We’re looking forward to introducing you to Mackenzie Morrow. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Mackenzie, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: Have you stood up for someone when it cost you something?
Something I’ve really been trying to do more of is standing up for animals. I stopped consuming animal “products” about eight years ago, and it’s an issue that I feel deeply about. Once the violence clicked for me, it was easy to make a change. The thing that isn’t as easy is speaking to people about the issue, because eating animals is a cultural norm, and it’s hard to get past the dissociation. When I first became vegan, I was pretty intimidated to talk to people because I didn’t want to be confrontational or debate people. Now, whenever I feel timid to speak up, I think about the feeling of an uncomfortable conversation vs. the feeling of spending my entire life being tortured and exploited, and being sent to the slaughterhouse. Knowing that the animals need me to speak up for them, and that I’d want someone to speak up for me if I was in their situation is what helps keep me going. Nobody wants to have to speak up, because we wish there wasn’t a situation to speak up about, but sometimes you just have to.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Mackenzie Morrow and I am a singer/songwriter, pop artist, and metal band frontwoman from South Carolina. I write about my life experiences and mental health, so my lyrics are pretty deep and vulnerable. I would consider myself a lyricist first and foremost.
My debut album, Black Butterfly (Produced by Kenny McWilliams), just turned two, and the opening track, “Used to It,” aired on Netflix’s Temptation Island this year.
Along with the album, my latest music video for my song, “Self,” was released. The experience of making this video is one I’ll never forget. It was one of the most fun days I’ve experienced in my life, especially with my older brother, Trey Morrow, as the Director. The DP for the video was Aaron Pate, who has directed two of my other videos, and I always love working with him, as well. I would love for anyone reading to go see what an amazing job they did. You can find the video at https://mackenziemorrow.com/video-gallery or on YouTube.
I joined the metal band, Devouress, a few months ago and have enjoyed branching out with them, as well. We’ve released our song, “Disaster,” in August, and we’ll be releasing our next song, “Control” on December 5th, 2025.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
I don’t know if I can pinpoint it exactly, but I do know my mom encouraged my brother and me a lot growing up, and always expressed how proud she was of us. She still does. I did learn how to tie my shoes at an early age, just shy of three, and my mom made a big deal about that. I would always sing and dance, do cartwheels around the house, and make my own stories to act out. My mom was always supportive of that, so I felt powerful to be creative and to be myself. Getting straight A’s and graduating valedictorian of my class made me feel falsely confident, because the real world isn’t based on those things, but that’s another story for another day.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
As someone who battles with mental health, there have been so many times I’ve felt like giving up, even on living. I’ve struggled and still do struggle with suicidal ideation, but when I’m having those thoughts, I fight them. I call on God, reach out to friends or family, call the 988 number. Whatever I have to do to keep going. With the mental health epidemic in the United States, I know I’m not the only one, and I’ve seen people lose their lives to it. So if you’re struggling, I urge you to seek resources. You are important. You are so loved, and your life matters.
As far as music goes, I’ve never considered giving that up. Maybe my dreams have shifted to a different vision, but I’ll always do music. I know so many talented people who just don’t do it anymore, and it’s sad. Obviously, they should do what they want, but from what I understand, they give it up because they didn’t “make it,” and don’t have time for it anymore with the career they ended up in. I really think there need to be better opportunities for everyday musicians to have a stable career. We are missing out on a lot of wonderful art from super talented people because of the difficulty and lack of direction on how to make a livable wage in music.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
A core truth that I don’t go a day without thinking about is that animals are not here for us, but with us. They are not here for us to eat, wear, or impose our selfish desires on. As a Christian, I’ve always felt veganism aligned with the values of Jesus. As I continue to learn and grow, I’m realizing they go hand in hand more than I originally thought. Every second of every day, God’s creatures are going through unbearable pain in the animal agriculture industry, purely because of human greed. And it doesn’t just hurt the animals being exploited. Marginalized communities are being exploited, as well. I would venture to say the majority of people don’t want to work in a slaughterhouse. Most get a job at a slaughterhouse out of desperation and limited options. Due to violent and desensitizing conditions, slaughterhouse workers also endure significant mental and emotional trauma, and often develop PTSD, along with higher rates of anxiety and depression, emotional numbing and detachment, increased aggression and violence, suicidal ideation, and the list goes on.
When I decided to choose compassion and go vegan, I did it purely for the animals, but learned about other issues later. Even if people wanted to be selfish and do what’s best for them (which is human tendency), their health, and their descendants, eating animals and their secretions wouldn’t be the logical choice. Eating animals and animal “products” (I put this in quotations because animals are NOT products), are linked to obesity, cardiovascular disease, cancer, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, zoonotic diseases, etc. I’m also involved in this on a deeper level healthwise, working with clients every day as a fitness and nutrition coach.
In addition, animal agriculture is the leading cause of the destruction of our environment, contributing significantly to deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions, and water pollution. We have been conditioned to think that we need to eat animal corpses for protein (all protein originates from plants), drink cow’s milk for strong bones (We are not baby cows and don’t need to be drinking cow’s milk any more than we need to be drinking dog milk or giraffe’s milk. Research suggests cow’s milk actually leaches calcium from the bones due to high acidity. Even if it didn’t, there are plenty of other ways to get calcium). I can’t believe I grew up believing that cows make milk because they are cows. They make milk because they are MOTHERS! Mothers who are forcibly impregnated and have their babies stolen from them over and over again until they are no longer profitable and are sent off to be killed. It’s heartbreaking. Companies hide behind deceptive photos of green pastures and smiling cows to keep us blind to the cruel processes and the negative health outcomes. They do this so they can keep taking our money, getting rich off of immense cruelty and suffering. I urge anyone reading to do your research and ask yourself if this is really what you want to be supporting. This was long winded, but something I’m so passionate about and could speak on all day. Consuming animal “products” (corpses, ovulation, blood, pus, etc.), is a lose-lose-lose situation. Everyone loses, except the companies making money.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
NF is one of my favorite artists, and this question makes me think of his song, “My Stress” where he says, “Wonder what I’d do if I knew these were my last minutes, Wonder if I had a week to live would I stay trippin’.” Anxiety, depression, regret, overthinking. These things all waste time and take away from the joy of life, and I do wonder if I’d be able to stop if I knew I only had a little time left. I think it would be more motivating and give me a sense of urgency to take action on the things I want for my life more fully, and to take my walk with God more seriously. I spend a lot of time with my family, but I feel like it’s not enough. It’s so easy to let the busyness of life and obligations get in the way of the things we know are really most important to us. In reality, I might not even have ten years left, so I should treat it as such. None of us are promised tomorrow.
Contact Info:
- Website: Mackenzie: mackenziemorrow.com Devouress: https://devouress.bandcamp.com/
- Instagram: Mackenzie: https://www.instagram.com/mackenzie.morrow.music/ Devouress: https://www.instagram.com/devouress.music/
- Twitter: https://x.com/mackmorrowmusic
- Facebook: Mackenzie: https://www.facebook.com/mackenziemorrowmusic/ Devouress: https://www.facebook.com/devouress/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mackenziemorrowmusic
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/mackenziemorrowmusic
- Other: Mackenzie Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/09xKl7GjKOETUqTQFXqOr2?si=6TDk8UozSiatyBsU35As7Q
Devouress Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5X8WWATPrX3GDyTxflfQJ6?si=ndZhvmXsTei65xiwbglN_g
Mackenzie Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/mackenzie-morrow/1162375861
Devouress Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/devouress/1748866070
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mackenzie.morrow.music
Image Credits
Andrea Romero, Sarah Stiles, Aaron Pate, Jarod Phillips, Trey Morrow, Ewelina Chmurska, Alex Alastra
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