We were lucky to catch up with Emily Hatch recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Emily , thanks for joining us today. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

Since I was a little girl, I knew that singing was my thing. That… and starting a business. I used to sign things and tell people that they should save my autograph, because one day, I would be a star and it would be worth money. I used to organize companies during recess. I would spend my weekends making up organizations that could help people. I would enlist the neighborhood kids, draw logos, and write mission statements. When I was 5, I got in trouble because I wouldn’t stop selling rocks to the neighbors. That extended to me selling rocks to OTHER people’s neighbors when we’d go visit people. I’ve always been extra.

Long story extremely short, I’ve been a single mom for my entire adult life. So, I’ve had to work multiple jobs to support myself and my child. However, singing was never negotiable. I knew that I would die without it. Almost 14 years ago, I was asked to start teaching voice. I then embarked on a never ending journey to help other people discover the magic they could create with their voices, so that they could feel the joy of vocal freedom too. At times throughout my life, I had to hold 3 or 4 jobs to support my music habit and my child… However, about 5 years ago, I was able to quit doing anything but music. Now all I do is make music. All I do is sing, and talk about singing with others. It’s the absolute best.

Along the way, I’ve had to learn (and am honestly still learning) that valuing yourself and your time is of the utmost importance. Gather information, always be hungry to be a better version of yourself. But know that you will never “arrive”. There may never be a moment in your life that you feel you have all your poop in a group. There’s something freeing about that. Because that means with every new opportunity, you will always feel at least a little bit like an imposter. So, don’t wait until you feel like you’ve “arrived” to value yourself and your time. Set your goals of what you want to accomplish. Say yes to the things that fall in line with those goals. Say no to the things that don’t. Take the time to ask yourself if you are doing things that are in line with what you’re good at and what you’re wanting to pursue. Eyes on the prize. I wish I had known that sooner.

The other thing that has made a huge difference in my life and career is knowing that fear will be on your journey as well. But fear isn’t a reason to stop. I have put myself in rooms with people I likely had no business knowing. However, just the simple action of pursuing knowledge and community with the best of the best, has led me to the life I have today. Don’t be afraid to ask. If you don’t, the answer is always no.

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

I have been singing since I was 3 years old. It’s never occurred to me that I should be doing anything else. Ever in my life. It’s never been an option. The only other thing I ever thought about was to talk to people about singing. Wait. I lied. For a brief moment , years ago, it dawned on me that I could possibly lose my voice one day, so I thought I should maybe make a plan in case I DID… So for about a month, I thought maybe I could make artisanal soap. I made one batch before realizing it’s not for me. Haha

I sing to people to (hopefully) make them happy. To help them feel a sense of escape, togetherness and joy, all at the same time. To let them know that they’re not alone. I also teach singing, for similar reasons. Teaching singing is a big responsibility. It is SO vulnerable to sing in front of other people. I know how scary it is, firsthand. I like to help people find freedom and empowerment in their voices. Your voice is a huge part of who you are, and I don’t take that lightly.

The problems I help solve for my students… Hm. At a basic level, I help people identify the reasons that their voice isn’t doing what they want it to do. I help them systematically resolve those issues so that they can be free to enjoy it without having to worry.

What sets me apart from others? I honestly think there are a great number of wonderful teachers and singers. I think what sets me apart as a singer is that I really want the people in the audience to connect to the music with me. And to connect to each other. I genuinely try to be the facilitator of that process; to be the facilitator of connection, joy and thoughtfulness. Maybe to even just be a little more conscious and thoughtful than when they walked in the door. It’s the same with teaching. I want to ignite connection to their song, to their body (their instrument), to themselves. I want them to find more value in who they are as a human, and what they have to say with their voice. What message they want to convey. Whether they want to perform to millions, or they’re just wanting to enjoy their voice, unimpeded. I LOVE decoding those mysteries with people quickly. So, they can get back to the beauty that is… them. I think that’s what a great singer and singing teacher can do. To me, that is important and powerful work.

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

I don’t think there is such a thing as a non-creative person. There are fields that are more concrete, for sure. For instance, many of my students are engineers, doctors and business owners that you would think of as perhaps “non-creatives”. I think the difference may be that the perception is there’s something different that drives a “creative” person in their work. “Creative” people are making a way to have hobbies be “jobbies.” People in “non-creative” work are driven perhaps by something else. However, I would argue that it takes a lot to go to work for 1/3 of your life and not be creative. There is a reason you do what you do. There is an aspect of your work that you greatly enjoy or feel passionate about. You have to be creative every day when working with other people.

When you have a job in the arts, people often look at you and think that you don’t have days you don’t want to go to work. They might think, “Well, it’s music… How can it be stressful? How could you not be thrilled to do it every day?” I dare say, when you are required to be somewhere at a certain time and expectations are put on you for that period of time… it starts to feel like WORK. No matter what. The challenge we all face, whether in a “creative” job or not, is to find the joy in that work. To dive into what our gift and purpose is there, and bring that joy to other people. Even remotely.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I’m currently unlearning the lesson “take all work that applies to you.”

There’s a certain amount of desperation we feel as entrepreneurs to be sure not to “fail” by not having enough work. It turns out, you can really screw yourself over by taking work you don’t really want. It can block you from accepting work that is more true to you. In short, I’m learning that it’s ok to say no.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.missemilysings.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilysparklechickenhatch/
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7w3dhDUZKxnMoxTvTGzeZ5

Image Credits
Available Light Photography Dyann Dierks Adam Sheridan