SEANN MEDICINA
Q What compelled you to write “I Only Show To You”?
It was a girl. Whenever I played guitar and opened my heart, I would see her face. In fact, it was the method I used to validate when my heart was really open because I would see her, feel her. She was my muse.
Q How do you decide what of yourself to tell in your songs?
I don’t decide.The creative process for me is always one of discovery. I get in a vibe and it takes me somewhere and tells what it is about. Nothing gets edited. It’s about authenticity.
Q Is there someone special in your life who inspired the lyrics?
Yes, it was my muse. At the time it was difficult to articulate this openly because I was still married. It was a platonic thing though and never amounted to actual physical union.
Q How do you find the nerve to say feelings most people would keep hidden?
The pain of keeping it inside is worse than expressing it. Once expressed , it can heal and integrate. Once shared, it can help others who resonate with it.
Q Is songwriting for you a form of healing experience?
Yes absolutely! It certainly can arise from inner wounds. But it is more than that since we all seek expression. Emotions such as joy affirm our true natures, that is to say, who we are after we heal.
Q How do you believe your listeners connect with the idea of a “secret place” inside?
Perhaps, we all have different levels of self-awareness. We need to push past denial, distractions, fear, shame and guilt to start the inquiry.
Q The person in the song seems to understand you without words — is that something you’ve experienced in real life?
Yes I have experienced that many times. It is my belief that true understanding goes beyond words, to that place of knowingness in the soul, where a single utterance would disrupt the moment.
Q Why do you think we often hide our most real emotions, even from people close to us?
Well, being vulnerable means laying yourself open to being hurt. It’s like a broken tooth, it even hurts when you breathe.
Q There’s a lot of empathy in the lyrics — do you think love is about sharing emotions as much as protecting them?
No, it is not that. Both sharing and protecting can come from a place of fear. Love is love. Maybe love protects, maybe it lets the object of love get hurt, and in both cases, we who love feel it all. It is about the courage to feel another’s pain and joy as much as your own.
Q Is it easier for you to express your truth in music than in everyday life?
Music is one way that some people can understand. Others need words or acts of compassion. I try to live every moment in truth so that my music is truthful too.
Q Do you feel that being emotionally open in your music inspires other people to do the same?
I hope so! I hope they feel it so that we too may feel it!
Q Do you write lyrics beforehand or does the feeling dictate the music?
It depends. Some songs come word for word, almost as if being channelled. Others require tortuous trial and error, patience and perseverance. When I sing them and stumble on the words or can’t remember them, it’s usually a sign to me that the lyrics need to change.
Q What do you want a person to feel the first time they hear this song?
My own desire has nothing to do it. They may feel something different every time. What’s important is that whatever they feel is what they needed to feel at the time, does that make sense? I just hope they honor their own experience.
Q Is vulnerability one of your greatest strengths as an artist?
It is simultaneously a tool and a hindrance. I have to find they strength to face it honestly, no matter how ugly it may feel, and then somehow forge that feeling into a sound that makes sense.
Q What’s one thing about yourself that you believe this song helped you come to terms with?
That I had a previously unknown depth in my heart and to my surprise, when I found it, someone else was already there!
