We were lucky to catch up with Rachelle Pauli recently and have shared our conversation below.
Rachelle, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been one of the most interesting investments you’ve made – and did you win or lose? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)
It was actually a very small investment for how it changed the future of my music career. I had been struggling to get songs in the works and not having a producer on board at the time made it seem discouraging trying to get my ideas out so I decided to buy the music software program “Logic Pro X.” I always loved the aspect of producing and getting my creative vision out for the song I just didn’t know how, I just could verbally explain however sometimes that wasn’t always enough. I paid $200 for the program and had no idea how to use just that it was somewhat similar to garage band. I could press record, plug in a cable to my keyboard and or mic and hit record. I would have songs written so I’d start out first with laying down the piano chords. I didn’t know how to quantize or even loop 8 bars at that time so I would literally play chords for 3 minutes straight and get a scratch foundation down. I also had a small midi keyboard which I plugged in and was able to lay down some synths or strings, & bass, something to give it a little more that just piano chords. It was a little messy since I didn’t know anything about editing or getting the timing perfect just free handing it but it was enough to get my ideas out. After I had a little production sketch I would I would record vocals over it with my mic. Again I didn’t know about the technicalities of it, I would just hit record. Most of the vocals were unusable because they were clipping (which means they are distorting) which later I learned is an easy fix of making sure the gain levels are in a good spot when recording. This was over 5 years ago and today I am very fluent in logic now and have learned a lot of the ins and outs of editing and getting a good quality recording. That came with trial and error and also big help to my current producer who I learned a lot from on what all the software has to offer. Without investing in this I would have stayed in a rut of discouragement not seeing how I would make any of this happen unless I had a giant recording budget. I didn’t know how or what I was doing but I just did it and kept going, I can honestly say it was the best use of $200 that I have ever spent in my life.
Rachelle, 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?
I am a recording artist that goes by the name “Pauli”. I grew up in a suburb called Gresham, just outside of Portland Oregon. Music was a big thing in my house growing up. My dad sang and played guitar at the church we attended and would always be singing and playing the guitar at home. Singing along with him was one of my favorite things to do. I loved music so much. I found out that while my mom was pregnant with me my dad would sing to me while I was still in the womb. I’m still convinced that definitely had something to do with my immediate attraction and love for music. I loved singing and although he played guitar, I had a special interest in the piano. I laid hands on my first one when I was no more than 3 years old. Every time we were at a friends or relatives that had a piano I would go straight to it and play the keys. Someone would play a song or a melody and I would be able to play it right back. It was then my family realized that I could play by ear. At 5 years old they got me my first keyboard and signed me up for piano lessons.
I would hang out in my room and explore the sounds, and try and learn some of my favorite pop songs on the piano. I would also write some songs of my own. In school my friends urged me to do something with the songs I wrote and that I should record them. If we were at a party and there was a piano, I was being pulled over to sing my song. In the auditorium that had a piano during lunch, my friend Kayla would beg me to sing some of her favorite songs I wrote. At the time these were just songs I sang on a piano, I didn’t see much after that.
I didn’t have money, and being from a small suburb no one knew anything about, how was I to ever begin a career as a recording artist? I just assumed this was a pipe dream and not realistic. The music dream took the backseat and I left for University Of Oregon to pursue a career in marketing. During my first year, I lived the college life, joined a sorority, got into trouble, & partied too hard.
I still felt like I was missing something. I missed my keyboard, I missed my dream of being a singer. I still wanted to record my music but I didn’t really know how. One of my sorority sisters had discovered I was a singer and that I wanted to record my songs. She told me her best friend was a music producer. Immediately my dream had sparked again and it was burning hotter than ever. I believed again that maybe I could actually do this. His studio was about an hour and half away & I would go out there on the days I didn’t have school. We started working on recording my first single, “Not Here”, which would go on to have a pop r&b sound. I drew a lot of inspiration from artists that I would listen to at the time like Rihanna, Justin Bieber, & Alicia Keys.
That summer I released my first song ever. I felt on top of the world, little did I know that would be the beginning of a very very long journey. I started performing locally and collaborating with other local producers & artists. It wasn’t long after that I decided to leave school and move to LA to keep pursuing my dream. Right before the move, I had gone through a bad breakup that had really pushed me over the edge to the point I felt like I had nothing left to lose. I was betrayed, played, and completely taken advantage of. It turned me bitter and numb which later on I would be thankful for as I navigated life in the big city. I grew a lot in LA and really reached new levels in my career such as performing at places like the Whisky A Go Go and releasing a full length studio album. When I released my first album I was under a recording contract, however that ended up going very south and I was desperate to be out of it. After getting out of that toxic situation, I felt free but also confused on where to go next. I debated moving home after my career was being sabotaged, and years of work were being threatened. I stuck through it and kept going. I knew my time in LA was not finished. I learned some very valuable lessons the hard way, like not having ownership over yourself and music meant, you don’t have control over anything that happens to it. Also READ everything carefully, get a lawyer, and most of all KNOW who you are getting into business with.
This was the ultimate turning point in my career. This is when I learned the most about myself, what I could do on my own, and how bad I wanted it. I invested in my own music software program and started to learn how to produce & get my ideas out on paper. I knew I wanted to start a new album and my current situation at the time was the inspiration for it. While living at a creative group home (similar to a hostile) I met my current producer. It was a rock bottom kind of place to live, cheap, month to month, bunk beds, little space. For me it was all I could afford, for him it was a new beginning coming from the East Coast and a quick way to meet people and other creatives. Although it was not the most comfortable living situation having 40 people all living in the same house, I met some amazing people and really thrived there. There was a recording studio in a shipping container that was in the backyard that we could book for sessions and use. We got in there and started pumping out song after song and realized we wanted to keep working with each other. I never worked with someone that I connected like that with, it was complete harmony.
After 9 months of me living in a bunk bed (2 months for him) we decided to pick up the pace and find a little more comfort. We went to Oregon and built a studio in my grandparents basement. There we began making huge strides on the album. After a few months we headed back to LA. Within a year I was pumping out single after single. Now we are just finishing up the album and my last single “Wake Me Up In Paradise” is gaining a lot of momentum and has been featured on two blogs so far & has been added to over 60 Spotify playlists and the music video has almost at 30K views on youtube. I still have many goals that I aim to reach but I am a lot further than I was 10 years ago when I released my first song. These days I am mostly working a lot on my music but also learning to enjoy the journey and live my life.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
“The Law Of Success” was a book that really impacted my thinking. The laws of success are so simple that they are simply overlooked even though they are some of the most important fundamentals to successful. noticed that once I started applying the laws of success to my life, their were transformations in my life and goals or dreams that I had, started to come to fruition. All of the laws are necessary and really helped me but some in particular that I think benefited me most was the law of “accurate thinking”, “self confidence”, “cooperation”, & “self control.”
Accurate thinking was something I wasn’t always aware of mindful of. We have so many thoughts that go through our mind, you don’t even realize that half of the time it is super distracting and getting you off focus. That was a big one for me because I am a little scatter brained and will tend to spread myself out thin and jump around from thing to thing without having a focused or disciplined plan. This showed me how important my thoughts are and how outside thoughts that are out of your goal can be super hindering. Clear thoughts is a very good place to be. Self confidence is another one. Being able to believe in yourself even when no one else does. Believing you can be where you want to be. It’s a way you carry yourself. Believing you can land that job, get that promotion, have a product that will change the world, it all comes back to confidence and believing. Your beliefs shape your reality. Cooperation is a given, without being able to cooperate with others it is a road to disaster. I’m a firm believer of team work makes the dream work. This law just reiterates the importance of it and you can never hear it enough. Last one that really shaped my was “Self Control.” That was something I struggled with. Wanting something now not thinking of the consequences. Buying a new car or keeping the car and putting that money into my career or the stock market where I will make more money that can help me further my career or get my dream car down the road? It’s delayed gratification. Giving up the things you want now so that you can have even more in the future. It goes with so much, not even just money. I want to go to a party but I have work that needs finished. It’s prioritizing your goals over your fleshes immediate wants and desires. Self control means being able to sacrifice. That is just a few of the laws but every 16 of the laws in this book are essential and really life changing.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The most rewarding part of being an artist is getting to share what I create with others. It’s already such a reward getting to hear something that was once just an idea now be a piece of art but hearing someone say how much they enjoyed a song is what I live for. If the lyrics can connect that’s even better. Having someone be able to relate, or have a song that speaks to them is truly an amazing feeling. Overall just hearing that it brought someone joy to listen to is a reward.
Contact Info:
- Website: bit.ly/paulispotify
- Instagram: instagram.com/misspauliwood
- Facebook: facebook.com/misspauliwood
- Twitter: twitter.com/misspauliwood
- Youtube: youtube.com/paulimusic
- Other: https://linktr.ee/followpauli
Image Credits
Mike Button, Audrey Collins, Jesus Gonzales.