We recently connected with Mariana Ramirez and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Mariana, thanks for joining us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

Fortunately, after more than 10 years living and working very hard in New York City, I can say I am making a living from music and musical projects. It took a lot of late nights practicing, many times of wanting to go out to have fun but having to stay to practice and get ready for what ever was coming next. Music has been my passion for many years. I never saw myself doing something else, so I can say I didn’t have another option. Lol. I believed in music passionately since I started. I chose music because I saw and experienced that music makes people very happy and brings people together regardless, of age, health situation, economical differences, race and gender, and I wanted to be part of that and help that happened.

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?

I started studying music at the National Conservatory of Music in Mexico City when I was 19 years old. After jumping through many hoops (Usually students starts between 5-10 years old) and exams they gave me a chance to start my studies there.
I worked hard to get an international music scholarship, which brought me to Rutgers University in 2010 where I finished my undergraduate studies. It was very challenging leaving my family, friends and country but music was my calling and I wanted to be making music in New York City. In 2013, I finally moved to the big apple, where I worked as a Teaching Artist in New York Public Schools, I took every single gig I could. Playing with bands in bars, restaurants, theaters, schools, churches and everything I was offered. Moving all my instruments all around the city, very intense couple of years. In 2015, I founded the first all-female percussion quartet in the United States, named Excelsis. We have been together for many years performing, teaching and recording all around the United States. I always tried to create original projects that I was passionate about, and at the same time I was trying to break into the Broadway scene, meeting musicians that were playing shows. It was until 2019, when I got called to sub my first Broadway show. Subbing on Broadway is like skydiving, without knowing if your parachute will completely work, so u get couple of heart attacks during your first show. There are no rehearsals, so your first show is a real show. That first subbing job, open the door in order to sub other shows, and after some years I was lucky to being offer my first chair on a Broadway show, I currently hold the percussion chair of the Broadway show SIX.

One of the biggest challenges for me was to be able to get past all the times that I didn’t “get the gig”. Life in the arts can be very unpredictable and you need to be tenacious, very dedicated, and have discipline even if you don’t feel like doing something. For me it has been a huge help to have people in my life that supports me, cheers for me and believes in me. I am always grateful to them for their support. You have to keep going regardless of what happened.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My biggest mission in life is to inspire people to work hard towards their dreams but also to be considerate, compassionate and open minded towards other people. Specially nowadays, it is super important to remember that we all can affect each other in a positive or negative way. Every decision that we make, how we behave in the train, the bus, the store has an effect in everything and everyone around us. The idea that we are individuals is not completely truth because we need each other for everything.

I want to help people to remember that no one is alone, that we all are interconnected and we all are affected in a way by each other regardless of the race, age, gender, country of origin, language, traditions, etc

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I arrived to the United States as a student in 2010 with two suitcases. I was a family girl leaving behind everything and everyone. I didn’t even had a mattress or furniture because my scholarship wasn’t enough to cover housing at the college and because as an international student I wasn’t able to afford a loan, as the percentages for non-americans is much higher.
I passed couple of hard years in college because I had barely enough for essential things. I finished my degree in 3 years instead of 4 because the scholarship only covered 3 years. After that I moved to NYC, where things started looking better with the support of people that I loved. Thankfully, I had emotional support and a roof under my head that allowed me to look for jobs teaching and performing music. I continued to keep trying to be better musician and person, and to make my voice heard as an artist. Thankfully, all those late nights practicing instead of partying paid off. :)
I am currently able to live from music, have friends, have fun and play music. It is a blessing.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.marianapercussion.com
• Instagram: @mariana_drums