3 Key Takeaways: Renee Stahl
Three lessons I learned from my chat with the children's music maker.
I don’t have many memories of my son’s first few months of life. I mean, I have photos and videos to prove that yes, I was there and yes, he was adorable. But if I try to think of specific moments when I was present with him, little comes to mind. I was so exhausted and overwhelmed and unsure of what I was doing that most of the mundane moments are no longer in my brain. Except for one.
My son was upset about something. I couldn’t figure out what he wanted. Nothing I did placated him. There were tears (his and mine).
I remember going into his nursery and putting on some music. I sat in the recliner in his room, with him snuggled on my lap, and hit play on It’s a Big World by Renee & Jeremy.
As soon as the first song, “Miracle,” began, I could feel my son relax. There was something about the melding of Renee Stahl & Jeremy Toback’s voices that was so soothing and tranquil. I vividly remember my son and I snuggling in the chair, gently rocking back and forth, just listening. We stayed that way for the entire album. He didn’t cry. He didn’t fall asleep. He just listened.
It remains one of my most treasured memories of those early days.
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Renee about her work, and during our conversation she taught me three very important lessons.
Key Takeaway #1: Abandon Labels
Renee and her friend Jeremy didn’t set out to make children’s music. She’d released two solo albums; he was primarily known for his work with the grunge band Brad. But when she was on bed rest during her first pregnancy, Jeremy—himself a new dad—sat by her side and the two began writing music to pass the time. “We just started writing songs, and we wrote songs that we would want to listen to,” she said. “I really wrote for my unborn child and the love of a parent to a child.”
Thanks to the success of their debut album, the duo continued to make music together, and soon found themselves creators of children’s music. But, not really. Their music, a combination of original songs and kid-friendly covers of rock classics, doesn’t fall neatly into the classic “Wheels on the Bus” children’s music genre. Nor does it fit into an adult music category, even though plenty of parents (like me) enjoy the tunes just as much as their little ones.
Renee says that they refer to their music as “indie folk.” She adds, “We've never really fit into the children’s music category. We do make children’s music, but music for children of all ages.”
In addition to this family-friendly fare, Renee has written more traditional folk-pop songs geared towards adults, and has collaborated with trance music artists. “I’ve often said after we put the kids to sleep with the lullabies, the parents can go out and dance at a rave to some of the electronica music I’ve done.”
The lesson: Don’t be afraid to branch out with your art. Explore new forms of writing, create in an entirely different genre, play with technology, collaborate with those whose work is vastly unlike your own. Shrug off the labels and just make something. You never know where it will lead.
Key Takeaway #2: Never Stop Learning
While preparing for my interview with Renee, I poked through her past Instagram posts and was surprised to learn she’d taken a certificate course in how to lead community song circles. Having listened to her music for so long, it never occurred to me that she might need or want a course in something related to her field. When I asked her about it, she said, “I’m constantly hungry for creativity and information. I love learning. I’m constantly wanting to keep honing my craft.”
She also expressed an interest in Reiki, sharing that she’s recently become a practitioner. “I decided to take a class” in Reiki, she said, “just so I can understand what is happening, how are they doing this, how is it so healing? I wanted to learn from this ancient Japanese tradition. So that’s something I’m interested in and taking more classes and studying and infusing that with my song circles and my sound healing.”
This really resonated with me. In my previous life as an arts fundraiser, professional development was not just encouraged, but expected. As a freelancer, it often gets shoved aside. (It’s difficult to justify a class or a conference when you’re a one-person office with a mile-long to-do list.)
The lesson: Make learning a priority. Take a class, attend a conference, read up on a new subject. Explore things that interest you, even if they’re not tied to your day-to-day work. Your art and creativity will be all the better for it.
Key Takeaway #3: Comparison Kills Creativity
It’s easy to fall into a black hole of envy when a fellow artist has success. Social media certainly doesn’t help with this. So it was nice to hear Renee share that she left a Harry Styles concert not jealous, but inspired. The vibe of the concert—what she referred to as a “nightclub of love”—and Styles’ “beautiful, generous, loving, kind” personality motivated her to write a new song, “Harry, Save Us All.”
The lesson: Other artists’ success won’t take away from your own. Use their work as inspiration; let it fuel your own creativity. Perhaps down the line something you do will inspire another.
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