of us plugging away at our craft all over the world, there will never be a lightning bolt, a record deal, or a “discovered” moment. Maybe I thought more about that when I was younger, but today I like to focus on the joy and purpose I find in creating music I’m proud of. The unexplainable feeling that comes from writing a new song that didn’t exist in the world before. The catharsis of taking pain or grief, and turning it into something beautiful. The community and collaboration I find with other musicians in the studio or on the stage. And those moments where I find that someone new has connected with a song or a performance, where they say “You put what I was feeling into words I didn’t have.” I love music and I am so grateful I get to do this.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

One of the things I’ve learned to do is take advantage of community – and I mean that in the best way. Become a member of a local music association! Join a songwriting group! Some of the most beautiful experiences I’ve had in music are these connections I’ve made with other artists. I have found that it’s easy to feel isolated and like you’re going it alone. But if you look for those groups of people and make an effort to reach out, you quickly learn you have many advocates. I’ve benefited so much from groups like the Minnesota Music Coalition, and the Midwest Country Music Association. Those are just a couple in my neighborhood – you probably have some in yours, too. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, and reach out for community. It’s worth it! You don’t have to do it alone, and you don’t have to be afraid of other great musicians. They’re not your competition. We all do better when we all do better, and there’s room here for everybody. In fact, we need as many brave, kind and thoughtful artists as we can get to improve this wild world.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

You don’t have to choose just one thing. When I was younger, I thought I would eventually have to choose. Journalism or music. I studied journalism in school, but in my heart I always wanted to be a songwriter. I continued pursuing both, thinking journalism was more practical. Throughout college I was waiting for that moment where I’d have to pick one or the other – but it never came. Of course there’s an advantage to choosing one path and doubling down, but I have found so much joy in holding space for both of these things in my life. I talked to a group of high school musicians recently, and I said something like: You can be a musician, and your art can matter, and your music can be beautiful, EVEN IF you’re not a full-time musician. Even if you also have a job you love. Or, even if you have a job you hate! Music is inside all of us, and the world needs yours. Don’t let someone put an arbitrary standard on you of what it means to be a musician.

Contact Info:

• Website: emilyandthe35s.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilyhaavik/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emilyhaavikmusic/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-haavik-61430735/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/emilyhaavik
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@emilyhaavik3065
• Other: https://emilyhaavik.bandcamp.com/track/do-you-think-you-protect-me

Image Credits
Carly Danek Tom Smouse