ALLAN JAMISEN

Q How did you originally come up with the idea for “Living the Dream”?

I had started writing it during the pandemic, it’s an observation and commentary about dysfunction in society today.

Q What inspired you to write the song regarding the dynamic between strength and weakness?

Sometimes you’re faced with a personal dilemma that can’t be easily reconciled. You’re presented with a choice between taking advantage of a situation for personal gain, or sacrificing that personal gain for the greater good. Sometimes it’s what you do, and how you do it that makes the difference, and other times it’s what you don’t do, and how you don’t do it that makes the difference. I read Lao Tzu’s book “Tao Te Ching” frequently.

There’s a few references about that dynamic as well. I had also seen it demonstrated on a physical basis when my father was terminally ill. He had seemed invincible until facing an adversary stronger than he was; an invisible force that was dragging him out of this world against his will.

Q How important is it to you to show the losses and the victories in your music?

There’s no definitive intention to make that kind of statement in my music.

Q How do you, as an individual, deal with the feeling of falling all the way down?

I’ve certainly been there several times in my life. Most recently I’ve experienced that after being a caregiver for my mother. It was devastating on many levels, and after sh was gone, I self-isolated and self-medicated with alcohol and drugs. I was in a very dark place, and had a tough time relating with other people and reconnecting with life.

Feeling suicidal, two public figures took their lives around the same time; first it was Kate Spade, I had known her husband Andy in high school, we were the same age, and her death kind of shook me up. Then Anthony Bourdain killed himself two weeks later. It really demonstrated that the definition of success that’s promoted in society could be an empty place, a hollow victory, and maybe wasn’t as fulfilling as it is made out to be… I made a decision to stop drinking alcohol in an attempt to heal myself, and slowly began to elevate my spirit from despair. It’s a constant work in progress.

Q What does “taking the long way around” mean to you now?

It means procrastinating the inevitable.

Q How do you stay hopeful in desperate times, as you describe in the song?

You know, my grandparents, my mother’s parents, were a big influence on me. They were solid people – when they promised something, they kept their word, you knew where you stood with them. In their lifetime, they experienced great advancements in technology that helped transform the world into what we know it as today; such as the proliferation of electricity, the transition from radio to television, etc. – they also experienced hardship and lived through tough times like the depression and World War

II. Their social prestige was predicated on how much they gave back to society, not how much wealth or status they personally had. When I was growing up, it felt like there was a lot more optimism in life. I thought American society was on a trajectory to achieve a utopian ideal by now. So in a way, my grandparents’ values still inspire me, because if there’s any hope left, it exists in the spirit of selflessness and generosity that people of their generation seemed to embody and represent.

Q The lyrics are so intimate — did you intentionally want it to sound like you’re sitting down and having a conversation with the listener?

Yes, absolutely. It’s a form of communion with the universal soul. I’m glad you recognized that as well.

Q Were there any specific lines in “Living the Dream” that were especially tricky to write?

Not really, I wanted to capture the emotional context and impact of being inside the dystopian time frame we’re living through right now.

Q Is “Living the Dream” more about where you’re headed or what went down with you in the past?

More of what went down in the past, although it’s definitely a reflection of being in the moment here and now.

Q You mention right and wrong a few times in the song — are those ideas black and white, or are they more gray to you?

They can be black and white, or gray – depending on the circumstances. Things that appear a choice of black and white at the time, can easily fade into gray with the passing of time. Hindsight is 20/20.

Q What does the section of the song that means the most to you personally mean?

The lines at the end of the bridge, before the start of the final chorus: “But, don’t say anything to anyone else, this is between you and me…” It’s a common phrase that people use; sharing a valuable personal thought, feeling or insight, while also protecting an image of themselves created as a device to help navigate through the ambiguity of life.

Q How does being a painter influence how you write lyrics?

Adding and reducing ideas until they maximize a visual impact.

Q Was there a particular emotion you wished listeners would be left with after hearing the song?

Catharsis.

Q How do you individually know success after everything you’ve been through?

Self confidence, humility and gratitude.

Q If you were going to advise somebody who feels they’re at that place of right and wrong, what would it be?

Be inspired by your higher self, and trust your intuition.