We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tahina Fiaferana. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tahina below.

Tahina, appreciate you joining us today. I’m sure there have been days where the challenges of being an artist or creative force you to think about what it would be like to just have a regular job. When’s the last time you felt that way? Did you have any insights from the experience?

I find that overall, I’m pretty happy as a creative – because being a freelance musician usually throws different curveballs at me as far as the music I get to work on/play. I think that keeps me going because I don’t like feeling of doing the same things over and over again, which don’t get me wrong, being a musician can feel like that sometimes. But, for the most part, I’ve found that a lot of the artists and musicians I get to play/work with, I enjoy working with because they push me in some sort of way to get better as a musician.

Every now and then, I will have to take a gig that I may not be super excited about. At the same time though, a lot of the gigs /sessions etc. that I get called for are, more often than not, gigs that I enjoy playing. What’s also cool about being a musician for a living is, I get to work on something different almost every week. I feel like that’s the one thing I would go crazy about if I had a regular job, because I get bored way too easily if I end up doing the same thing over and over. But being a creative allows for me to be consistently working on new, interesting things, and I feel like that in itself is the reward for being in this field.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am mainly a freelance guitarist, but am also a producer and composer currently based in Nashville, TN. The brunt of my work has been playing guitar for live shows/events both locally and on the road, spanning all sorts of genres such as R&B, Jazz, Gospel, Reggae, Afrobeats, Funk, Soul, Rock, Country and many more. I also do session work, recording guitar or bass for songs whether in a studio with other musicians, or recording remotely from the setup I have at home. One of the platforms I have been hired on recently to record remotely with is Airgigs. In many of these sessions, I have also acted as a composer and co-producer, writing chord progressions, guitar parts, bass parts, and doing some sound design to help a recording come to life. I also have experience producing full instrumentals, as well as composing music.

Some of the things I’ve been most proud of lately has been getting a placement as a co-producer on the song “If” by Starlito, as well as working with artists and producers such as A.B. Eastwood, Tim Gent, Ron Gilmore Jr. (J. Cole, Ari Lennox), Case Arnold, Jim Jonsin (Lil Wayne), Frank Rose (Kenyon Dixon, Chris Brown), Cristina Rae, Akeem Ali, and many more this past year. I also recently graduated with a Masters degree for Commercial Guitar from Belmont University, which is also something I am proud of and worked hard at.

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

The most rewarding thing for me is the opportunity to consistently be getting better as a musician/artist. I love being able to be challenged by music, and to have the chance to refine my skills as a musician. Especially when I get to play with artists and musicians who are a lot better than me. Not only does that help push me to new levels, but it also helps me to stay humble and disciplined because I realize – there will always be musicians that are better than me, and there is always something new to learn, even in situations that may seem easy at first. Just the fact that I get the chance to be in rooms that force me to think of things from a different perspective, or approach a problem in a unique way, has been incredibly rewarding for me.

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

I would say one of the main goals I have in my creative journey is encouraging others to fully be themselves. I feel like that is something that I didn’t really learn until recently, and I feel like that journey is sort of reflected in my journey as a musician as well. I used to be much more timid, to a point where I wouldn’t even trust myself to make certain decisions (both musically, and even just in life). But I found that the more I began to lean into my own personality and what I naturally gravitated to, things began to just fall into place. While I still am striving to always improve myself, I feel like just the fact that I trust in myself more has made a huge impact on my life, and I think that is what I find inspires me most about a lot of the people I look up to as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.airgigs.com/user/fiaferanat
• Instagram: @tahinathepiranha
• Other: Email: fiaferanat@gmail.com

Image Credits

@natalie.declerk @3am_media @shotbyevanupton @laidmadeit @thephotojojo