We recently connected with Emma Bieniewicz and have shared our conversation below.

Emma, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Has your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?

Being in a creative field, comparisons are easy to assign.

When writing music, it’s a very personal thing. It can be really hard to feel like you’re finding yourself and your sound as an artist when social media is an open door to comparisons where countless others are doing what you’re trying to do – but with more eyes on them.

If you’re trying to sound like someone else, you’ll probably continue getting those references. You’ll continue to feel pigeon holed instead of finding your niche in a super saturated industry.

I don’t like to think of myself as doing anything revolutionary. I’m just trying to write like myself and write what I would want to listen to. Stick to your guns and feed your creativity in a way that allows you to be you and not just another industry copycat. Write what you want to hear and find what feels effortless.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I grew up surrounded by music. My dad was in a band (Jes Gru) before I was born and has continued to play out ever since. Music was something I always did for fun until I started considering what I wanted to study in college. Music was the only obvious choice for me. I started playing violin at 11 and decided to major in violin and viola performance. Since graduating in 2021, I have performed professionally in the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra and Holland Symphony and freelancing/teaching in West Michigan.

Performing my songs was never something I wanted to do. Songwriting has been such a great outlet for me over the years, and I felt like I should just keep it for myself. Being perceived is so funny that we all think about it too deeply. While in college, I met some great people who saw something in the snippets of the songs I posted on Instagram. Releasing “Lavender Hue” was unplanned, and no thought was given to the song’s release. It was a gift for my now fiancé. I wasn’t sure how Spotify worked and didn’t realize the song would take off like it did. Knowing that other people were resonating with my writing has spurred me to keep sharing my little songs.

If you told me three years ago that I would be playing shows, I wouldn’t believe it. Finding a really supportive and creatively encouraging team of people has made me want to become a better songwriter and performer. Balancing music as a job and hobby has been challenging – but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I’m very grateful to be where I am and surrounded by the people who are making it possible. None of what I am doing could happen without the team I have to ground and lift me up.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I can do this when I want. I don’t have to do it. Knowing that I can choose to take a break from playing or writing is really freeing. I love to put stress on myself trying to keep up with everyone else in the industry (I’m not even part of it). Reminding myself that I am not financially dependent on any of my creative endeavors is such a weight off my shoulders. It makes those achievements that came organically so much more rewarding. I wasn’t forcing myself to do it. I just wanted to.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Share their content if you enjoy it. Sharing their content on social media is a free and easy way to show your support for them and their craft. Smaller creatives also make very little money. Supporting an artist by attending a show, buying their artwork, or tipping them directly is such a great way to give them a little financial boost.

I also can’t stress this enough – creatives need to support creatives. Even if it’s as small as sharing something of theirs on social media.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.emmabieniewicz.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emmabieniewicz?igsh=aXA5dWVrbG44aXVw&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/ebieniewicz
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@emmabieniewicz?si=cQ0cl6IEzFW5ripk

Image Credits

Marco Miranda, Hannah Terwin, GLCO