Rising Stars: Meet Serena Z

Today we’d like to introduce you to Serena Z.

Hi Serena, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
I started playing violin at the age of 4, long before the birth of Serena Z. I grew up on the Suzuki method and studied music every day. When I was 11, I auditioned for a music academy in Chicago and was taken on by world-renown violin legend Almita Vamos. I went to school during the week and then to Academy on the weekends. I did a lot of solo performances and acquired lots of awards and trophies. I was broadcasted live on WFMT 98.7 multiple times and even had an hour-long special on their series “Introductions” featuring talented young musicians. I got so used to performing all the time I thought nothing of it. It became my entire life very quickly. I had a tough time getting along with kids my age and started acting out at this point in my life. This is around the time I started playing my first electric violin in my school’s rock band. I would also frequently sit in with my parent’s disco band, 7Deez. It opened my eyes to a whole new world. I struggled with my relationship with my instrument my entire life, and I realized it was because I wanted more. I didn’t want to be put in a box. I was so tired of kids giving me a hard time for being different. I realized I didn’t want to only play classical music. I quickly decided that I would be going to college to study music and that I did not want to end up at a classical conservatory. I was always too rogue for the crowd there and just knew I would never be happy if I did that. I was offered a substantial scholarship at every school I auditioned for but ended up choosing Berklee College of Music, as I was offered a full Presidential Scholarship and knew I wanted to dive into studying more styles of violin playing. I started off looking at lots of Jazz and Rock solos in my lessons, which is something I had never done before. It gave me confidence, and the ability to feel freer with my playing. I started multiple bands and projects at this school and even created a Lady Gaga ensemble, in which I was the Musical Director and violinist/singer. Unfortunately, I was never a favorite at any of the schools I attended, so we got robbed of the suitable venues at school. I found it hard to manage a dozen different performers with huge personalities with little to no help. Everything I did was almost enough, and it just left me feeling defeated after I graduated. In May of 2020, when I was supposed to graduate, I was chosen as the only violinist to solo with Cassandra Wilson and John Legend. This was the first time I felt 100% recognized for my talent and efforts. Covid-19 had just begun to my demise, and our entire commencement was canceled. Everything was shot remotely – all the footage and audio. So you can find a little square of me next to Cassandra and John on YouTube when I was supposed to connect with them and perform live. It completely crushed me. I moved from Boston back home to Chicago because of very extreme circumstances and didn’t get to say goodbye to my friends and colleagues. I got a job as a manager at a music studio in Chicago for the summer and then saved up enough money to buy my first car and move to Nashville. I didn’t connect with anyone in town for over a year because everything was so screwed up. I finally started making serious connections at the very end of 2021, when I recorded my 2nd studio EP and collaborated with really talented people in the industry. I no longer feel ties to the negative parts of my past and am so happy to be reaching more and more people. I’ve gotten so much better with consistent content, and gained over 40,000 followers on TikTok in just a couple months. The numbers are excellent, but the fact that so many people worldwide that I don’t know are listening to my music is fantastic and special to me. Now, you can find me as Serena Z on all music and social media platforms doing my thing on the violin.

Let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest struggle was many people doubting me and my lack of connection and relationships with people. I was trained to fix every tiny detail growing up in the classical music world, and it made me hate the concept of perfection. I find it hard to live everyday life without trying to make every single one of my actions perfect. The more exposure I get, the harder that can be to deal with. I’ve gotten to a place where I love myself and my artistry, but we’re talking about like 15 years of deep trauma. It’s hard to retrain your brain when you go through something like that for so long—too many people making fun of you and trying to knock you down. Most of the people around me thought that just playing the violin was weird, so I never stood a chance in many people’s minds. It was hard to find like-minded people.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I pride myself on being an extremely well-rounded instrumentalist. I have intense classical training but can do crazy guitar solos, improvise with a jazz band, and fiddle around Nashville. Anything you could ever want or need on the violin is easy for me. But I’m not defined by my violin. I’ve written 2 EP’s, 7 singles, and lots of other pieces of music. I want it all – Electronic music features, to play in a rock band, Serena Z shows with my original music, and so much more. If it’s one thing I do well, it’s versatility.

Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I felt like all I was doing was taking risks for a long time. I blindly moved to Nashville with zero plan and no job set up. Before that, I chose to go to a school 1,000 miles away from home when the furthest I had ever been was over the summer at violin camps. I’ve always liked to have a consistent change of scenery. There are so many things I want to see and people I want to meet. And I think life is ultimately dull if you don’t take risks. Most people would consider going to music school and majoring in violin performance as a big risk. But here I am, making more content than ever and supporting myself independently.

Pricing:

• $60-100/hr for tracking
• Weddings/Private Events start at $250
• Private Lessons (studio) $140/Month (1/2 hour)
• Private Lessons (studio) $280/Month (1 Hour)
• Patreon $3-20/Month

Contact Info:

• Website: www.serenazmusic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/serenazmusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Serenazmusic
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/serenazmusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChTSTdQ4jPnK-OHenOafLDQ
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/serenazmusic
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@serenazmusic

Image Credits
Anna Haas Photography