Overview:

For my senior project, I will be writing, recording, and producing my own, original EP. EP stands for “extended play,” which consists of more than a single, but less than an album. The recording and singing will all take place in a professional studio. The mixing and production will be handled entirely by a record producer; a process in which I also intend to be involved in. The songwriting, on the other hand, will be done independently with feedback from my manager and other peers. My overall goal for this project is to write and produce 4-6 original songs, and learn more about the studio and industry along the way. 

Singing has always been my passion. My lifelong dream is to become a pop star. Ever since I was small, I have yearned to hear myself blasted on the radio and take photos at awards and carpets. I know with all of my heart, that this is the life I am meant to live. Now that I am seventeen, both my family, my peers, my teachers, and myself, believe that now is the time to make my dream come true. We have already produced and recorded one song, but for me to present my work in hopes of being signed, having an EP is the essential next step in the process. Along with the EP, we will also strive to complete one music video to accompany one of the chosen songs. This video will also be shot by a professional with a concept that is yet to come. 

This project will challenge me both mentally and physically. The hours I will spend singing in the studio will push my voice to its limits, and reveal how far it is I can go. Mentally, I will need to get into the fighting mindset that it takes to be in the music industry. Unlike other professions, being in music, and any art for that matter is to simply put it, brutal. I know that I am going to have to dedicate my mind and my body completely to truly make my dream come true.

This project fills the creative bucket, experience bucket, and academic. I will need to write music (chord progressions, lyrics, melodies, timing, composition, etc.), I will have experience in the studio and working with professional musicians and producers, as well as learning about the entire industry in the process.

Measure of Success: 

It’s often been hard to feel like this dream that I am chasing is truly possible. Usually when people hear that a student wants to go into the arts as a profession, as a society, there is a doubt and criticism on these ambitions. My goal is to record the music video and complete my EP. I know that tangibly, this is how I will measure my success of my project. However, even if I do not finish my EP or even get signed to a label, I want to know that I have made a good step in the right direction, and restore the faith in myself that I can do this and that it is possible. If this is how I feel by the end of this project, then that to me is a success in itself that I cannot wait to experience.