IWD - Grace Loudon

Places of the Soul

Livestream for March 8th: http://198.27.68.65:8112/stream

“Musical training is a more potent instrument than any other because rhythm and harmony find their way into the inward places of the soul.” - Plato

I’ve been asking the women taking part in the March 8th. event for International Women’s Day (IWD) what got them interested in music. Everyone so far has had a parent or other family member who not only set an example but encouraged them to pursue their interest as well. Grace is no exception, except it was the sound of her father playing his albums throughout her childhood that instilled a love for music. “I remember always hearing music when I was little and finding myself learning all the words to songs and singing along,” she says.

When it came to choosing an instrument, Grace was drawn to the guitar but says, “I lacked the discipline when I was younger.  I finally learned it about 5 years ago and I love it.  When I was younger I received piano lessons, though again, lacked the discipline to keep it up.  I can play the keys a bit now, not great, but enough.  Still, the guitar is my favorite.”

Since the theme of International Women’s Day this year is #Beat the Bias - Imagining a gender-equal world - I’ve been curious to hear about how our performers experience being a woman in the world of music. Would they like to see anything change, and if so how? I loved Grace’s answer.

“My pipe dream for women in music is that sex appeal takes a back seat to talent.  I wonder now, with the women I see in the music industry, who taught them that they had to be sexy, slutty, ‘packaged’ if you will, in order to be successful and when will we, as the audience, stop feeding into that? 

How many men do you see selling sex in order to sell records?  And if they do, it's still in a manner that presents women as nothing more than sexual objects, catering to an audience of men.  Women are just as talented, have just as much to offer, and have written some of the most essential songs of our times. But they keep getting pushed aside in order to make semi-talented women with big boobs and butts the stars.”

The images below show some of Grace’s many faces and selves. One of the freeing things about being an avatar is that you can look and behave any way you like. Try on different parts of your personality. Indulge in hair and shoe fetishes. Roleplay being a huntress or a tattoo artist. When I saw how many versions of her avatar Grace has, I wondered what kinds of songs each of them would write. Maybe we can get her to tell us in the comments below :-)

Grace was eloquent about her songwriting process. I am always intrigued by people whose gifts are different from my own, and the ability to bring sounds and words together to touch people emotionally is so special. As a writer, I know how to find words, but I have yet to hear music to go with my words. Here is how Grace describes her songwriting. “I've always been so interested in how people write their tunes.  For me, it's melody first.  I will hum it in my head and then get it into my music writing software before it's out of my head.  I will figure out the whole melody, arrangement, sound I want, and finally work on the lyrics until I see it to fruition.”

When I asked about women musicians she admires she talked about Brandi Carlile. “I am a big fan of Brandi Carlile.  She is one of the best lyricists I have heard in music today.  Her songs are poignant, and she's so adept at telling the story of each song without having them all sound the same.  And her voice - I love it!”

As for her own hopes and dreams for the future in music she says, “I am older now so the aspirations to become a rock star have passed.  But I am grateful for opportunities to share my music and my voice and enjoy every moment I have to write new songs.  The outlet is essential to my mental and physical health - especially that mental part.”

To hear some of Grace’s amazing songs, visit:

We can’t wait to hear you perform on March 8th. Grace!

P.S. If you would like to make a donation to cover the costs of hosting the event and paying these amazing musicians, you can do so here: https://paypal.me/BraidedLives?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US

Braided Lives is my project and Joanne is my given name :-)

If you are interested in being a sponsor of the event, with your name mentioned and logo displayed, please email me at JenaBall@CritterKin.com

Thank you!