We recently connected with Cassidy Brooke and have shared our conversation below.

Cassidy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

I wrote a song about a year ago called “Stardust.” I wrote it because I wanted to have a positive message on people like myself who struggle with mental health. Due to an opportunity with my school, I was able to record in a studio with my extremely talented friends. It was an awesome experience. After releasing it on Spotify, I had the most success I’ve ever had with a release. It was added to hundreds of playlists – when scrolling through the playlist titles, I was able to see the real people listening my song and how it impacted them. It was super rewarding to know that my art was having positive impact.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I grew up in the Midwest and was fortunate enough to have had access to music for my whole life. I grew up in a musical family and was consistently surrounded by some sort of art form. I remember listening to music at a young age and being fully taken over by it – there just something about it that I was in love with. I also started writing music at a young age. I have memories of sitting at a piano around age 8 playing simple piano progressions and making a song out of it. I dreamt of being a musician when I grew up. As soon as I could, I joined band and choir and continued those activities throughout middle and high school. During high school, I grew serious about music and decided to focus solely on it. I starting writing seriously and learned how to record my own music. After releasing my first song, I decided I never wanted to stop creating. There was something so rewarding about creating something from scratch and watching it come to fruition. Plus, I realized that I could use my music to make people’s lives better. It was then that I realized this was something I was going to do forever.

I decided to move to Phoenix, Arizona to study music after I graduated high school. With one year of college left now, I focus on songwriting, piano, and vocals while also learning music business and admin. Current highlights include being a member of the band Marloma, working for the Recording Academy as a Grammy U Ambassador, and starting my own band. After graduating, I plan to get a job in the music industry while writing and performing.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is being able to make small steps towards my goals everyday and eventually see it all pay off, such as releasing a project or performing a show. It is so special to look back on different milestones and see how far I’ve grown. Another super rewarding aspect is the positive impact I can have on others, such as seeing a lightbulb moment go off for a student when I’m teaching them and knowing that I’m making a difference. Plus, I get to do what I love everyday, and that’s sick.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

When I was 17, I noticed over a period of a couple weeks that I heard ringing in my left ear. I initially thought it would go away, but it persisted. After going to an ENT, I was diagnosed with sensorineural hearing loss. Something didn’t feel right though, because my hearing fluctuated. I went to a doctor specifically for ear problems, where I was diagnosed with Cochlear Hydrops, a form of Ménière’s Disease. I had to get steroids injections into my ear drum and countless hearing tests to try to save my hearing. I experienced loud tinnitus that made simply conversations difficult, but worst of all, it interfered with music. It was so scary knowing that my hearing could be permanently altered, my future plans changed, and my passion unable to be continued to its full capacity. However, during my doctor appointment to get fit for a hearing aid, my hearing had returned. We took 3 hearing tests to make sure there wasn’t faulty equipment and the audiologist said she had never seen this happen before. Without any explanation, all I can say is I’m so grateful that my hearing came back. I still experience slight symptoms, but nothing like it was before. If anything, this experience inspired me even more to do what I love everyday because you never know what will happen.

Contact Info:

• Website: cassidybrookemusic@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/cassi_bp
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassidy-p-509762219/