Meet Alassane

We recently connected with Alassane and have shared our conversation below.

Alassane, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

I think there’s an element of insanity that accompanies any creative ambition. And what looks like resilience could very well be a disregard for the material and logistical circumstances that are absurdly difficult to overcome in this line of “work” – ‘I’ll jump off the cliff anyway’ kind of thing. Regardless of what appears reasonable on paper, if the passion hits a certain level, one seems to not care enough about the risks. It’s almost as if whatever possesses us to express ourselves in the first place is completely indifferent to a material barometer of success. That being said, the peaks and valleys are very real and the tests can be severe. I would say that I find resilience in meditations on time and meaning. I find that recognizing myself as an organic being, continually in process and similar to other lifeforms, able to alchemize whatever is thrown at me, does help shine the mirror. Embodying this in action is a daily test but realizing that there’s always a possibility and that there are natural cycles to be honored helps me reconnect to an intrinsic resilience – a drop of insanity to help regain sight of certain doors that are always there to walk through.

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 am an independent artist. I’ve been writing and releasing music for most of my life. I studied music in high school and in college but I would correct that to say that my real education has taken place, mostly, in the actual world – the world of bands, gig life, excursions, independent projects etc. My primary focus has always been on keyboard instruments, though I dabble on a few other instruments. I’ve been singing my whole life as well. For me, an exciting element of being an artist is the opportunity to “be wrong” or subvert an expectation only to pay witness to an alchemical process. A process where pain becomes a medicine of sorts, lack of sight turns into vision etc. I find that after choosing to hand myself over to that process, it is me – all of my identities, capacities, complexes – that seem to be the instrument being played.

Another thing that is also very fun in the world of songwriting is the freedom to put together all sorts of different interests that come from a variety of sources and cultures in a way that is unique to you. I do think it is necessary to recognize that I’m a part of a larger music & art community while honoring the need to atomize and separate completely. A tough balance to strike for sure, but a needed one. Sitting on a good amount at the moment. I am in the process of finishing a few singles, as well as a new EP. And I’m almost finished fleshing out the writing of two full length albums. First one’s almost done, second one is still in the incubator. I also have a few collaborations in the works. One being primarily with Ryan Wheless, a great tenor saxophonist & composer currently in Tucson. We have a couple things in the works right now which I’m excited about. I’m also finally getting around to finishing a new website and email list. But for now, people can find me on social media and find all of my work on all streaming platforms, Bandcamp etc.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

That’s a good question. I think that if I didn’t have perspective, community, and some semblance of courage that I’d probably be pretty lost. Courage is foundational here because we human beings evolved to equate rejection with death. So it naturally takes courage to reveal yourself when you know for an absolute fact that you will be rejected by some. There’s a great vulnerability and fear to accept when that kind of indelible reflex is largely inescapable. And I want to clarify that I think courage does not mean being unafraid. It just means taking that action and making your statements even in the face of that fear. This is where community becomes so key. It takes a village, always. And one needs to be able to lean and be leaned on at times. The right folks will always be a source of motivation and reinforcement in the face of uncertainty, so finding those points of connection with those who can empathize and speak the same language is a crucial for sure. I really do think that the heights you’ll reach are directly correlated to however deep you choose to go. And the deeper you go, the more uncertain you are, the more uncertain you are, the more necessary those symbiotic relationships will be. Lastly, I can’t say enough on the importance of perspective. It really is the ultimate deciding factor, in my view. For example, I struggled with certain ideologies that I picked up in school regarding the nature of discipline and passion. If I hadn’t zoomed out far enough to see that the things that I naturally love in music and art don’t require much discipline when it comes to getting to work, I probably would have continually diminished the significance of love and passion. Who knows what decisions I would have made if I didn’t alter my perspective and re-align, invite the inner child to become apart of the process again. For those who are just getting started, I would say that at the end of the day, it’s only you deciding what framework you are going to look through and work within. And I think that the spirit has a way of informing you when you’re holding on to a perspective that is diminishing you and keeping you small and unexplored. Alter your perspective however often you need to so you feel that you are actually thriving in the work that you’re doing. Maybe not a maximalist in the work per se, but definitely in the attitude.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

For sure. I am currently facing some physical challenges. I’ve been recovering from injuries that I sustained in a car accident a few years back. We’ve made significant progress but I’m still working through getting over this final hump. I’m so grateful that for the last year and a half, I’ve been able to be active in making music while healing. But there’s a recent development that may require a final surgery. Luckily we have some time before then and it will be a quick recovery period, but it will take me out of the game for a short while. So wish me luck!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_alassane___/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alassanemusic/
• Other: https://alassane.bandcamp.com/track/grand-mal-lo-fi-versBandcamp is one of the few places where you can directly support independent artists!

Image Credits

All photos by Julius Schlosburg
*except live performance photo

*Live performance photo by Connor Lowe