Hey Mindy! So excited to be chatting with you! You just released your new single “Long Distance Lullaby”! How excited were you to get this song out into the world?
I think every single person who has ever lived has inner child wounds to heal. It’s part of the experience of life. So I have been very excited and hopeful about putting this song out into the world, so that it might reach the people who are in alignment right now with its messaging.
Can you tell us the backstory of this song?
My therapist asked me to bring a bag of objects that reminded me of my childhood to a therapy session. When I brought them, we talked about the symbolism of each item and considered why I chose them and what they represented. I immediately connected with this exercise because it’s very similar to a songwriting technique I often use called “object writing” where you use your five senses to describe an object and then you start crafting lyrics based on the words and descriptions you’ve come up with around the object. So I began to see each object as a potential lyric or song and the wheels started turning in my head for a collection of songs I could write for my younger self.
On my way home from the very therapy session where we reviewed my inner child objects, I stopped by an antique store on a whim. When I entered, I walked past a phone booth and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I saw it as another object that could help me connect to my inner child. I grew up in the last era of the analog world where a phone booth was a common thing, not a novelty in an antique store. So it was easy for my inner child to connect with it right away. I stepped inside and picked up the phone and imagined my younger self on the other end. What could I say knowing what I know now, that could help her on her journey through life? What might she have to say to me to help me remember my younger self before certain events in my life had a negative effect on me? The nature of the small, cozy space felt safe and I felt inspired to convert it into an isolation booth of sorts, where I could literally record my thoughts and conversations with my inner child as songs. “Long Distance Lullaby” feels like the most poignant conversation I had inside that phone booth in regards to trying to connect with my inner-child and the love and comfort I wanted her to feel.
You also have more projects coming out soon!! Can you spill any details on what your supporters can look forward to from you the rest of the year?!?
Volume 1 represents more of my inner child. Volume 2 represents more of my inner teen and I am currently finishing writing and recording for Volume 2 so that I can release it in 2025.
Do you have a creative say in your music?
I am entirely independent as an artist, so I have all the “creative say” in the music I write and record. 🙂
Did you help write all your new songs?
Yes, I am the primary writer on all of my songs and brought in a co-writer for a few of them.
What’s it feel like to be releasing your own original music?
I’ve been releasing my own original music for over 20 years now and it’s one of the aspects of my life that I feel the most fulfilled in.
Will there be a music video for your new single? If so, can you tell us about the concept of the video.
Yes. There is a music video for “Long Distance Lullaby.”
Much like the object exercise my therapist had me do, I collected symbolic objects and actual objects from my childhood and put them inside the phone booth. Styling the phone booth was a really healing exercise in and of itself. I had my niece play the part of my “younger self,” sitting in the phone booth, while I, as an adult, am playing the piano, next to the phone booth. She is not aware I am there until she exits the phone booth at the end of the video. I wanted my niece’s interactions with the objects in the phone booth to be as authentic as possible. So I honestly just let her enter the phone booth and told her to feel free to play with whatever objects in there she was drawn to. There was very little directing and mostly just authentic play. We filmed it on a vintage camera and I love how the aesthetic and symbolism reflects the era of my childhood.
What’s been the pros and cons of pursuing your music career?
The pros and cons of pursuing a music career probably look like those of a lot of other industries. But being a recording artist puts you in a spotlight that is a little different. Being an independent artist has its own challenges because you have to learn a much wider set of skills so you can wear more hats than an artist who has the staffing of a record label. You also have to come up with your own funding. But the benefits lie in being able to own your own music and being able to have complete creative control and also control of your own timeline for releases.
Is there anyone you want to thank that’s helped you get to where you are today?
There are too many people to count, but my manager, Fawn Goodman, has done more than any other single person to help me get where I am today. She’s amazing.
How would you describe your fans? – what’s three words you would use to describe your fans?
Whimsical, Starcrossed, Dreamers
What is it like performing in front of your fans?
It’s a symbiotic connective experience unlike any other. It feels like the safest trust-fall you could imagine.
What’s something your fans don’t know about you?
Some might know this because I have released a few tracks in Spanish, but I lived in Spain for 3 years during high school and I am fluent in Spanish.
What’s one word you would use to describe what your fans have allowed you to accomplish?
Confidence
What do your fans call themselves? And How did that fanbase name catch on?
I don’t have a specific fan nickname other than “Mindy Fans” but I have a side project called “Madam Bandit” and those fans call themselves “Fandits.”
What do you want your fans to know if they ever see you in public?
That they can always approach me unless it seems like I’m giving time and attention to one of my kids.
Is there anyone in the music business you are dying to meet/work with?
I’d really love to write a song with Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the Richer
What’s your current go-to song?
It is and always has been “Harvest Moon” by Neil Young.
Why do you think social media is so important for artists like yourself?
Before social media, the only option to advertise as an independent artist was to spend money on advertising and press in physical publications and in media. Social media has opened up the potential to reach so many more people. Sure, you still need to spend some ad money to reach all of those people, but you don’t necessarily have to in order to connect with fans and make an impact. I also find it to be a really cool platform for creativity and self expression that didn’t exist before.
What would you say is your biggest dream/goal right now?
I’ve had songs in indie films before, but I’d love to have a song placed in a feature film.
Any last things you want to tell your supporters?
You can find my new album and all of my music on all streaming platforms. But please feel free to come say hello and follow my music and musings on Instagram, TikTok, X, YouTube and Facebook.
Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions!
Thanks for having me!
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