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

Hi Julia, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

I feel lucky to have been a part of many interesting projects over the years and each one has held great meaning to me. My main form of expression has always been music and it’s a constant flow of self exploration. However, I find myself looking to projects outside of my usual work for chances to explore and try new things. I’ve found this to be a perfect way to collaborate and get inspired by fellow artists.

Right now I’m completely in love with my new band, MOON RADIO, that I started with talented vibraphonist, Yusuke Yamamoto. What began as a co-writing experiment has quickly turned into one of the most meaningful collaborations in my life. Something about our musical tastes and ‘out there’ ideas clicked instantly when we wrote our first song together. We continued to follow those sparks of magic until we wrote a full length album which is currently in production with a great team. It’s going to be really special!

I worked on a documentary by director Cathryne Czubek called Once Upon A Time In Uganda as the music supervisor alongside my colleague Alex Allen. This was an inspiring project about a film maker in Uganda named Isaac Nabwana who had to overcome seemingly impossible obstacles to create his vision and managed to do so while uplifting his entire community. The craft of setting music to film to help a story come alive is something I’ve always been interested in and it was really fun working alongside such a great production team! As a musical artist myself, it was also very helpful to learn about music licensing from the other side.

Recently I was invited to act in a film called La Cocina by director Alonso Ruizpalacios. The idea of acting has always terrified me but facing that fear on this project was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Learning about the technique of acting from my talented peers on set was very eye opening. I’m definitely taking it back to my music these days and it’s really fascinating to see the effects. It was also humbling to have played a small part in telling such an important story.

My friend Kendra Morris and I have a fun project called Dead Phone 13. She’s a fellow musician and wild creative who is inspiring to me and when we put our minds together the weirdest things come out, bringing us great joy! Dead Phone 13 is based around making music related content, like music videos, tour promotions, animations and even our favorite, B-Horror Films! The point of Dead Phone 13 is to let ourselves get strange, to laugh, to entertain and involve our friends and community and to come up with ideas that are so wacky, we need to think outside the box and learn new skills in order to bring them to life like Frankenstein. If you’re curious about our playground of work you can find it on instagram at TheDeadPhone13.

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

I’m a musical artist born and raised in New York City! I was an only child in a creative family, living an unusual lifestyle and was exposed to all sorts of artists and wild people growing up. Being around lots of quirky adults when I was little provided me with unusual examples of what I could aspire to be and allowed for a certain level of freedom to express myself. Having grown up in a city like New York, I feel like I NEED to make art and music just to make sense of it all!

Music became my main focus when I picked up my dad’s guitar at age 15 and asked him to teach me a few chords so I could write a song. At this point I’ve released 6 studio albums under my own name and have collaborated on many side projects. Pursuing music full time has been such a wild and unpredictable ride, leading to amazing adventures and life lessons. What I think is so cool about making music is that you have these albums you’ve released which are intricate documents of who you were and what you were interested in at the time. It’s a really cool experience to revisit different versions of yourself over the years through recordings.

What I’m most proud of is sticking with my passion even when times are tough and for continuing to explore my understanding of life through creative projects. I sometimes find it difficult to confine myself and my work to a specific brand which feels a little against the grain these days. Commercial standards want you to produce stuff that’s easily digestible and can be tied up in a perfect bow and sold but that doesn’t really feel natural to me while I’m in the process of making something. When I take in other peoples work, whether it be music, film, visual, dance or story telling, I really feel the most inspired when I can see the person for who they really are, being present with what’s happening for them now, mistakes and all. It’s so incredibly moving to me and that’s the kind of stuff I live for. You can’t always know what you’re making. You can’t always define it before you’ve had a chance to explore and push your own boundaries. So I’m also really proud of sticking to my gut and following my passions down whatever road seems most interesting in the moment. It’s made my life surprising and challenging in ways that I can’t help but grow from. And I think because I try not to shut down those instincts it makes my work authentic and honest and I’m really proud of that as well. When I’m honest with myself I find I connect with people through my music in a meaningful way and that’s the feeling I’m always chasing.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

If you love an artist’s work, do your best to support them by purchasing hard copies of their music directly through their websites or at live shows when possible! It makes such a difference. With tech companies coopting revenue through streaming and digital ticketing platforms, artist really need to find alternate ways so support the costs of creating. Also things like artist funds and grants can be huge! I think when we invest in the arts it truly promotes a healthy society.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

First of all, I think every single person on earth is creative. To live you need to think creatively. Every decision we make throughout the day is creative. It’s our nature as human beings. The most rewarding thing to me about being an artist by trade is that I’m required to feel things deeply, stay present and explore important matters in order to create work that is meaningful to others. I try never to take that for granted, even when I’m tired or if something is challenging and hard to solve. I’m so grateful that I get to let my mind run free and play as I try to make sense of my environment and what’s going on around me. Also it’s a very entertaining way to spend time… wether I’m stuck or in the flow, I’m never bored!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.juliahaltigan.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juliahaltigan/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/juliahaltiganmusic/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCht6SPkZouqANh0QM37Qfjw

Image Credits
David Anderson Mary Ellen Matthews Milton Arellano Marc McAndrews Andrew Raposo