Conversations with Julie Lavery

Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Lavery.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up outside of Boston, MA in a small town called Whitman. I sang in the church choir as a kid and took part in every musical I could from elementary school through college. I graduated from Berklee in 2010 and moved to Orlando, FL for my first paid singing gig as Ariel in “The Voyage of the Little Mermaid” show.

My next move was to Los Angeles to start a band called The Running Mates with my then-boyfriend-now-husband. We wanted to travel and see the world so we turned our band into a duo and worked on a cruise ship in Australia for a little while and then flew to Bora Bora for a residency at the St. Regis Resort. That brings us to the pandemic. I had a lot of downtimes to think about what I wanted to do with my life.

We were back in Boston at the time and decided that life was too short to wait around so we packed up and moved to Nashville in 2020. I also made the decision to pursue my lifelong love of songwriting full-time. I released three singles in 2021 and plan to release more someday but since coming to Nashville I’ve written with some amazing artists which opened some unexpected doors.

Currently, I’m going on my first tour this spring/summer with the incredible Sarah Darling. I’ll be playing guitar and singing backup vocals as well as performing a couple of my own. The Coastin’ Tour starts on 4/19, I’d love to see you out there!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Nothing about pursuing a career in music makes for a smooth road but we do it anyway because it’s the only road worth taking. Money always seems to be one of those issues for working musicians.

We cobble together a living by wearing a million different hats and taking on odd jobs until something finally hits and one (maybe two) streams of income are enough to survive comfortably. At the moment, I’m still waiting tables to help pay the bills but I’d say the biggest struggle as of late has been my mental health.

I’m sure the worldwide pandemic, recession, climate change, housing crisis, etc. could have something to do with it but social media has also played a huge role in my anxiety. It’s hard to open your phone and not compare yourself to others. I never feel like I’m doing enough but I’m working on it.

Therapy has been helpful and I just started meditation, 10/10 would recommend it.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a singer and songwriter. They don’t have a particular order for me because I love both equally. I’ve always been an emotional singer and I think that’s what people remember about me and my songs. I love telling a story and I think that’s ultimately what lead me to songwriting.

Lyrics are so important to me. I started a TikTok account last year thinking nothing would come of it but I posted a couple of personal originals and together they have over 250k views. I guess that’s still relatively small potatoes for TikTok but I was really touched by the number of people who connected with the songs.

Ultimately, that’s all I want to do. Whether I’m singing them or someone else is singing them, it doesn’t matter. I just want to make music that people remember.

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
Authenticity. I’m always reminding myself that “comparison is the thief of joy.” Just do you.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.julielavery.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julielaverymusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julielaverymusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/julielavery
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/julie-lavery-407720225
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@julielaverymusic?

Image Credits
Tara Diiorio of Velvet Sky Film & Photo