Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jenessa Noland. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jenessa, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you tell us the backstory behind how you came up with the idea?

Music has always been a big part of my life. I started playing trumpet in 6th grade. A fire was lit inside me, and I wanted to learn everything about music. In high school I also played French Horn and Mellophone. I wrote my 1st song “Jinxed” a trumpet trio, which received a superior rating at Solo and Ensemble my junior year of high school.

Then at 18 yrs. old I fell in love with this lead guitar player and singer of a band. Blue hair, long black trench coat and killer energy. He inspired me to learn how to sing. I fell in love with him and singing. Talk about feeling naked in a crowd! Playing an instrument and singing are 2 different animals. I’ve found that singing puts the musician in a much more vulnerable place, which makes the whole experience much more intimate. From my first introduction to playing an instrument, music has been my lifeline, my staple, my positive outlet, and part of my therapy working through childhood trauma & life.

Everyone has their own definition of what success looks like for themselves. I took a break from music for several years. During this time, there was a lot of turmoil in my life. When I started getting back into music, I realized just how healing and necessary it is for my own well-being to keep music as a top priority in my life. I consider the healing and the outlet for expressive creation that music brings to me a success.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Certainly! I am an artist, musician, and Mom to 2 wonderful young adults. I love creative work of all kinds, including decorative cooking and baking. One of my favorite things to do is design and construct Halloween costumes! I love life, and there are not enough hours in the day to experience all I want to.

I started singing at 18 years old in a rock Band named Aphrodisiac. Then at age 19 I started studying vocal jazz at De Anza Community College in Cupertino, Ca under the instruction of Internationally recognized vocal jazz instructor Roger Letson. I love singing jazz, and in addition also love singing anything ranging from Florence + the Machine to Amy Winehouse.

I provide jazz and cover songs for events. I have been hired for a range of events including impersonating Marilyn Monroe to sing Happy Birthday, singing at restaurants in jazz duos & trios, and playing out with my Amy Winehouse cover band!

I am currently very excited about my Amy Winehouse band, but I am also really enjoying expanding my repertoire and dusting off some old originals of mine! The main things I would like my potential clients to know is that I absolutely love what I do. I am a people person with years of customer service and am good at reading the room and predicting what the client needs before they know themselves. I work hard, arrive early, and consider the clients’ wants and needs my own. As a perfectionist I aim to please and am open to all feedback. As in any relationship communication is key, and I am quick to respond to text, email, or phone calls.

Another project very close to my heart is an annual fundraiser I volunteer for. It’s an alumni Big Band Jazz Dance every April for the high school I attended, Oak Grove High School San Jose, Ca. Chris Moura, the music director, is so inspiring and supportive. I owe much of my success in music to Mr. Moura. I am so happy to support programs that foster young musicians. If you are looking for a foundation to support, please consider donating to Oak Grove High School in San Jose California. ogbb.com.

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

After taking a long break to raise my 2 children, I started reentering the music scene in early 2019. I owe a big shout out to Amy Throckmorton of Luminary Arts, San Marcos Ca! Amy helped me get my voice back in shape and provided several opportunities for me to perform. Getting myself back out there felt really intimidating, and Amy was my biggest cheerleader. I am so grateful to her for all the help and guidance.

Unfortunately, in August 2019 I was diagnosed with estrogen driven breast cancer, which resulted in a lumpectomy and radiation. The following information is detailed to help the reader understand the complexity of my experience. I learned during this time that I was BRCA2 positive. Considering that my breast cancer was estrogen driven & I carried the BRACA2 mutated gene, doctors urged me to get a full hysterectomy. I opted instead for monthly injections of Zoladex. This is a little pellet, injected into the abdomen with a hollow needle that medically shuts the body down into menopause. I wouldn’t wish this part of my journey on anyone. Hormone replacement was and is not an option for me, so I was just thrown into full blown Menopause. After a few months of these injections, I decided to go forward with the full hysterectomy in August 2020. This procedure was the right option for me. The side effects of menopause, though still present, are less intense. This time was extremely trying. Holding onto the newfound continuance of singing live performances again helped me through this time immensely.

In July 2021 I met Danny Gonzalez & Jonathan Cohen. Danny introduced me to open mic nights at places like Black Rail Kitchen + Bar in Carlsbad, and Black Cat & Blind Lady Ale House in San Diego. Danny, Jonathan & I hit several open mic nights over the months. Memories of these times are priceless to me.

I started gigging again and life was good! Then in August 2022 (exactly 3 years later) I learned the cancer had returned. I knew my best option was a double mastectomy. I had a double mastectomy with DIEP flap reconstructive surgery in October 2022. The recovery was much more difficult than I could have prepared for. I am still healing, but I am now cancer free and am back to gigging!

My experience with cancer has resulted in a huge change in how I perceive and appreciate life. My message to the readers:

Stress is very taxing. Stress manifests in the body which can lead to major depression, anxiety, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer to name a few. I have found exercise, good sleep and breathwork to be my problem solvers for stress and overall wellness. Breathwork has had such an extreme and immediate effect on lowering my stress level, that I have and continue to take classes on healing others. I started my own breath healing practice 333Healer.

– https://www.instagram.com/333healer/

– https://www.facebook.com/333healer

– 333healer@333healer.com

This road with cancer has not only fine-tuned my awareness of what really matters to me but has also given me the strength to address the need for change in areas of my life, and my children’s lives, that do not align with my core beliefs and values.

How did you build your audience on social media?

The building of my social media actually started with a friend making me a Instagram page as a surprise. I’m not a big fan of surprises but this turned out to be a good one!

Advice for people just starting…I would say check out social media pages that you like. What do you like about them? What areas would you do differently?

I’ve found that observing and analyzing others’ social media to be a huge help in taking care of the “where do I start?”. And community is so important. Find people who are willing to teach you what they know. I’ve found meeting people in person to be the most successful way of not only building my audience, but also building my community.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenessanolandmusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenessa.sowell

Image Credits
http://www.gretadphotography.com http://www.don-hoekwater.pixels.com http://www.operasoapco.com Hector Florez