Note to Self with Brisa Lauren

Brisa Lauren is a talented musical artist from San Diego whose journey is a testament to the power of music as a transformative medium. With a captivating voice that effortlessly blends warmth and vulnerability, Brisa has established herself as an artist who leaves a lasting impression.

When did music, songwriting, and performing become a passion of yours? 

Professionally, I’ve really been taking my artistry more seriously since 2013 but the first time I sang was at the age of 4 on one of my fathers tracks. He was a music producer, so I grew up in a musical family. Through different curricular activities whether it be choir, singing groups, performing all through my elementary and high school experience just really grew that passion over time naturally.

How did you continue to turn your passion for music into more of a profession?

I actually left music for some time. I had just had a baby. I was also still in college and working so something had to give. I had to pursue my career. I put music on the back burner and didn't realize how much I actually needed that creative energy. So this amazing man who is my right hand by the name of Kendrick Dial said “Hey, I’ve got this band I would really love if you’d be the lead singer”. 

He was a poet and I was just like the singer adding a little flair to his poetry. At first, I was really just kind of on the sidelines thinking this was “his show”. But after the first two shows he said “nah, I really want you to own it, be the performer that you are and bring it” and I was like, “say less!”. So I got on stage, grabbed the mic, interacted with the crowd, and owned it! That's when we realized, we’ve got something special here. 

I ended up being part of the band, The Lyrical Groove and started booking shows from lounges and bar spaces to performing at jazz festivals and traveling to different states. At that point, music started to really become a profession as opposed to something I did for fun or something I did as a release.

Tell us more about your passion for song writing. 

As I started writing my own songs, they would come from such a vulnerable place. They come from such raw emotions. I mean, when you’re listening to my lyrics, you’re literally listening to pages that I’ve written in my journal. Because it’s such a vulnerable truth that I'm sharing. Almost every song that I have, I can remember when I wrote it. I can remember what I was doing when I wrote it, what was happening, what inspired it. I remember one song in particular, I was in an argument with my partner and he went outside to take the trash out and he was taking a little longer, so I knew he was taking a breather. And I remember saying to myself, “I am so sick of giving my power to this emotion, to this energy”. So I wrote it down and then I just kept writing and that ended up being my song called “Note to Self”. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to use music more as therapy and storytelling and it became really a place to always call home and a place where I always felt safe. I would love to write songs that show people the way. I would love to write songs that give people a blueprint to how to turn their pain into purpose. To encourage them to keep going. To remind them to be still. To remind them to get grounded. To remind them not to speak in their anxiety. Watch Brisa's 'Note To Self' Video Clip

How did your on stage persona evolve? How did you build the confidence to go out there and put on a show? 

When I perform, I feel like a fish in water. I feel like this is where I belong. At a young age I knew I belonged on stage. I remember singing in choir and just really coming alive on the stage. When the lights are on and the audience is there, there's a certain energy that comes from people being in the crowd that is almost unexplainable at times and it really just is fuel to the fire.

I realized that I loved being a good time. I loved being a good vibe. I loved being good energy, and I could do that on stage because people were there to experience something and I could deliver that something. 

So that's what I’ve really utilized over the years to perfect my performance style, my stage presence. But this is the stage Brisa as opposed to the work Brisa and the Mom Brisa.

How would you compare Work Brisa, Stage Brisa or Mom Brisa? How do they differ? 

I’m a very multifaceted woman, so having a career in politics, being a mother of two and then being an artist, it really is like 3 different lives. Performance Brisa is definitely more free in what I say and what I do. I’m way more playful, I’m way more jokey as opposed to Director Brisa who is a little more mindful of what she speaks in and what she says. I think what I love about the life I’ve created is finding balance in all those things. Some of the music I write is about social justice and politics which creates the bridge between my work and politics. Then of course I love the idea that my children can see this woman who is on stage performing, has this energy and this light to her because she's doing something she loves but also see that she's doing something professionally that matters to her, to our future, and to the world. I feel like my work is how I give back what has been given to me and my music is what I need to be able to continue to give.

How do you find balance?

I think it's 1000% okay to be honest with people and say, “Hey, I love what you're doing and I would love to be a part of it... But this specific project is not an alignment with where I'm at right now or where I'm trying to go”. I think that's how you also find balance - sometimes it’s just knowing what's for you at this moment and what's not and being comfortable saying no.

If you could redefine the word “beauty”, what would that look like? 

I would define beauty as vulnerable. I think this world and society and social media has put too much of a negative impact on our ability to recognize ourselves as people. I think we forget that we are emotional. I think that we forget that we have feelings. I think that we forget that we were born a certain way and it's okay to be who we were, born to be how we naturally came out. I'd really define beauty as just the ability to be vulnerable and be safe and feel safe to be vulnerable. To know that your truth is not going to be mocked, to know that your truth is not going to be made fun of.

What advice would you give to someone based on your experiences?  

The only people who can bring you down are already below you. I feel like as a black woman, I'm really proud of where I'm at because I have to work harder whether people see it or not. For young black women, the best advice I can give you is to speak up now. Tell them “I like my hair the way it is or I like my natural curls. I like my Afro. This color doesn't match me. This makeup doesn't match my skin tone”. Because the older you get and the more that you're silent, it's harder to speak up on these things. 

What keeps you going? What keeps you grounded? 

So whether you’ve met me in a board meeting, on stage, or on a playground, I think you’ll always recognize the light in me because it shines out of constantly reminding myself that none of this is mine. That all of this belongs to a higher power. My life and my purpose was already destined. And even in the moments of uncertainty, I still feel extremely strong because I feel like this is purpose. And I think that purpose is shown in pieces of everything I do. I think that light of “this was meant for me” shines in every single space that I’m in. And I'm just very aware that no matter what happens in my life, no matter what happens around me, whatever is meant for me is still mine. Just might take a little longer to get there. I always feel that things aren't happening to you, they're happening for you. And sometimes my music is a reminder of that.

Check out the other places you can find Brisa and her music.