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

Juliana, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. The first dollar you earn is always exciting – it’s like the start of a new chapter and so we’d love to hear about the first time you sold or generated revenue from your creative work?

Many people have told me, “if you’re doing music for the money, you’re doing it for the wrong reasons.” Of course, once you get to the big leagues, where the big money is, that’s a little different, but everyone who’s made it there has felt the feeling of living paycheck to paycheck, relying solely on the fact that they believe one day it would all pay off. That’s the mindset that I’m currently in. Although I’ve made a few bucks here and there from streaming or live shows, it’s safe to say that the piles of cash haven’t come in yet. However, around this time last year, on my final day of college at Belmont University, I got the opportunity to play the Bluebird Cafe for the first time. Me, never being paid to play a writer’s round before, as well as being all-consumed by the magic of the venue, I wasn’t even thinking about money while I was there. After the round, I was taking pictures outside with my family, when the sound guy came running out to me and said “Miss! You forgot your check!”. I looked at him like I had never heard of a check before in my life and said, “Wait.. I’m getting paid for this?!” He laughed at how surprised I was and said, “Congratulations” as he handed over my first “dollar” as a creative. It was such an incredible feeling; to have your talent and hard work recognized in the form of a currency that has value to not just music industry people, but everyone in the world. I looked at my parents and said, “Well, drinks on me, I guess!”

Juliana, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Okay here’s my pitch… Hi, I’m Juliana Cervizzi; a multi-genre recording artist, singer-songwriter from Boston, Massachusetts. I grew up in an area where music doesn’t really matter to anyone. Being so passionate about something that didn’t seem to even be relevant to anyone around me made following my dreams feel a bit out of reach. As a kid, I did any musical thing I had access to, from vocal lessons to theater camps to singing competitions to whatever you can think of. It wasn’t until I spent the summer of 2015 living at Berklee College of Music, taking part in their summer program, that I realized people do actually do this for a living. That was the year that everything changed for me. I dropped out of all other extracurricular activities that took time away from music and decided that I was going to do whatever it takes to make it. One thing led to another and I found myself in the Songwriting program at Belmont University, in the heart of music city, Nashville, TN. I’ve spent the last 4-5 years of my life learning, writing, recording, performing, and living my dream. Suddenly, everything I’ve ever wanted became my reality. I’ve gotten to perform at all the Nashville milestones: The Bluebird Cafe, The Listening Room, Whiskey Jam, etc. Last summer, I had my first “viral moment” on Tik Tok because of one of my songs, which led to a distribution deal with Columbia Records. Since then, I’ve just been grinding. I can finally tell myself, “Okay, everything you’re doing is starting to pay off, so just keep working, keep going”

Have you ever had to pivot?

If you had asked me a couple years ago if I saw myself ever being able to leave Nashville and continue progressing in my music career, I would’ve laughed in your face. As magical of a city it is, Nashville can feel like a bubble sometimes, especially after awhile. Everyone knows everyone’s business, and everyone’s sort of on the same path; doing things the same way. As an artist, you have to find a way to stand out, otherwise you’re just another starving artist in a city full of them. You’re a cliché almost. Up until this past October, I was all in. I was ready to take Nashville by storm, then right when you think everything’s starting to fall into place, your world gets shaken up. I was in a really serious car accident, leading to A LOT of physical, mental, and emotional recovery. The past 7 months have been filled with growth and reevaluation. Suddenly, where I was didn’t feel like where I wanted to be anymore. I had a realization that if I was most likely going to be spending most of my life in Nashville, I’m gonna need a break first. So, this coming September, I’ll be moving to London to get my Masters in Songwriting at the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance. I’m ecstatic about this opportunity to expand my network and travel the world while continuing to live out my dream.

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

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being an artist/songwriter is being able to create something today that simply did not exist yesterday. Through creativity, I have the power to bring something new into this world every single day if I want to. Once I started thinking about my creations/songs this way, it became all the more inspiring to keep going. I don’t think there’s anything more rewarding then having this ability.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.julianacervizzi.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julianacervizzimusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julianacervizziofficial/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@julianacervizzimusic/videos
• Other: Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@julianacervizzimusic

Image Credits

Samuel Harris
Bridgette Conley