Intentional Creativity and the Art of Allowing
barb morrison
in the weeks since i wrote this article, we have shifted from the silent introspection of a global pandemic to boldly using our voices during a national civil rights emergency.
racial injustice has forced us to navigate the balance of when to speak up and when to listen. it has become an urgent matter of life and death and it is long overdue.
the lives and dignities of black people in america demand us to find that balance now.
its been a few weeks of settling in now. we, as a human race, have been left stunned and grieving our old lives. the lives when we could roam free, go to band rehearsals, record in the studio, sing in choirs, busk on the street, jam with friends or perform at open mic nights where we would SHARE A MICROPHONE with the person who played before us.
the days of getting together face to face to write songs seem to also be behind us. one on one music and voice lessons have been replaced with Skype and Zoom sessions.
our sense of purpose and creativity has been repositioned to explore more inner space instead of our extroverted “look at me” plea.
if you’ve found it challenging to shift gears into this brand new way of thinking you’re not alone. musicians and artists have now faced an upheaval in our creative confidence as well as our collective unconsciousness.
some of us are experiencing a puzzling effect - frozen and trembling like a deer on a balcony, wondering how the hell did i get to this point ? this is not in the story, this is not even my environment. unable to move, unable to pick up a pen, an instrument, or even to get off the couch or out of bed.
others are operating from trauma response - when the levels of FEELING and grief become too agonizing, our output is astronomical, hiding in our work, playing guitar until our fingers bleed.
and yet, we all know THIS is EXACTLY the time to be creative.
since the pandemic has hit I’ve heard many different sides of the argument. do we utilize this down time to finally write that record? that book ? that screenplay ? look at all this time on our hands. we’re all out of work, trapped inside with our Pink Floyd minds.
or do we relax and give ourselves a break for NOT writing the next Sgt Pepper or Lemonade?
the first thing that came to mind for me when the pandemic hit was that the world was trying to get back to a sense of balance. the mandatory universal inhales and exhales that we’ve all fooled ourselves into being immune to have now become our daily lives.
ALL of us are in the same boat. any sense of individuation that we’ve tried to convince ourselves of has been ripped away.
so let’s talk about balance. balance in life, balance in ourselves, balance in music, balance in creativity.
the yin yang symbol is connected by two parts. within those two parts are also two dots. the dots represent the absence of absolutes. each part has the seed of the other. yin and yang are not total opposites; they are relative to each other.
if we are made of up energy and matter, and if music is made of vibrations, think of the yang as giving and the yin as receiving. the yang is playing notes and making sounds while the yin is letting silence in and listening.
we are in an extremely poignant time in history right now. but it can also be a time of inspiration, hope and positivity. my main goal when working with my artists in the studio, whether it be songwriting or producing, is to help them get to a place of truth.
if we’re not being honest with ourselves and with the world, you can bet it’ll be revealed in our creations.
so the first thing i wanna focus on is telling YOUR story. we each have a unique journey and although we are all just little specks on a rock speeding through space we still have our OWN WAY to talk about it.
lets think about our favorite songs for a minute. ya know, the David Bowie or the Lizzo or the Jeff Buckley or the Joni Mitchell or the Stevie Wonder songs. the songs that you hear and your immediate reaction is: oh my god that’s EXACTLY what i was trying to say but i didn’t know how to say it. but THEY did. John Lennon said what i was thinking, Whitney Houston just sang it, Freddie Mercury wrote it, Mary J Blige just broke my heart with it.
i want us to focus on telling our stories in THAT WAY. what those artists are/were able to do is to transmit not only THEIR truth but THE truth about the human experience. the one WE ALL HAVE. when that’s done authentically, we as musicians HEAL the world WHILE we heal ourselves.
this sounds like i’m giving you an NFL locker room half time at the Super Bowl coach speech. but i’m not because the next part is about the YIN. we can’t get to our truth if we don’t quiet ourselves and RECEIVE it. we are in collaboration with every single vibration on this planet. whether we like it or not.
i believe a big part of why some of us are freaking out right now is because the dust has settled after the avalanche. we are left to stand in the rubble, the quiet, in the smoke and ashes and REBUILD what’s really left of us. and for some of us, probably for MOST of us, that is fucking terrifying. we have all been reduced to the same thing. the same fleshy vulnerable meat suit that can get the coronavirus as easily as the next person, as easy as a billionaire or an all star athlete. as easy as the smartest person or the most loved person.
so listen. listen to what your heart and mind is telling you now. how do you fit into this part of history ? what do you wanna say to help someone scared or angry or confused or heartbroken ? what parts of you have been left UNSAID that now need to have the blinds ripped open on them ? be still and put that into place for yourself. listen. listen to our own voice, to your highest self. listen FULLY. and then TELL YOUR TRUTH.
photo credit: esaias johnson
do you remember how everyone lost their minds the first time they heard Adele ? that was because she was HONEST. we all felt it. we could all SEE it and HEAR it. it was refreshing because it was a simple statement that was raw and real. we can’t get to our real creativity if we are bullshitting ourselves.
so here we are. the world is rebooting and we have a story to tell. the future will look back at this time and people will wanna know WHAT HAPPENED during it. not after, not before but DURING it. in our history classes we read pieces of literature that were written in real time. we read the civil war letters and The Diary of Anne Frank because they were written AT THAT TIME. archeologists search for hieroglyphics on cave walls because they tell the tale of what was happening ON THE SPOT. not later. but RIGHT THEN.
right now is our chance to do that. the songs that are written in quarantine during the time of this pandemic can never be erased. but in order to do that we have to get to our own truth. what is it that we need to say ? to ourselves ? to the world ? to our enemies and lovers and friends and family ? to our SELVES. to our shadow selves ? and to the tiny dot within each side of the yin and yang. we can find our balance there.
don’t worry about being the best. be who you ARE. the best is open to interpretation anyway. and don’t try to be perfect. think outside the box. pick up a different instrument than you normally play. if you’re a guitar player, write a song on piano.
if you usually write in your journal at night, try writing for 30 minutes when you wake up.
eat meals in different places in your house. stretch, let your muscles receive more oxygen, meditate. change up your routine so your heart and mind can open. be true to yourself while the world is finding its own balance.
and above all - LISTEN. stop, breathe and listen to what’s in the silence. silence is also a sound, it is an instrument. let it wash over you and inspire you. listen HARD to the silence. listen for the tiny dot of black in the white.
show the world who you are NOW and forever. assemble vibrations so they hit us with the truth. listen and breathe.
seek your SELF so you can tell us all about it. so we can relate to it. so when we’re listening to your song WE can say, “wow that’s what i was trying to say but i didn’t know how."
photo credit: allison michael orenstein
barb morrison is a gold and platinum record producer and composer who has worked with Blondie, Rufus Wainwright, LP and Asia Kate Dillon. they’re also a published author whose work has been featured in The New York Times and The Good Men Project.
barb offers one on one music mentorship (via zoom and Skype) for songwriters who want to perfect their craft. they live in frenchtown NJ with their partner Jaime and two cats.
