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

Hi Harshitha, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

Going into music is always a risk. Even as a hobby. You’re always at risk of feeing vulnerable, disappointing yourself, hurting your feelings, etc. but you’re also at risk of not making enough of a living, not finding the right folks to work with, not finding the right outlet for your creativity, disappointing others, causing worry, etc. I had to contend with all of these when I reached the crossroads of either choosing music or another path. But I thought about the risk of not ever feeling the joy of making someone smile with the opening lines of my favourite song, not ever feeling the release of emotion in the chorus of an anthemic number that everyone knows the lyrics to and sings along with me, or never feeling the thrill of sticking the landing on a particularly tough passage that I’ve worked hard on in front of my peers.
There will always be risks. So why not choose what you love?
I made that decision later than many. I was 19. I had been singing and had taken lessons for most of my life starting age 6, but negative talk around me about taking such a huge risk deterred me. I didn’t think I could be “good enough” or that I had what it took to be “successful”. I’d later learn that those were subjective terms and didn’t really matter if I really wanted to do something for myself. But until I was 19, I said “I don’t know what I want to do, but it can’t be music”.
I then woke up one morning and suddenly realised I was already a musician and was already living the life I wanted to; I was singing in a few different bands, I was recording in the studio for professionals, I was starting to tour with a couple acts. All I was really doing was denying calling myself a professional musician because then I wasn’t really taking the risk of being a musician. Instead it was just something I did. It’s a weird thing to come into the realisation that you are already what you think you shouldn’t be and what you really want to be.
13 years later and I’ve stuck with it. It’s not that I haven’t questioned it or felt negatively about it, but I’ve grown with it and through it, and like anything in our lives, it’s something you choose to weather the changes with.

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.

I’m a performing and recording artist and music educator of Indian origin who grew up in Lagos, Nigeria. I’ve been working professionally in music for over 15 years now. Aside from music, I have a passion for social justice and use my voice to talk on issues of equity, discrimination, inequality, etc. while also volunteering locally and virtually as a peer support ally and resource for folks. My biggest strength and vulnerability is how diverse my life experience has been and the way it has influenced my musicianship. I don’t feel tied to any one culture that I’ve had the privilege of being immersed in and I think that definitely sets me apart. My versatility has been my best friend, but it’s also presented a challenge in people not being able to put a label on me and market what I do. But I’m extremely proud of treading that line and embracing all its messiness. Not enough people live in this grey even though deep down, they identify with it, and I want to normalise it.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

About 5 years ago, after a long time of feeling depressed, disconnected from music and frustrated with my career path, I was advised by my therapist to take a step back because my work as a musician was clearly one of the sources of my dissatisfaction. I spent a few months just going to therapy and working my day job as a music educator and administrator. In that process, I realised I had spent my entire career thus far doing mostly work that I thought and had been told that I ‘should’ be doing. I said yes to everything because everyone told me that’s what I ‘should’. Even if I didn’t really feel like it, I was fed the idea that this could be an opportunity I’d regret saying no to. I worked myself into the ground, burning myself out and just wanting to quit music. I made the decision right then that I would prioritise projects that made me excited or happy no matter the pay or time commitment or difficulty, no matter what people had to say about the marketability of the music or the people involved. That didn’t mean I wouldn’t do work that I didn’t love, but I prioritised my feelings about it and didn’t just tell myself to suck it up or do it because I ‘should’. I owned every yes and every no from then on. They were intentional and purposeful acceptances and denials.
Ever since, I’ve parted ways with many collaborators who didn’t share my outlook and were more concerned with their outcomes than my needs. They hurt less and less the more I do it, because I know I’m making room for more food and new adventures, and that’s really what it’s all about for me. I don’t want to take anything for granted and I want to always focussed on my happiness and health. Work will have ups and downs, but if you can still wake up every day and say to yourself “I’m living a great life and I chose it”, that’s amazing!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Rejection is common in the music industry. People often have very set ideas of what they want and they truly believe you’re going to deliver, but then you don’t. But it has more to do with what they had in mind, than what you can do. In fact, 99% of the time, it has nothing to do with you. But it’s tough to accept and move past. We want to believe we can do anything if we put our minds to it and we’re what everyone is looking for. I’ve been told no countless times in my career. I think the fact that I’m still at it is all I need to say about my resilience

Contact Info:

• Website: harshithakrishnan.com
• Instagram: @harshistar

Image Credits
@shashinnosamurai