Upcoming Performances

plus a few changes around these parts

Jul 02, 2024

It was a very.tough.week.

I want to preface this by saying that I’m ok, though my nervous system took quite a hit. Following my last newsletter interview — an interview which described a power imbalance within a musical space — my interviewee and I were bullied online. Suffice it to say, that power imbalance was exacerbated to the max this past week. We watch bullies on the grand, political scale. It’s the same playbook: diminish the (perceived) opponent in order to maintain control, and deny their truths. You cannot reason with most bullies — their reality is simply different. They’re also unpredictable and as a result, scary.

I’ve since taken down the interview, and I’ve made my entire Substack private. My newsletter has long been an important, sacred space for me, and I will not allow it be violated.

I’m deeply saddened that my interviewee and I have been silenced in this way — we are the sole keepers of our lived experiences and no tantrum can change what we know to be true. I’m also deeply saddened that this man owns and operates an active recording studio, a position which grants him considerable power within musical communities. But there is nothing to be done. Our well-being must come first.

I am eternally grateful that I have this newsletter space and that I have you. Thank you for being here, thank you for supporting my work, and thank you for being in beautiful community with me. This little episode was a brutal reminder of why I do what I do — creating music, and spaces for music, that are grounded in care*.

*The word “care” has wildly different definitions, but I like these two in this instance, from the Cambridge Dictionary:

the process of protecting someone or something and providing what that person or thing needs
serious attention, especially to the details of a situation or thing

I believe it’s imperative that we create and present music with an outward-facing thoughtfulness. It doesn’t mean we remove ourselves from the equation, but that it’s in conjunction with an attention turned towards others and towards the details. Care. I’m certainly not perfect, and I will make mistakes in the future, but I am more resolved than ever in this goal. Thoughtfulness is an ongoing practice.

With all that said, I am playing some concerts this summer that I will be infusing with every bit of tenderness and vulnerability I have to give. Details below. If you’re planning to come to any of these, may I humbly request you buy advance tickets? I’d love to see you. Let’s hug.

Thank you for being you.

xoxo, sophia