November 13, 2023
Hey! Welcome music lovers to this brand new section! This time, we're not going to ask questions to artists or musicians. We thought it was time to introduce you to some of our fellow bloggers. We can even say friends! We share the same passion, the same struggles, and we can say that we're on the same boat!
For this first episode, let's fly to Italy to meet Laura, the creative mind behind Laura Meets Musicians, an active curator on her blog, Instagram, and Youtube (links at the end of the interview).
IMC: Hey Laura, welcome in!
LauraMeetsMusicians: First of all thank you Niko for having me! I'm usually the one who interviews so it's always a weird and funny feeling to be in the shoes of who is interviewed!
My pleasure! First, why did you create your blog and how did you chose the name?
In September 2020 I started to discover a community of indie musicians based in New York City thanks to Instagram and in particular thanks to the first ever indie musician I ever met on social media, Scott Krokoff (a great americana songwriter).
It was the first time that I could talk directly with the songwriters, sending them my thoughts about their songs, asking questions and even becoming friends! Since then I also started to draw musicians' portraits on my art account @enchanted.marvel and day by day indie musicians have become my second family. I was in a very dark place at the moment and their encouragement, friendship and kindness helped me a lot. I really loved that community, so I started looking for the way I could support it more.
In April 2021 I opened the Instagram account @laurameetsmusicians where musicians have a space to freely present themselves not only as musicians but also as people. It suddenly had a lot of success and I started to receive tons of requests for features!
The blog came a few months later, in November. I would never ever imagine writing in a blog but some artists kept saying that the interviews I posted on Instagram were good and proper for a blog too so I had to try!
Ah, the idea for the name Laura Meets Musicians is very funny and a bit ridiculous LOL! When I decided to open the Instagram Page I was struggling to find a name that would be original and fun. I had just made my Disney+ account and started bingeing American old tv series to improve my English and I happened to watch an old teen Disney series "Boy Meets World".
At the moment I didn't think about it, but at night I had a bulb light! Laura Meets Musicians would be perfect, because I didn't want just to shoutout musicians impersonally but my aim was to give them a space to talk about themselves in general, about their lives and hobbies, so as to create a bond with potential listeners. In a few words, I wanted to virtually "meet" them! The rest is history!
If you could have a one-on-one jam session with any indie artist, who would it be, and what instrument would you play, even if you've never played it before?
Ah, this one is easy!! The artist would be Scott Martin, a guitarist from Brooklyn NYC that is a sort of guitar guru because he knows EVERYTHING about EVERY type of guitar and gear and I admire his way of playing so much! During the years we developed a good friendship so it would be perfect.
I would play the keyboard because my secret dream is to learn piano/keyboard and I'm sure it would be a terrific jam session!!
In the world of indie music, if you were a superhero, what would your superpower be, and who would be your arch-nemesis?
Niko, how did you come up with such an amazing question?? You're definitely much better than me as an interviewer!! I love to answer this question in particular because I'm quite a Marvel/superhero obsessed so here it is!
My superpower would be to be able to connect indie musicians with EVERY person that could potentially love their music in the world so as to help them create a worldwide fanbase as they deserve!
My arch-nemesis would be (and actually is) the social media algorithm that randomly decides what to put in the spotlight and what not, enslaving humanity to its will!
Have you ever caught yourself talking to your computer screen while writing a review, as if the artist could hear your feedback in real-time? Tell us about that passionate moment.
Yes it happens to me all the time, especially because I write in a language that is not mine (I'm Italian). I start talking to the computer screen like a fool, enlisting all the adjectives I could use to express how I really feel about the music and trying to not repeat myself.
I imagine the artist I'm writing about facepalming right behind the screen thinking "Oh my!".
If you could create a wacky award for the quirkiest indie music lyric you've ever encountered, what would it be called, and which lyric deserves the honor?
Easy to choose! The quirkiest indie music I've ever heard is from another blogger who is also a musician: Just Some Mustard! The song is "Mustard can be found anywhere" and it's written by a food condiment!! Great idea!!
If you had to write a tongue-in-cheek survival guide for indie music bloggers, what would be your top three tips for navigating the wild world of music reviews and social media promotion?
1) Be patient with indie artists. They are overwhelmed by tons of things on a daily basis, like inspirations for new songs, social media marketing, new releases, broken gear, imposter syndrome, and much more. They are a wild species that has to be approached with kindness, empathy and authenticity.
2) Never give deadlines to indie musicians, for the reasons I mentioned before. You can't trust them when they'll send you the material so always go easy and calm with planning features. They'll love answering the questions if it isn't a stressful task they have to accomplish but something to enjoy in a moment of free time.
3) Try to give feedback to every musician but take a break from interviews and articles whenever you need. If you always respond to emails and DMs, musicians will understand if for one time you will drop the ball on something because you need to switch off the phone and take care of your private life.
Share a funny or heartwarming moment when an indie artist or band retweeted, liked, or commented on one of your social media posts. How did it feel to have them acknowledge your work?
When I read this question my mind went instantly to Alpha Circle, a pop rock indie band from Madrid. Every time I post something about them their support back is absolutely incredible (I even drew the portrait of each member of the band!). They know how to support who supports them for sure, they always reshare all my stories, posts, articles... and they comment on my YouTube videos!
So basically they are the dream of a blogger haha! They even posted a video for my birthday that was absolutely lovely and made me feel emotional, they're absolutely the best!
What has been your biggest disappointment since creating your blog?
My biggest disappointment is when I take care of a feature, spending time in creating the various posts and tagging the artist and they don't even like/comment/reshare. It didn't happen often, just a couple of times, but it really disappointed me because not only they didn't care about my work for them but they also totally disappeared soon after.
I don't want just to feature musicians to give them a spotlight but I also like to have human connections with them. Luckily 99% of the musicians in my community are supportive and kind!
If your blog could magically transform into a physical space, like a café or a beach, where would it be, and what would it look like?
It would be a cozy café where musicians can come and play! I don't need to imagine too much because a couple of artists, John Silvers and Elfin Bow, just released a wonderful project called "The North Café" where the barista it's me!
It's a wonderful story that combines art and music and they exactly described the perfect warm and friendly air that you would breathe in my cafè! The candlelight would give to the ambient a sweet light and the musicians would feel comfortable in sharing their music. The audience would sip hot tea and coffee at their flower-ornamented tables, in a feeling of relaxation and peace.
Share a delightful story of an unexpected friendship or collaboration that blossomed through your blog. How did this connection enhance your love for indie music?
Yes I have a wonderful story of friendship and collaboration that is connected with my previous answer about "The North Café" project. In spring 2021 I stopped on a livestream hosted by an instrumental artist, John Silvers. He looked very kind and genuine and he played ukulele with talent, heart and inspiration. I instantly calmed down listening to his peaceful music. I asked him in the comments if he would be available to be interviewed live by me. Although he didn't know me and I had barely 200 followers at the time, he surprisingly accepted with no hesitation.
We went live in June 2021 and it was incredible. Not only he made me feel comfortable being the first time I went live and spoke English with an American, but he answered beautifully to all my questions. He also played a bunch of his ukulele compositions, one of which had no title yet. At the end of the live, he announced that he would call that music "Laura" (now changed to "Laura's light") because of how good he felt during our connection. I was totally thrilled and amazed, and even now, I find it difficult to believe there is a song named after me! I can't explain how much it meant to me, in that moment of my life and starting this adventure.
An artist from the UK, Elfin Bow, tuned into the live. Little we all know that John would eventually move from California to Wales to marry Elfin 2 years later and that TODAY their wonderful cozy project, called "The North Cafè" would be released in the world. But the real plot twist here is that, as I told before, the name of The North Café owner is... Laura!!!!
Such a wonderful and meaningful connection that wouldn't have happened if I had not started LMM and had not stopped in John's livestream that day.
Thank you so much again Niko for featuring me!! Answering your amazing questions has been a blast!!
Reach out to Laura
Your turn!
If you'd like to be the next blogger interviewed, feel free to reach out to us through Instagram, and we'll make sure to save you a seat in the next adventures!
Are you a musician and want to get your music featured? Go for a submission!