Meet Jenner Fox

We recently connected with Jenner Fox and have shared our conversation below.

Jenner, so happy to have you with us today. You are such a creative person, but have you ever head any sort of creativity block along the way? If so, can you talk to us about how you overcame or beat it?

A few years back a friend introduced me to the poet William Stafford who famously wrote a “bad poem” every morning before he ate breakfast. Stafford’s philosophy was that, “There is no such thing as writer’s block for the writer whose standards are low enough.” In theory, this is a really powerful idea. In practice, it is quite hard to get ourselves to lower our standards. There is always that voice on one shoulder saying, “boring,” or “done before,” or “you have nothing to say.” For me, the trick seems to be accepting that voice, accepting that sometimes writing won’t feel good. To allow myself to finish and move on from things that I’m not proud of. Like one of my favorite songwriters, Anais Mitchel, wrote, “The right thing could not exist without the wrong ones.”

When I allow myself permission to work regardless of inspiration, there are inevitably magic sittings when something unexpected and compelling springs forth. I believe that having a serious and consistent creative practice debunks writers block. In fact, I’d bet that over half of the time I write I experience this so called “writers block,” but I try to continue and trust that eventually something interesting will come out. I’m also a part of a songwriters group that has a song due every Tuesday, this accountability is very helpful in working through the blockages.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I work as touring musician, songwriting and music teacher, occasional record producer, and occasional river guide. The path has twisted and turned, but I’ve spent most of the last 10 years following the gigs and slowly figuring out a way to make a life in music. I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area with two ex-river guide parents who were happiest around a fire, in a living room, or actually beside a river singing folk songs with their old guiding buddies. Being exposed to music in this way was a huge gift. Music was a place for community, fun, laughter, feelings, and connection. I learned to play music in these jam sessions, took guitar lessons from my uncle, and wrote my first song as a tween with a broken heart (as you do).

These days, I’m focused on trying to bring this sense of community and connection to our live performances whether with my acoustic duo project (Jenner Fox & Jeremy Elliott), with my band (Jenner Fox Band), or with our Paul Simon and John Prine tribute projects. I aim to write and perform songs that get out of their own way, remind us of something we’d lost, allow a listener to have their own experience, juxtapose, chuckle, and contradict!

In the teaching realm, I run songwriting workshops on zoom, I teach in person camps, and I do one on one coaching sessions. My favorite online workshop, “A-Song-A-Week,” is simply that: participants show up once a week for a month, I provide a songwriting prompt, they write (with not enough time to overthink it), and we all share. All of my teaching work is life-giving and inspiring to me.

You can find my latest record, “The Moon That Moves The Sea,” everywhere music is streamed or sold.
You can find my upcoming songwriting workshops here: https://jennerfox.com/teaching

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

1. Motivation – These days in the music industry the barrier to entry is quite low, anyone can put out an album on Spotify. Yet, no one is going to do the work for you. There are very few golden ticket magic record label viral moments. At the end of the day, you’re the one making it happen, and the artistic path can be quite solitary. There are many days when I wake up and need to make it all up, there is no boss telling me what to do. This can be really challenging, and also an immense privilege. “Making it” feels much more like throwing a lot of paint against the wall than a calculated chess move. I’ve always been driven, and I think I learned a lot about organizing my time and having to efficiently get work done through being a student athlete (soccer) in high school and college. I’ve also been very fortunate to grow up in a family that has supported me in pursuing music.

2. Change – Everything within us and around us is constantly changing. It is both daunting and freeing. Trusting my ability to evolve, learn, and change feels huge. I’ve attended a several silent 10-day Vipassana meditation courses over the last 3 years, and I have a daily sitting practice. The experience of observing change within the framework of our bodies through Vipassana meditation is a gift in my life.

3. Peanut Butter – The last two felt a bit high and mighty. I’m getting tired of hearing myself give advice 🙂 I like peanut butter a lot.

As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?

“The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. My friend Geoff introduced me to this beautiful book when I was 18. It opens with the author describing a picture he drew of a boa constrictor digesting an elephant. The author complains that adults are always thinking that the picture looks like a hat. Saint-Exupéry writes, “Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.”

I love the way the Little Prince gives permission to love the small silly magical things you love. That’s why we got into this whole “art” thing in the first place didn’t we?

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Josh Chang (duo guitars photo)
Rusty Grim (full band smiling photo)
Rio Hammond (portrait photo of me barefoot)

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