About
Hello!
My name is Joj. As a child I loved music and have always appreciated it's astounding diversity and it's ability to transport the listener with each note, each rhythm, in full color. Music was a wonderful outlet for me growing up and a lifeline to my emotions and to my inner self. Unfortunately, like many before me (but hopefully not as many after), I lost the one true connection I had. The voice I knew so well felt smothered and forced. What once brought me so much comfort, brought pain and sorrow. Despite my feeling of disconnect, I was able to complete my Bachelors of Music in Vocal Performance but was unable to continue my studies and gave up performing entirely. People I met after this time had no idea what music had meant to me nor did they know that I once sang.
With no other plans for how to proceed with my life, I began to teach music. I taught general music at the elementary school I once attended but switched to teaching private piano lessons after deciding that the classroom was not the place for me. I attempted to reestablish a more meaningful relationship with music a few times over the years, but with little to no success. I thought that for all intents and purposes, my life would remain fixed/frozen, forever. But I have never been happier to be proven wrong.
The thing that elicited such monumental change for me, was having my two beautiful children. I was determined to be a loving mother and to raise them in a way that they would feel that love and give them the best shot at life because I never wanted them to have to endure what I had. And in the process of learning and putting my focus on them, I was able to find myself. I started my parenting journey with the intention of putting myself last but that is not the way healing works. At my lowest point I had to reach out for help when the way I had always done things was no longer enough. Finding the strength to ask for help made me realize that what my children really needed was for me to be healthy and for me to put myself first. I believe in leading by example and if that is what I wanted for my children, it was up to me to show them how.
So after years of putting in the work, of sowing seeds, learning, experimenting, learning some more, I was blessed with a garden. The place inside me, where a barren and empty desert had resided, began to bloom. A landscape devoid of color and light was once again filled with song. The music began pouring out of me. It felt very foreign but also very right at the same time. Each one of my songs tells part of my story. Each one is infused with hope, love and strength. They are very personal yet at the same time, very universal. I started writing about four years ago and am on a mission to share my music. I believe in the transformative power of music and I hope that mine can spread joy, understanding, and change. I am here to make my dream a reality.
