We were lucky to catch up with Xiolynn recently and have shared our conversation below.

Xiolynn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I was lucky enough to be raised a singer in and outside of the home. My uncle is a musician and would play music, usually piano or guitar, and I would sing along essentially improvising over what I heard. Listening to the radio, my cassette player and cds allowed me to explore genres of my own along with whatever my mom would play. I believe these are all foundational teachers in and of themselves. Going outside in my city’s various neighborhoods were teaching moments. Treating sound of all kinds as music builds the “music brain” in my opinion. Furthermore, my mom was resourceful and connected me with a vocal coach named Wren who was working on Broadway’s Phantom of the Opera at that time. I was about 9 or 10. I knew that plugging myself into things like my school choir in middle school, and applying for performing arts high school’s was the best strategy to be the best singer I can be.

Personally speaking the only way I could have sped this process up was by letting go of the fear and looking into even more extracurriculars and resources to build my craft. However, singing at school and my own favorite songs felt just enough for me. To this day I can thank my Highschool experience, learning vocal technique, as the most essential skill. This was what made me realize singing is a muscle and breathwork is the catalyst for sound. As I integrated both of those things, singing began to click on a more mindful and somatic level. For songwriting, storytelling is the most foundational skill. Jamming with my friends and singing on bands helped me integrate these techniques well enough to get out of my body and tell stories from the mind.

The biggest obstacle for me was always fighting the “Hollywood narrative.” I grew up in an age of celebrity, where we all have our favorites. However, when it came to my singing it was always a very spirited outlet, I knew I was “Hollywood material”, I know I have the power to influence through my sound and message alone. I’ve been singing for so long that I never cared about that aspect. In my opinion the ego is a fantastic tool when it comes to creative expression, however I see how it clouds many great talent and inflates mediocre talent lol. The greatest obstacle are the 10,000 hours so to say.

Xiolynn, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am an entrepreneur and independent artist. I studied music and business in college and worked in the music industry right out of college as a marketing assistant for a major label. Over the course of about seven years, I learned the ins and outs of the industry and decided entrepreneurship was more in line with the lifestyle I wanted to pursue. Because of this I became a freelance assistant/coordinator while nannying and housekeeping on the side aim order to afford to do music. I now act as a studio musician and offer services in music creation lending my voice out to several projects across various genres. My next goal is to create a series of workshops within independent artistry, songwriting and vocal technique, my strongest and most passionate interests. Im grateful for the path I’ve taken as its been very non-linear. My independence allowed me to create relationships and build a rapport with industry leaders as my own entity.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

In general society is made of various niche communities. Those who genuinely foster their interests are ultimately the ones who have allowed for the evolution of the music industry making it what it is today. As an independent artist I think its most important to invest in artists who don’t have the corporate backing that major “celebrities” and industry plants do. Going out to watch live music, investing time and energy in the projects that bring the music they believe in to the forefront. There are outliers within this industry that deserve to be in the middle too! Treating music and artistry as a collaborative effort and engaging in the art that sparks your interest ultimately is what will helps it thrive. I believe in the same way we need doctors and lawyers, we need musicians.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I went from being looked over, the quiet one at the label, head to my desk doing the work, to quitting to become a full time musician and full time entrepreneur. By practicing what I learned, maintaining fruitful and reciprocal relationships I’ve personally been able to follow a road less travelled – breaking down the “formula” and mapping out my own blueprint. At the time I felt cynical and felt that my ego sort of led my resilience, now I’m thankful for my stubborn nature. Almost ten years later I read rooms in ways I never could before because the industry is full of tricks.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @xiodabomb
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/xiolynn
• Twitter: @xiodabomb
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3W3rF8t73ry9DzgELD-ZlA

Image Credits
Luis Ledesma @imillvibe