Today we’d like to introduce you to Iveen.
Iveen, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Honestly, one of my favorite things to say recently is, “how did I get here?” Waking up in North America one day to find myself in Mexico another day and Ireland the next started to become normal life for me once I started to take my musical career seriously. Touring the world with music as a passport has been such a surreal experience. That’s why I like to take it all in when my career takes me to beautiful places. I’m truly grateful! When I was little, music was always a huge part of my life since both of my parents are musicians and so are the rest of my six siblings. My dad Mickey, my brothers, and I started a traditional Irish band when I was just nine years old. We played at festivals all around the South East and got an amazing amount of experience of performing live at a really young age. Sadly, the band broke up as soon as my brothers had to go to college, but I never stopped.
In fact, I couldn’t stop. No matter what I did to try to change my career path or studies, something always led me back to doing music. It was financially difficult at first (for obvious reasons), but eventually with enough hard work, I actually started making a decent living off of making and performing music! Recently I’ve been mixing the Electric/Acoustic Harp with Drums, Keys, Bass, Irish Flute (Tin Whistle), Guitar and vocals all together with a looper pedal at my shows (like a one-woman-band)! It’s been a lot of fun figuring out how to do all of that on top of learning how to produce music as well. A lot of people ask me how I play so many instruments and my answer is usually something like “boredom” or “I have no social life” which usually makes them laugh but it’s true! I was homeschooled for my entire education until college and I really had the benefit of having extra time on my hands growing up, so I usually spent that time practicing music. If I got tired of playing my tin whistle, I’d go and snatch my dad’s guitar and practice while he was at work or sneak another instrument off of one of my siblings and practice while they weren’t around.
You could almost say I was a bit of a music addict! There’s nothing I ever really wanted to do more than just play music and practice. I’m just glad I’m actually using all of that time I spent practicing for something bigger. My current music project is really coming together nicely with the help of an amazing team of people and most importantly producer Darrick Atwater. We’ve been creating some true masterpieces ever since we started working on music together and the results are breathtaking! I’ve always had these grand cinematic visuals and ethereal orchestral pieces in my head but I never thought they’d become a reality until I started working with him. Our most recent work “Orion” took us a great deal of time to accomplish from start to finish but the end product has truly been rewarding in so many ways.
The single and music video will be out on May 14th, 2020 which is great because we filmed it at the end of last year and the music industry is actually having a huge shortage of music videos and material to put out right now due to the pandemic. I feel like everything is coming together perfectly because I originally wrote the song “Orion” about letting go and letting “the waves take over”. Which is a metaphor for letting go of the things in life that we can’t control, especially when we are “lost at sea” (a very poignant message for the times we are in right now). My hope is that the song will be there to help people feel a little bit of light at the end of this tunnel we’re all in. Even in these times where my live shows are getting canceled, I’m extremely grateful that I can still work on producing music from home and make a living that way. I wouldn’t have it any other way and I truly look forward to what the future holds in the journey ahead!
Has it been a smooth road?
The more life experiences I have the more I realize that it truly is about the journey, not the destination. When I started my journey of making a career of music it was really difficult. Depression was a huge setback for me when my life took unexpected turns. At some points music even saved my life! I feel like from that point on. It was never a choice for me whether or not I should continue on the path I was on. It felt like I finally had a true purpose! It was a gift that was given to me, but it was a gift that was meant to be shared with others.
One of the reasons I’ve recently started to incorporate the Celtic Harp into my projects is because I’ve always been prone to having panic attacks and severe anxiety. When I started playing the harp again after I hadn’t touched it for years, I realized instantly that it had an amazing calming effect on me. Even just playing the same melodies over and over helped me to relax and calm down even when I felt like I couldn’t breathe during an anxiety attack. The harp is such a beautiful instrument and it is extremely fulfilling when playing it not only helps me but also helps calm other peoples anxiety’s too!
Can you give our readers some background on your music?
Currently, the record label that I’ve started with Darrick Atwater is doing really great! We both do a little bit of everything. Producing music, creating sample packs for other music producers, photography, videography, social media and brand consulting for other artists. The list goes on as other needs arise!
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Atlanta is one of the best cities to live in if you are trying to make a career in music. There are so many amazing recording studios, producers, labels and artists to work with here! If you just put yourself out there and network, you’d be surprised what kind of business team you can build here in just a few months even.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.iveenofficial.com
- Email: info@iveenofficial.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/iveenofficial
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/iveenofficial
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/iveenofficial
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