We recently connected with BEVERLEE and have shared our conversation below.

BEVERLEE, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you tell us about a time that your work has been misunderstood? Why do you think it happened and did any interesting insights emerge from the experience?

It’s usually subtle, but the most common misunderstanding is an assumption I did not produce the music or that I would not know a technical fact. Creatives despise when a family member asks “Do you still make music/movies/etc” with the assumption being they gave up. I wish more people phrased the question as “Did you produce this song?” which assumes a woman has that power.

Abby, 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 got my start touring with Barenaked Ladies and working a side hustle in advertising music. I’ve been making music my whole life, but it wasn’t until I came out at the age of 29/30 that I started to make music that was true to me. Whenever I’m writing music — for myself, another artist, or a film project– I keep going back to that essential question: Does this sound true? Are we smiling, dancing, or getting that little tingle in our chest? I’ve learned a lot through working in film/TV and ad music how important it is to communicate creative direction too. My idea of “edgy” or “emotional” can be totally different from another person’s, so I love the collaboration aspect of pulling references and connecting different perspectives. The music literally transforms into something beyond what either of us could have imagined!

I have written with artists like Shea Diamond, O.A.R. and Son Little, and on films like Sony’s “The Invitation.” I’m proudest now of my own project BEVERLEE which is in honor of my cousin Beverlee Jacobson who was murdered by her Hell’s Angels boyfriend in 1970. The music is about reclaiming identity and finding balance in this ever-imploding world. I released an LP “Purple Violin” and recently two singles recently “Balance” and “I am a Window” and have a bunch of songs I’m finishing up to release over the next year.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

When I started off as a songwriter, I stopped making music for my own project because someone said it would be confusing if I was both an artist and a songwriter. I have had more co-writing sessions and film/TV project offers BECAUSE of being an artist than if I were a ghostwriter, precisely because people see me and know what my music is about. Most famous producers, Jack Antonoff, for example, are also musicians in their own right, and that authenticity helps to sell them as master creators.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

Splice creator Kakul Srivastava had recommended Radical Candor by Kim Scott in a recent Billboard interview, and I absolutely loved it. Kim Scott comes from Silicon Valley tech world, but the principles of being direct but compassionate are universal. The book reminded me of an Anna Wintour Master Class where she talks about rejecting designers’ work. If you leave the door open by saying “This doesn’t work because of this color or this season, etc.” the person will keep spending time trying to revise the idea and build resentment. If she rejects them by saying “This does not work for Vogue” that is enough of an explanation, and does not leave the door open for that idea, but allows them to create something new and better. I’ve applied this mainly in working with composers at my ad music company Tomgirl, but it works in songwriting sessions too. It is always worth trying another writer’s idea and seeing how far it goes, but it’s important to be direct when we have reached a dead end, and re-energize both creators toward another solution.

Contact Info:

• Website: beverleemusic.com + abbydiamond.com
• Instagram: beverlee_music + abbydiamondsupreme
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeverleeMusic/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abby-diamond-7336a944/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/i/flow/login?redirect_after_login=%2Fbeverleemusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKunNMnH3KKRirhnObhHXhw

Image Credits
Vaughan Larsen Weiyi Ang Reto Sterchi