We recently connected with Annika Jayne and have shared our conversation below.
Annika, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
I grew up listening to classical music. My mother would listen to all the composers and until I was 11 that was the only style of music I knew. How I admired Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart for creating such beautiful music! I knew back then, this is what I must do – create music. When I was 12 I discovered pop music and a little later on Folk music with artists like Suzanne Vega, Francis Cabrel, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, and Jim Croce. That’s when I fell in love with the sound of the acoustic guitar and telling stories through song. I knew then that I didn’t want to create any kind of music, but write folk songs. I also desperately wanted to learn how to play the guitar. I had had piano and violin lessons as a child even though I loved them, I never really got into either instrument. But with the guitar, it was completely different! When I had my first guitar lessons, I couldn’t lay the guitar down. I wanted to learn chord after chord and play all these wonderful songs; and eventually write my own. When I was 16/17 I spent a year in Southend-on-Sea in England. That’s where I wrote my first song! I haven’t stopped since.
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.
My name is Annika Jayne and I write folk songs in three languages, English, French, and German. Well, actually that’s my stage name – Annika is my real name, Jayne isn’t. I came up with it when I was 16 and have stuck with it ever since. I grew up in Berlin, Germany, but have been living in Heidelberg, Germany for 25 years now. I’ve been writing songs for over 30 years. I started writing songs in English when I lived in Southend-on-Sea, England for a year in 1991/1992. I wrote my first song in French in 1995 and my first song in German in 2007. Although my mother tongue is German, my main writing language is still English. These days, sometimes the languages mix within a song, which is basically a reflection of how my brain works. I released my first album Fabulous Sceneries in 2010 and my EP Time To Spread Your Wings in 2020. I then discovered home recording and Fiverr and have been releasing singles, EPs, and albums ever since. I’m currently working on an album called Cats & Coffee Cups, which is an all-acoustic album with just guitar and voice. All my music is on Bandcamp, including some exclusive releases that you can only find there. I also release demos from time to time on Garden of Creation – that’s my subscription service on Bandcamp. It basically works like Patreon, except it’s on Bandcamp. But of course, my music is also available on streaming services.
As far as my experiences on stage, I started performing during my time at university in Heidelberg, taking the chance to play at open mic nights and festivals. For example, I performed during the Heidelberger Herbst festival and also played twice during the French Week in Heidelberg – a festival with all kinds of events around French culture. In between, I played smaller gigs, including two concerts in Paris. In spring 2014, after a baby break, I performed at the renowned Song & Talk at the Kaiserhof Hotel in Saarbrücken, a place where new singer-songwriters are introduced. Since then I have been performing regularly in the Rhine-Neckar region.
Apart from creating and producing music and performing, I also offer to play finger-picking guitar on Fiverr.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect is finding joy in creating and songwriting. There have been a number of situations where writing a song has helped me out of a difficult situation. Four years ago I had a hard day that left me feeling lost and overwhelmed when a song came to me and saved me. Two years ago I had a severe panic attack and again – writing a song helped me to calm down. But even when things aren’t difficult, creating music is all I am. Just last year someone was holding me back from making music, so much so that I started to lose myself. As scary as that was, it also made me realise that I need songwriting and recording like I need air to breathe.
The second most rewarding aspect is sharing my songs with the world. I don’t really care how many streams I get. Although it is lovely when people listen to my music, chasing streams can be exhausting. But a kind word or some form of encouragement makes my day! That’s why I prefer to engage with my audience on Bandcamp as it allows me to have a closer connection with them.
Another rewarding aspect these days is connecting and collaborating with other artists. It’s fascinating to step away from the boundaries of your own musical universe into another one – it really helps you grow as an artist.
Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?
There are actually a couple of books that have helped me. The first book that comes to mind is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. The second would be The Five Second Rule by Mel Robbins and the Kick-Ass audiobook. The third book I would like to mention is A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig. And lastly, Alice in Wonderland. So what do these books have to do with my journey?
The Alchemist is a book that found me when I was about to give up for the first time – interestingly, just like the character in the book, Santiago. With every line, it was as if the author wanted me to keep making music. He reminded me that my purpose in life was something I knew I wanted very early on – and the one thing I knew I wanted to do very early on in my life was create music. He also reassured me that “when you want something, the whole universe conspires to help you achieve it”. It was this book that kept me going.
However, when I started using social media – first MySpace, then Facebook – I was still in the old mindset that an artist had to be discovered by a record label. It was a very rigid way of thinking, a fixed mindset, and it didn’t get me anywhere. To be fair, in 2003 streaming was still in its infancy and nobody knew what was coming. Then suddenly there was this thing called iTunes and a few years later there was Spotify. To be honest, I hadn’t really grasped these changes – listening to music digitally felt a little strange after spending hours putting together the perfect mixtape. So I was still stuck in the old mindset that I needed to be discovered. Which, of course, never happened. Frustrated, I stopped making music for about a year, thinking it was impossible for me anyway. I deleted my Facebook artist page and didn’t even pick up my guitar. During that year I stumbled across Mel Robbin’s book The Five Second Rule. While Mel Robbins kept saying that dreams are important and worth pursuing, I still thought it was impossible for me. Then I read A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig. In it, the word “impossible” is a swear word among elves, and “an impossibility is just a possibility you don’t understand yet”. This sentence hit me like a brick! Could it be possible for me after all? A little later, Mel Robbins taught me about the growth mindset in her Kick-Ass audiobook and something clicked. When you have a growth mindset, you start looking for solutions instead of getting stuck in a situation and thinking you can’t do it.
The first songs came back to me and I hesitantly made my way back to social media. But something was different this time. Instead of going to social media with a fixed idea, I stopped and looked around. I didn’t really know where I was going. But then I started connecting with other musicians, taking it one step at a time. And what wonderful connections I made, what wonderful musicians I met, and what wonderful music I discovered! The Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland was right: if you don’t know where you’re going, it doesn’t matter where you’re going – as long as you’re going.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.annikajayne.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ajaynemusic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ajaynemusic
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annika-jayne-7458071a1/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Annikajayne
- Other: Bandcamp: https://annikajayne.bandcamp.com/follow_me YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Annikajayne Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1h4g1gQIAD8ZO9tRM7SKkF Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/de/artist/annika-jayne/1481014846 BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/ajaynemusic.bsky.social TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ajaynemusic SofaConcerts: https://www.sofaconcerts.org/en/artists/AnnikaJayne Fiverr: https://www.fiverr.com/share/W6ypw5
Image Credits
Zippo Zimmermann Anton Ritzhaupt (only two of the photos I uploaded)