We recently connected with Rachel Kozinski and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Rachel thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

Life has given me a lot to think about. It’s carried me down several paths, and I feel like I’ve lived a lot for my few years. About a nine months ago, with a lot on my mind, I decided to memorialize the lessons I’ve learned so far, while capturing the very human experience of it all. I’ve found music, especially live performance, to be one of the most raw and cathartic mediums for self expression, but as I looked out at the landscape of music at the time, I found few songs with uplifting content, like I wanted to hear. When I started writing this collection of songs, I wanted to hold space for the complicated emotions that life’s challenges bring, but I wanted to celebrate the triumphs, the epiphanies and the breakthroughs I wouldn’t have gotten had I not faced those challenges in the first place.

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 am a singer songwriter under my artist name “Rachel is Kozi”. Every one of my original songs is from the heart, and I hope the lessons encapsulated in each one encourages my audience as much as I was encouraged to learn them. I hope listening to them feels as therapeutically cathartic as it was for me to write them. I want my art to help others along their journey, nourish their soul, and elevate their consciousness. I perform locally throughout the St. Louis region with my original music and other local musicians. My new single “Soham” released February 12 of this year on all streaming platforms including Spotify, Apple Music and iTunes, as well as YouTube Music and Bandcamp. I’ve been playing and writing since I was 13 years old.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

One of my favorite mantras I learned during my Yoga Teacher Training was “Om guru om guru deva deva. Aja ki jai ananda ki jai.” It translates to “Honor and joy to life, the greatest teacher.” Life is so beautiful and full of wisdom if we can only learn to value it. Yoga and time spent in nature have been my two greatest resources to help me integrate my experiences, and once they’re fully digested, provide the atmosphere to turn them into songs.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

It’s an incredibly humbling experience to share these songs publicly. I wrote them first for myself, sometimes to encourage myself through dark times or to remind myself of my strength. To gaze out from the stage and see people’s expressions as they drink in my music, to hear after a performance how my songs touched their hearts, it’s so moving.

Contact Info:

• Website: RachelisKozi.com
• Instagram: @Rachel_is_Kozi
• Facebook: Facebook.com/RachelisKozi
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@racheliskozi
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/track/2Uq9fEXtmdBB4LBU3KoKLW?si=RhtUBFkdS12ysZxZ07-Tvg

Image Credits
Pictured with me is Nick Monte, a local professional trumpet player who often performs with me and is featured in my single “Soham”