Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lauren Gunn. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Lauren, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Ten years ago I was working on music row as a videographer and editor for the biggest indie record label in Nashville. I was interacting with people whose names are known around the world and it was the most exciting position I had ever been in. But my boyfriend had been accepted to a school in a third world country, and so I made the decision to quit my job, get married, and go with him. Little did I know how that decision would change the course of my life for the next decade. I went from music industry networking events to isolation, and from having my work featured in People and Rolling Stone to living in poverty. The kind of poverty where you don’t have a vehicle or a cell phone or internet, or clean water or air conditioning, and sometimes have to shop in the expired foods section of the grocery store to find something you can afford to eat. At the time, I didn’t know how to process the trauma I was going through. And so with limited resources and responsibilities, I turned to songwriting to help make sense of my thoughts and feelings. Later on that became a lifeline to cope with a very chaotic life.
After a few years, we came back to the states. Any time his school scheduled him to a new assignment, we picked up everything and relocated. It totaled around a dozen times in a few short years. Finding new jobs everywhere we moved was a challenge for me as a creative, so while he worked and studied, I was generally at home trying to make myself useful during bouts of unemployment. As this pattern continued for the following 6 years, I felt pulled further and further away from my own dreams and aspirations. It took a huge toll on my mental and physical health, began to shape what I believed was possible for me, and affected my ability to feel safe and secure in my body as I unfortunately developed some chronic health problems. I started to lose faith that the situation was only temporary.
When I first came across the phrase “chaos theory,” and read these words, I stopped dead in my tracks. “Chaos theory suggests that the behavior of complex systems can follow laws… and yet their future states remain, in theory, unpredictable.” It sounded exactly like what I had experienced in life. That you can do all the right things, the smart things, the responsible things… you can get married young and settle down and sacrifice yourself for all the right reasons, and chaos can still ensue. Things can still unravel. Life can still be unpredictable. And so I penned a collection of songs about my life that became my debut EP, called Chaos Theory.
When I finally got the support I needed and found tools to empower myself again, my entire outlook about my future shifted. I discovered myself again. I found the strength to pursue a life that I wanted to live. Releasing my first record has meant so much more to me than just music. It has been the culmination of a decade of chaos and confusion coming full circle. It’s turned my pain into purpose. I’ve been all around the world, but there’s nowhere I’d rather be than right back here in Nashville, making strides to give myself the life I know I deserve – one full of creativity, authenticity, and opportunity.
If I could boil everything down to one point, I just want to make people feel heard and seen because I know what it feels like to feel unheard and unseen. Since day one of my musical journey, my mantra has been “You matter. Keep going.” I say it mostly to myself, to remind myself why I do what I do. But I hope I can also encourage people through my story that their lives are so valuable, even if they can’t see it right now. I just want to encourage people to keep going and not quit, because you never know how your life is going to impact someone else.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
My debut EP, Chaos Theory, was released this past September and I could not be more proud of this music. It’s 5 songs, each relating to an emotion I felt over the course of a very complicated relationship. The sound is probably most closely described as indie rock, folk rock, or alt rock, but genre aside, it’s really just a combination of my words and melodies with sounds throughout the decades that inspire me. I’m a huge fan of classic rock, 60s and 70s folk music, and great songwriters like Billy Joel and Stevie Nicks and Chris Martin. Also having a background in film, I enjoy cinematic soundtracks from great movies, so that inspires me too. For example, when I was writing “Electricity,” I wanted to create something that sounded exactly like how a John Hughes movie feels. He’s my favorite director. You can find my music on all digital steaming platforms! I’m also on Instagram and TikTok.
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?
The entire release around Chaos Theory was definitely been impacted by my background in both classical music and filmmaking. Growing up I played classical piano and it really laid a foundation of musical knowledge for me – understanding the fundamentals of song structure, chords, harmonies, and how different sounds evoke different emotional qualities. When I was studying film and digital media in college, I learned a lot about how visuals do the same thing. So at this point in my career, I am a very visual storyteller, even when I’m working with non-visual mediums like music. When I’m writing, I’m usually imagining how the music video would look at the same time. And because I have career experience as a videographer, video editor, I’m able to incorporate a level of narrative storytelling to the content that I create for my social media. For example, I am working on a series of cinematic short films for Instagram and Youtube that will combine footage with my spoken word poetry, giving more context to the album. As an independent artist without a label backing me, it’s up to me to do everything myself. It’s been very interesting to do creative direction on my own project and try to think of myself the way I would any other client. It’s harder in many ways, because I’m so close to the project, but it’s also been a huge gift to have full control over the look and feel of my brand.
Apart from my skill sets, I’d say the main quality that I’ve had to exhibit is resilience. Life knocked me down so many times that at one point, I just stayed there for a while. But eventually I dug deeper than I ever have, and pulled myself back to my feet again. In 2023, between my full time job, writing music, recording sessions, creating content, working on an album release strategy, marketing, hiring a band, rehearsals, and planning my first ever original show, I was working over 80 hours a week. It sounds glamorous, but it was actually grueling. Haha! But life has prepared me for this moment in time. And my resilience has led to incredible opportunities. In April I was fortunate enough to open for one of my all time favorite artists, Jade Bird, on tour in Charlotte, NC. To think of where I was a few years ago compared to now…it’s very surreal. I’m really proud of the work I’ve put in.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I would absolutely love to play some bigger shows and festivals this year outside of Nashville. If you’re an artist or manager reading this and looking for an opener, I’d love to be considered. My band is world class, and I could not be more proud of the music I have created. I’d love to give my band more opportunities to shine, and it would be a privilege to share my music and message with more and more people.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.laurengunnmusic.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurengunnmusic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurengunnmusic/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHV5XwRIHwslSpywy1W19lA
Image Credits
Gina Rose Stephanie Parsley
