We recently connected with Karen Hardy and have shared our conversation below.
Karen, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?
Growing up, the only thing I ever dreamt about was being a professional singer. After my Sophomore year of high school, I felt it was time to take my career seriously so I BEGGED my parents to let me finish out high school being home schooled. I still cannot believe I was able to convince them, but they obliged and my junior and senior year were spent playing every possible venue that would allow me to (while getting my diploma, because my parents weren’t THAT insane). When it came time to start thinking about college and future plans, I didn’t even think twice about what my decision was. Instead of college, I moved to Nashville to learn how to be an artist and write songs. Even with all of my peers and best friends being in college, I didn’t feel an ounce of FOMO because I just knew I was where I was meant to be and I followed my gut. It’s crazy to look back on because I was 18 and so confident in myself, and then life happened haha. Within a year or two of living in Nashville, I realized how many people had the same dream as me, how many of them were insanely talented, and how truly difficult making a career out of music is. At 20, my mental health plummeted and my love of music went with it. I still knew I wanted to be a singer, but that fire that I had in my teen years burnt out. During these super low years, one of the things I struggled with most was this idea of being a “failure” because I didn’t go to college. My friends were beginning to graduate and get real jobs, and I was no where near I had thought I would be back when I was 18. I feared I had made the worst decision of my life and missed out on my “best years”. It took 4 years of getting my mental health under control, and once I was feeling better I was relieved to find my love of music again. I still wonder what my life would have looked like if I took the more normal route, but I have faith that every gut decision I’ve made will lead me to where I’m meant to be. What lights me up most is creating, dreaming up big ideas and seeing them come to fruition, and connecting with people through telling my stories. As difficult as it may be sometimes, being an artist is just what I’m meant to be doing.
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 pop/r&b artist originally from New Jersey, but now living in LA. I first became obsessed with the idea of being a singer when my mom bought me Carrie Underwood’s debut album (I grew up in a very Christian household and my mom loved “Jesus Take the Wheel” lol). That brought on my American Idol addiction, and being a 7 year old with no understanding of the music industry, I thought American Idol was the one and only way to become a professional singer. So that was my dream for 8 years until I finally had the guts (and was old enough) to audition for “The X-Factor”. When I walked in to audition, I immediately noticed one thing – 80% of the demographic of people trying out was teenage girls who looked a lot like me. I came away from that audition without an invitation to the next round but with the fire to figure out another way to make it happen. I knew I needed to make myself stand out. I picked up the guitar and once I was able to play a few chords, began writing songs.
Now I live in LA and write songs about my life experiences (including mental health and stupid, stupid boys). I’m gearing up for an EP release in the late Spring, with shows to follow. My music is for the girls next door and girls girls (and guys and theys), who may be a little depressy but love working on themselves all while being slightly self deprecating haha.
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 have had to unlearn SO much, but one of the biggest (and something that I’m still having to reteach and reinforce for myself) is my worth being tied to my art/success/numbers/overall career. For as long as I’ve had this dream of being a singer, my worth has been almost entirely reliant on external factors relating to my career. For any human being, it’s dangerous to put your self esteem in the hands of anything or anyone outside of yourself. But for someone with a career in the arts… it’s a miracle I survived lol.
While I’m still very much unlearning this lesson, I began the process by finding other things that I love about myself and my life that didn’t have to do with my career. I’m a really great daughter, sister, and friend, and I have amazing people around me. I really like the way I treat people and I’m a really good listener. So things like that – realizing I have worth outside of just what I produce and create.
In music, you of course have to pay attention to what others are doing and whats working on social media, but I’ve gotten a little better at making things I’m proud of and not hyper-fixating on the numbers. And I cannot emphasize this enough… this is something I’m still very much learning :)
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My driving force for almost everything I do is connection. When I think about making it in music, I think about being able to connect with people who feel a similar way about life that I do and helping others feel seen. There are so many ways to do this, but music being something I’m passionate about and good at helps a little bit.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.karenhardymusic.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenhardy/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karenhardymusic/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCF7qVSOtJJ5nnxAqC74JSCw
Image Credits
Chelsea Balan, Josh Kranich, Mariel Weinand, Ambika Verma