Meet Mathias Neyrand

 

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mathias Neyrand. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Mathias , 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?

Faced with the absurdity of today’s music industry, the very notion of long-term development, career and viable future perspectives are put to the test on a daily basis. The well-known consequences are mental health issues, disillusionment and fading optimism as to the individual capacity to affect change, even on a small scale.
To paraphrase a well-known quote, “it is not a sign of sanity to be well-adjusted to an insane society”, which is a crucial point I try to keep in mind.
Not only on a personal level (in my every day life, my political views, my volunteer work etc.) but also on a professional level I try to remind myself that the problems I face (lack of recognition, orientation and financial perspectives) are not rooted in having the wrong approach or in the faultiness of the creative output, but are the result of a structural deficiency. This systemic disfunctionality applies not only to the whole economic and societal structure but also to the music industry, which is a reflection and extension of the latter.
In the end, it always comes back to the music and the creative substance. Because only a deeply entrenched belief in the musical content can allow oneself to remain sane and continue with the creative work.

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 was born in France, raised in Germany and have worked as a musician in England and the USA.
I’ve blended all these different influences to try and create a universal kind of artistic expression, addressing socially relevant issues such as migration policy, basic democratic understanding and collective action.

My personal history and the musical expression I’m pursuing are not tied to a specific location, demographic or time. This “uprootedness” is both an advantage as it is is also challenge in a hyper-specialized music industry in which finding a well-delineated audience is paramount.

Despite this, my solo debut album, released in October 2022, was a critical success. It was described by Rolling Stone Magazine Germany as a „Songwriting debut that is already close to flawless“, received an enthusiastic media response (Magazines, Radios, Blogs) and was nominated for the German Critics Record Award (Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik) in the Category Singer-Songwriter.

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?

Determination:
There is no doubt that the challenges and diffuclties faced by recent artistic generations are substantial. The natural tendency to look for a “quick fix” ´through virality, casting shows, or the push of major gatekeepers has become omnipresent and to the detriment of a determined search for meaningful individual expression.

Expectation management:
Tied to the above, it is important to be aware of what the end goal is and how to best achieve it. There is no rule or template for success and the very idea of success (monetary, recognition, artistic) has to be constantly reevaluated, put into context and adjusted to the new realities of the different artistic industries.

Self-belief:
A notion that has been perverted through concepts like USP, instant fame and “bootstrap mentality”, the right balance between determination and obsession is a difficult one to strike. In the end this self-belief must be rooted in a deep artistic conviction that places meaningful expression above all else.

How would you spend the next decade if you somehow knew that it was your last?

Striking the right balance between catering to the expectations of the music industry, potential fans and the larger public while continuing to reject all forms of artistic compromise. A meaningful artistic development is not possible without adjusting to the realities of the industry, however, sacrificing one’s artistic integrity in order to conform to these realities will inevitably lead to the loss of singularity and purpose.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Photo 1: Anton Tal
Photo 2: Sandra Mannigel
Photo 3: Christoph Mangler
Photo 4: Christoph Mangler

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