We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Gussie B a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Gussie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I went into journalism for my career, and I have been working in the breaking news industry for 10 years. People don’t realize that a lot of what the modern day journalism industry is is reporters watching witness videos of the worst things that happen in the world daily, and repeatedly having to watch them in order to verify them to use them on the news. This causes a tremendous amount of vicarious trauma, and after 10 years of doing it for my career, the trauma started to come out in persistent migraines and horrible nightmares. In December 2023, I made the difficult decision to quit my full-time job at NBC News in order to heal my own mental health and find myself again. I’m a classically trained pianist who dabbled in some covers over the years, but as soon as I quit, I began to really sit at the piano and write. I wrote about my experience, the pain it caused me, and the systems of capitalist oppression that make it difficult to carry on a balanced and healthy lifestyle, among other things. Both my music and lyrics are a reflection of reporting on others for my entire career. It feels really good to be able to produce something of my own that I love, and not have to justify it to anyone.

Gussie, 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?

I write film scores, songs with vocals and lyrics, and I am open to writing music for tv, ads, etc. I am influenced musically by Chopin, Sarah McLachlan, Fiona Apple, Tori Amos, Kate Bush, James Blake, Billie Eilish, and Rosalia, among others. Lately I have been really inspired by A.G. Cook’s production style paired with Charli xcx’s songwriting. I produce my own music on Logic and am well-versed in the sounds of several different genres. I would describe my composition style as navigating the best mix of classical and indie songwriting.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

Putting yourself out there as an artist is extremely vulnerable, especially if you’re a person who feels ambivalent being perceived in general. Audre Lorde wrote:

“In the cause of silence, each of us draws the face of her own fear — fear of contempt, of censure, of some judgment, or recognition, of challenge, of annihilation. But most of all, I think, we fear the visibility without which we cannot truly live.

And that visibility which makes us most vulnerable is that which also is the source of our greatest strength. Because the machine will try to grind you into dust anyway, whether or not we speak. We can sit in our corners mute forever while our sisters and our selves are wasted, while our children are distorted and destroyed, while our earth is poisoned; we can sit in our safe corners mute as bottles, and we will still be no less afraid.”

This is something I keep in mind for artistic expression as well, especially as an independent and queer woman. When your art truly comes from your heart, it can be very tempting to keep it inside for fear of it being misinterpreted, diminished, or ignored. But if you open yourself up to sharing it, you lead yourself down a path of love and connection that grows exponentially as you get used to being vulnerable.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Go to your local open mics, song nights, and small concert venues. Most incredible musicians are not being paid for their work, and they have to work to find time to make their art. It is rewarding to share it with your community, and the more receptive and embracing the community is, the more incentive these artists have to share their art regardless of engagement on social media, album or ticket sales, or any of those rather arbitrary numbers.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www,gussiebmusic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gussiebmusic
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sdkaufman
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-devin-kaufman-7b514937/
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/gussiebmusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrGOTU5LanQjGWmnE4CVtzA
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/gussiebmusic