1. Tell us about your music. What is your music like?
I create heart-healing indie folk. I made up the genre “heart-healing indie folk” because indie-folk felt accurate and I’m always encouraging everyone to feel into their heartspace. So it feels aligned to call it what it is. I strive to be very intentional with my songs, and a common intention that I invite into the writing/recording process is this idea of introspective reflection. Be present with emotions, feel your body, connect with your heart. My first album, Let Love Transform, was a conceptual album that starts off in this angsty confused place and evolves into softer and warmer tones, guiding the listener through a transformation from darkness to light. Transformation is a common theme for my music and you can hear it in the music that I’ll be releasing soon.
2. What are some of your inspirations for making music?
I guess my inspiration comes from everywhere; oftentimes I find inspiration in nature, and I have conversations with my loved ones and experience palpable moments in my life like heartbreak or extreme pleasure that inspire me. As for musical inspirations, I pull a lot from artists like Trevor Hall, Ben Howard, East Forest..stuff like that.
3. You have a new single coming out, “ancient”, April 18th. What is that song about?
The song is about the things that feel “ancient” in this life – love, relationships with others, relationship with Self, whatever it is for you, really – and how we must have radical acceptance for all of life, even when it’s confusing and doesn’t make sense. At the core of it, “ancient” is also about forgiveness. Through my life experience I have learned that forgiveness deeply benefits the one doing the forgiving and it is a process of letting go. I wrote the song about my own process of forgiveness (in this case, forgiving my parents) with the intention that listeners will be able to find some forgiveness while listening to this song. I guess I want listeners to play the song and focus on forgiveness…and see what changes!
4. Can you talk about the creative process of making music. Where do your ideas come from? And, what do you do to create music when you are NOT feeling creative or in the mood to create?
In truth, I’m not sure I have a specific process. My ideas come from raw emotions, that’s for sure. As my songwriting progresses, I know I hit something real if I am feeling gratitude and crying while I’m writing music..haha. Honestly that’s where most of my songs come from – a moment of crying and feeling grateful and a whole mix of emotions at once with my guitar in my hands and sounds escaping my body.
My friend Matt Price once gave me the advice “if you aren’t feeling inspired, just start doing the thing you want to do, and the inspiration will come.” I’ve taken that to heart and definitely follow the advice.
5. What advice would you have for other aspiring musicians who are feeling afraid to pursue their dreams because they are not sure if they will make any money as a musician?
I often work with fear in the mindfulness workshops that I offer. I usually start with a bunch of questions: Where do you feel your fear in your body? Can you accurately name it? What does it feel like, and what would it feel like without it? What’s the best case scenario if you pursue your dreams, and who else could benefit?
My advice with handling fear is to pursue it. Do the things that you are afraid of doing. Try new things and create Who You Are through your attempts at greatness. That old saying “You never know if you don’t try” is true for me. And if you’re seriously aligned with your Purpose, the money will come. Heck, I’m still afraid to pursue my dreams…but that won’t stop me from pursuing them!
6. What are your thoughts on being guided toward purpose, rather than seeking it? What do you think that means and how can we be guided toward purpose rather than seeking it?
I’m currently 28 years old, and astrologists recognize this period (roughly from 28-32 years old) as a Saturn Return – it’s when Saturn returns to the degree of the same sign from when you’re born. It’s this period of great change, of redefining Who We Are. For a few years I’ve been anticipating this time, and I’m grateful to surround my experience with awareness, and so I am pursuing things that help me feel closer to Spirit and aligned with my Purpose. I recently took part in a virtual Purpose Summit presented by embodiment facilitator Mark Walsh, and man it was incredible. Through hours of dialogue on purpose, I realized that I’ve been trying for YEARS to “find my purpose”. I’m now settling into the belief that purpose lives through me, and that each step on my path brings me closer to my purpose. But we have to be open to it, we have to listen to our intuition…I think when we start truly listening to ourselves and to the Universe, we step into our fullness and get closer to the fulfillness we all seek.
7. How does music fit into purpose?
Music captivated me at a really young age, and when I was 13 I got a drum set. I always felt this sense that music was my calling, and at the same time I feel that the music that I create is way bigger than me, and that there are other facets of my being that ask to shine through. I’m pursuing a graduate degree to look at how music can be used to strengthen leadership and social cohesion. When I’m really on purpose I become a conduit for the music (or other creative outlets) to flow through me, and that’s about as close to God as I’ve gotten. Music is completely aligned with my Purpose because my purpose is to be Who I Am. And right now, music is a big part of who I am.
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For more information about Aaron and his music, please visit https://www.aaronbearmusic.com