We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful J. Midori Kobayashi . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with J. Midori below.
J. Midori , thank you so much for taking the time to share your lessons learned with us and we’re sure your wisdom will help many. So, one question that comes up often and that we’re hoping you can shed some light on is keeping creativity alive over long stretches – how do you keep your creativity alive?
During the early pandemic, like so many others – I was left a bit adrift. All of my creative outlets were temporarily suspended due to the lock down. Everyone was baking bread and gardening. My bread sucked. My garden died. After several futile attempts at the perfect sourdough (and failing), I was struck with the ridiculous idea of starting to produce music. Electronic music. For the young people. <chuckle> What a time to explore a new creative endeavor! That very isolating, frightening, unprecedented time taught me some very important lessons on how to keep my creativity alive.
I focus on 3 categories: Inspiration. Preservation. Connection.
Inspiration.
Inspiration is sometimes an elusive thing for me. It requires care, attention and intention. The things that inspire me are fluid and ever-changing. So, there’s a constant, yet evolving exploration in many forms, that involves curiosity and openness. Sure, I consume art in many forms – it’s essential. But, I also look to the ordinary, the plain, the everyday for inspiration. The definition of inspiration is “the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something”, And given that, you can find joy or sorrow in almost anything. But you have to look for it – the lock down really drove this home. A fallen leaf, the way the sunset hits the clouds, the twinkling lights of the city from my window, rain on cold concrete – all of these things inspire a certain feeling for me.
Preservation.
A key part of keeping my creativity alive is around preserving my mental/emotional health, my time, and my energy. In today’s world, this is no easy feat, there’s so much vying for our attention – much of it toxic and wasteful. I try to be careful on how I spend my time. I weed out the things that aren’t serving me well. It takes constant work, always ebb and flow. My creativity can’t flourish, if I don’t have the mental space to be curious. It can’t flourish, if I don’t have the time and space to explore and tinker.
Connection.
Connecting with other folks excited about art feeds my creativity. Doesn’t really matter if it’s other musicians, visual artists, dancers – their passion fuels mine. I also believe we are profoundly changed by the people in our lives – through sharing experiences, ideas and dreams. And, having a support system helps me face and overcome creative barriers more readily.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I produce electronic music.
As mentioned earlier.. this started out as a pandemic hobby – I was trapped in my house, with little other creative outlets and much more free time. A year in, I signed my first track and I haven’t stopped since. Now, very unexpectedly, I’m playing some of the best venues and biggest events in San Francisco. Wild.
To be honest, I’m still developing my voice and my style. I’m allowing myself to explore and not be trapped in a specific genre. And, I’m working hard to level up my songwriting skills. That said, I produce house, breaks, ukgarage and I just signed my first DnB track.
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?
Frankly, I boil it down to these 3 attributes/skills: Technical aptitude, The ability to self teach, The ability to focus.
I’ve worked in tech for almost 3 decades now – you get pretty good at learning/self teaching, as every company has a different software stack, different sets of tools, different processes. My technical aptitude and ability to self teach gave me a real advantage when I was starting out. Lastly, my ability to focus is quite good. I love deep, focused work – it’s almost meditative for me. My only advice here is amusingly, a quote form Yoda. “do or do not, there is no try”. <laughs> I guess I”m saying, just do the thing. Learn the skills. And don’t do it halfheartedly. If you’re doing it half halfheartedly, maybe it’s not actually your thing. And by doing, you’ll get better at the skills. Plain and simple. There’s no magic.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
Oh yeah.. this happens to me quite a lot. I really struggle with anxiety. When I feel overwhelmed, I take a break. I take a walk or go for a jog, if I can. I journal or I make quick lists, and prioritize those tasks/line items. Seems so cliche, but taking a few deep breaths to clear your mind can do wonders.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.miidomusic.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/miidomusic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/miidomusic/
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/miidomusic
Image Credits
left / right visual
