Meet Annabelle Fuerst

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Annabelle Fuerst. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Annabelle below.

Hi Annabelle , we’re so appreciative of you taking the time to share your nuggets of wisdom with our community. One of the topics we think is most important for folks looking to level up their lives is building up their self-confidence and self-esteem. Can you share how you developed your confidence?

Our confidence and self-esteem has been a long fought battle for both of us, especially in regards to music. Though we’ve both struggled at times to feel confident and secure in our abilities, being able to examine, recognize, and appreciate the accomplishments we’ve acheived has helped the two of us gain confidence and feel proud of what we do. I think it’s important to be able to realize that your accomplishments occur as results of your hard work and dedication, and both of us accepting that fact has helped us both to be more confident inside of music, and outside of it as well.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

We are Payton and Annabelle: a female-lead acoustic folk duo based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. We met in the summer of 2021 in the Kalamazoo Academy of Rock, and immediately bonded over our similar music tastes and love of harmonies. In 2023 we had the privilege of recording our first single, Projection, as part of the first place prize package of the first ever New Moon Songwriting Competition. We then released our full length debut album, For the Willows, in March of 2024, with every song fully written, performed, and arranged by the two of us. Our goal is to continue to make music and write songs that are true and authentic to the two of us, that can hopefully reach others across the world.

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?

As a duo, the ability to work together has been crucial throughout our time together; skills such as good communication, compromise, and having an open mind have allowed the two of us to maintain a good professional relationship in relation to our music, while still being great friends. Others can improve on these skills by consciously exercising them while working with others, whether it’s for music or any other relationship in their lives.

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?

Balancing music and college has absolutely been a struggle for both of us. We’ve both experienced stress after overbooking ourselves, or struggling to find time to take care of ourselves individually with such busy schedules. Both Payton and I typically like to take a small step back, even if for a day, to allow ourselves to recharge and relax away from the thing that may be causing either of us stress.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Photo 1- Jamie Geysbeek

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Productivity
Where do you get your work ethic from?

We’ve all heard the phrase “work hard, play hard,” but where does our work ethic

Productivity
Tactics & Strategies for Keeping Your Creativity Strong

With the rapid improvements in AI, it’s more important than ever to keep your creativity

Productivity
From Burnout to Balance: The Role of Self-Care

Burning out is one of the primary risks you face as you work towards your