We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Anastasia Rose Music a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Anastasia, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?
Women make up only about 20-25% of the professional music industry. Fewer than that are lead songwriters and producers (approximately 3.4%-12.7%). At most shows, I am the only female to touch the stage. If I’m not, I’m usually only accompanied by 1-2 others for a 4 band bill. Being a woman in any male-dominated industry is hard to say the least. It requires tenacity, high self-efficacy, and self-advocacy. But sometimes even that is not enough. Women have to face macro- and micro-aggressed sexism, harassment, and assault in the music industry. I have numerous stories of being the person who organized an entire show including being the one to correspond to bookers and sound people only to be walked right past upon arriving to a venue to ask one of my [male] bandmates what the details were. Fortunately, they have a tremendous amount of respect for me and they immediately tell the booker/sound person — “oh, you want to talk to her, she’s the one who organized all of this”. The answer to how have I learned to be effective/successful when I am the only one in the room who looks like me is not a simple answer and it continues to evolve. First, it was to over-practice and over-commit to be seen as on par with my [mediocre] male peers. Second, it was to begin researching this discrepancy and learning about how this contributes to burnout and music performance anxiety in marginalized musicians (BIPOC, LGBTQ+ as well). Third, it was to join the Colorado Musicians Union board as Womxn’s Committee Leader (encouraged by my dear friend and fellow female musician, Sarah Mount) to begin using this platform for advocacy for womxn in the music industry. My effectiveness and success are still works in progress as I am not immune to the pain and suffering it requires to be part of this world. My support system — and the support I aim to be for other female musicians — is paramount as well as being my own biggest fan. One silver lining of it all is that female musicians have to work so much harder and be more accountable than male counterparts because we are targets of the aforementioned discrimination which leads us to often being one of, if not the best, musician in the room because we’ve had to be just to be recognized amongst the average man.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I have recently taken on the title of “Professional Creatrix” because this seems to encompass most of what I do from day-to-day. I am a musician by trade and education, but I also write poetry, model, make art, and do therapy. I’m even a doctoral student and public speaker/instructor. All of these requires some level of creativity which I am fortunate to be able to access regularly. Most often, music is the primary creative service I offer — whether that is through live performances (including private events and weddings), in music therapy sessions, or recording original music. I vacillate between lots of other creative arts and usually settle on completing a collaborative project. This is where modeling comes into the picture (pun intended). I enjoy connecting with artists of other media, like photographers, to develop a unique vision that neither of us can do alone. We create something bigger than ourselves. Ultimately, that’s my goal with all of my creative endeavors.
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?
Many of the same qualities and skills that make a female musician successful make most creative people successful — tenacity, self-efficacy, and self-advocacy. With these skills, we are more likely to view “failure” as a bump on the road or a detour rather than a roadblock. This is a necessary frame of mind for being successful in the arts. Self-efficacy helps to build the kind of ego strength and backbone to hear the necessary feedback and separate it from the harmful critique. Self-advocacy is required to be seen. One of the common desires of creatives is to be seen and once we can embrace that it requires a level of self-advocacy, we can achieve this. Building a community, collaborating, and continuing to hone a craft are all ways these skills can be built. Never give up because the world needs your art.
Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
I love collaborating with any creative. Whether it is working on a project together, supporting someone’s mental health, or simply buying and promoting each other’s art, I find that there is always room to collaborate regardless of the genre or industry. I love collaborating with other musicians, poets, photographers/models, artists, filmmakers, and more. Reach out if you identify with any of these industries and let’s create something bigger than ourselves — together.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.anastasiarosemusic.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/anastasiarosemusic
- Facebook: facebook.com/anastasiaandthemusic
- Twitter: twitter.com/anarosemusic
- Youtube: youtube.com/c/anastasiarosemusic
Image Credits
Alyssa Montano (Rocky Montano Photography) Anthony Ring Photography Anabel Jennings (Ishtar Images) Chris Tracy Photography Hillcrest Photography Christian Jaramillo
