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

Hi Lexi, thanks for joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on started out as a simple Audio Recording for a woman’s book. Nicole Beverly, in her book “Finding Nicole”, shares her journey from domestic violence victim to survivor. I worked on the project first as a studio assistant, helping my manager Jaunty Meek produce Nicole’s audiobook. But from our first meeting, I was so inspired by Nicole Beverly. She is such a gentle, strong, kind woman who went through a terrifying struggle and now fights for other women out there going through the same thing. In the back of her book, she has a poem that she wrote. I am a singer/songwriter by trade and I was so inspired by her and her story, I took her poem lyrics and turned it into a song. I called it “Finding Me”. I only did it as a gift to her and to let her know how amazed I was by her. Luckily, she loved the song so much. She first invited me to sing the song at one of her non-profit’s galas. Nicole is the Founder and President of The ENOUGH Initiative Domestic Violence Prevention Organization. The ENOUGH Initiative focuses on ending domestic violence before it starts by providing Education, Non-Violence Alternatives, Opportunity, Understanding, Growth and Hope to young adults and victims of domestic violence. At their annual gala, I sung our song “Finding Me” to a room full of domestic violence victims and survivors. There was not a dry eye in the room, including myself. It was such an incredible experience. And not only that, but Nicole’s book “Finding Nicole” is being turned into a movie and Nicole made sure that my song was the credit song to the film.
It was never my intention to sell the song or for it even to be released to the public. I was simply inspired by a strong woman and wanted to use my gifts to thank her. But the response to the song has been amazing. And I’m so blessed that my music can be used to help others feel connected and hopefully just as I was inspired by Nicole, perhaps my song can inspire others too.

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 am a singer/songwriter. I was always into music and writing but I only started considering it as a possible career when I got to high school. Then in 2010, I attended a talent search in Chicago where I met my manager Jaunty Meek. She is a music producer, agent, publicist, social media manager, media consultant- she literally does it all. And I wouldn’t be anywhere without her love and support. I’m so lucky to have been able to work with her for these past 10+ years. She’s taught me so much and I’m still learning everyday. Through her, I’ve been able to record and release my own songs, write songs with or for other artists, have my music placed in tv and movies, and have my music heard across the world. As a team, we strive to use our music to inspire others.
One of my favorite current projects is working with author Josef Bastian and his children’s chapter book series “Folktellers”. I’ve always been a nerd when it comes to Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter and I’ve written songs about both of those movie series, just for fun and because I love them so much. So when I got the opportunity to write songs for a fantasy book series, I was over the moon. And it was so easy for me because I’ve done it before! My team and I are currently working on an audiobook for the “Folktellers” books and a companion album of songs to go with the book and it’s been such a blast writing those songs. I can’t wait till we release it.
Anytime that I am able to challenge myself while songwriting is my favorite. I hope to continue to be able to write different kinds of songs for unique, inspiring projects. That’s what keeps me going.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Social media is a huge part of any creative industry nowadays, which can deter a lot of artists from pursuing their career. You either love it or you hate it. In the past, pursuing a music career meant writing music, playing shows, and finding a label to financially support, record, and release your music. In 2024, you can do all of that yourself. You don’t need fancy labels to help you but the one thing that is most important, is social media – which is not easy. It takes a lot of time to cultivate and maintain a following. And most artists would rather spend that time creating their art. Not everyone can afford a social media manager.
I go back and forth between loving social media and hating social media. But I will say, it has been a great asset to get my music out there. And I majored in film production so creating short TikTok videos for my music is still rewarding to me, creatively.
The most important thing to remember when trying to build an audience on social media is to be authentic. Be yourself. It’s not always easy but you will gain your fans and followers because they connect with YOU. I’m from Kansas City and I love their baseball team The Royals. I wrote a song about the Royals and posted it on YouTube and I gained so many new fans because they love The Royals, I love The Royals and they love that I love the Royals. It wasn’t fake and forced. It was genuine. Always try to be authentic when posting because that’s how your fans will connect with you and what will ensure they continue to support you.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist for me is being able to grow in my craft. I have been blessed to be able to work on so many different projects and meet so many incredible people and through it all, I’ve learned so much. The more I can learn and grow as a songwriter, the more I love what I do. I love being able to challenge myself, to write a new genre of song, to work with someone new, to push my voice to places. That’s when I feel like I’m excelling at my job.
For example, I’ve written pop songs since I was a young child. A pop song has a simple format and relatively simple catchy melodies. A couple years ago, I got the amazing opportunity to write songs for a musical out of LA. I have always been a fan of musical theater but I had never tried writing musical theater songs before. Truthfully, I always admired those who could write musical theater because it is so much more complex than a pop song, in my opinion. But I was ready for the challenge and I started writing. I wrote 4 songs for this musical and I was so proud of myself. It wasn’t easy but it was fun! And I can’t wait until I’m able to write more!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lexijonesmusic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexijonesmusic
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexijonesmusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/lexijonesmusic

Image Credits

Jaunty Meek, Nicole Beverly, Folktellers book series by Josef Bastian, James Meek