Words by Carol Wright | Photographs courtesy of Lauren Jaimes
Lauren Jaimes spoke to us about your songwriting roots, battling stage fright, and the release of her music video for “Home is Where you Are.”
Growing up were you often singing around the house?
When no one was looking! I grew up in a musical household and my Dad has always been a fantastic singer and guitar player, able to write songs in both Spanish and English. He actually put out a couple of Latin albums while he and my Mom were missionaries in South America, so I have always been around music. Growing up I played the flute, piano, and guitar. I also found myself constantly writing songs, but never getting on stage to share them. I’d had a bit of stage fright since I was little but moving to NYC really helped me get over it.
What did you learn during your time at Berklee College of Music that you apply to your career today?
The thing I learned from Berklee that I think about most often is how to look at a song you’re writing from different angles. There is no right or wrong way to write a song, but it’s important to remember that the first thing that pops into your head, or even the second or third thing, may not be the best thing for the song, whether it be lyrics, some part of the melody, or even the structure of the song. It’s really easy to go with your first instinct and to sort of have tunnel vision when you’re writing, but the more “out of the box” and open you allow your thinking to be, the more you’ll end up surprising yourself!
Who are some of your music inspirations?
I really love Kacey Musgraves. She is such a witty writer and is constantly redefining herself and her music. Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison have also had big influences on me. Cash’s live performances are what really blow me away. It’s hard to tell the difference between his live recordings and his studio recordings, his voice was just that incredible. Roy Orbison, on the other hand, was a master when it came to songwriting. He wrote these big, grandiose pop ballads that I grew up listening to. He’s incredibly unique.
What is your songwriting process?
I tend to write songs one of two ways. I love writing poetry, so sometimes I’ll start writing metered verses first and then later on experiment with putting music to those verses. Other times I’ll get hit out of nowhere with a melody that I’ll have to work on putting lyrics to. I actually get a lot of those initial melodies right when I’m about to fall asleep, or some other really inconvenient time, like in a movie theatre or in the waiting room of a doctor’s office. I always record it on my phone right away though no matter what, so I can go back and look at it when I’m ready to work on it.
Tell us a bit about your song “Home is Where You Are”. What inspired the lyrics?
This song is one that was actually written melody first. The melody is really bright and upbeat, and I wanted to make sure that the lyrics matched that. I originally got stuck when I was trying out lyric possibilities, but my fiancé came in and was like “why don’t you try it this way”? And after that, it took like 10 minutes to finish the song! He’s so awesome at helping me out when I get in a rut.
There’s also an accompanying music video. What was that creative process like?
The music video was really fun to shoot. It’s actually a one-shot, which means there was no editing involved. Because it was filmed this way, we had to get through the entire song with no mistakes! Everyone you see in the video and behind the scenes is actually a friend of mine or a friend of a friend. I currently live in NYC and the artist community there is really tight-knit. Artists are very supportive of each other and want to see their peers succeed, whether it be in acting, music, dancing, or writing. My fiancé, Forrest Weber, directed the video and our friend Elliot deBruyn was the cinematographer. We rented out a studio in Brooklyn and filmed the whole thing in one day. It was such a blast!
What advice do you have for aspiring singers?
You can do anything you put your mind to! Like I said, I’ve always had stage fright, but I’ve also always wanted to be a performing musician. I put it off for so long because I didn’t want to fail. I’m so much more comfortable now being on stage and sharing my music. Nothing is more fun! If you want something, you should just go and do it! Try it! Failing is just learning.
