Finding Your Tribe As A Creative
Takeaways from Asheville & Nina Simone
Inside This Issue
Finding Your Tribe As A Creative
Music Makers Patron Sponsorship
Pics From The Asheville Trip
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Finding Your Tribe As A Creative
A new year is all about resolutions, new beginnings, and seeking out new opportunities. So when Next Tribe emailed me in January about a travel package to Asheville, North Carolina, my yearning for adventure took over.
Rumor has it that Asheville feels like Austin, Texas circa 1990. So, naturally, I was curious to see what the buzz is all about. Plus, Next Tribe’s packages (which are designed for women 45+ who solo travel) lean heavily toward arts and culture thanks to founder/author Jeannie Ralston’s own creative sensibilities.
A tour of The Biltmore? A record pressing plant tour? Drum circles? Mountain hikes and foraging for edible plants? Writers’ lunches and artist demonstrations? I’m IN!!
My college friend and short-story phenom Chris Kapp loves music, is an instructor at Rutgers, and writes daily (100 words or more, come hell or high water). Plus, she previously won a short story contest sponsored by Next Tribe. So I dangled the proverbial carrot in front of her, and it didn’t take long before she bit and agreed to join the fun.
GIRLS TRIP!
Chris and I met at the Charlotte airport, rented a car, and drove to our Asheville getaway on April 19th. There and back we marveled at the passing Appalachia scenery, pointing out signs of local culture:
A shiny, cursive “Jesus Is My Savior!” foil decal splayed across the entire width of a rear windshield.
“Billy Graham Training Center” and “Waffle House” road signs.
A garrison flag-sized confederate flag hanging defiantly above the tree line.
My hopes for Asheville as a welcoming, artsy fartsy, inclusive scene stood on thin ice, but I reminded myself how Austin was and still is a blueberry in the tomato soup of Texas. The city, fellow travelers, and locals proved to be everything I hoped for throughout the weekend. The indoor and outdoor activities with my Next Tribe sisters, most of whom I’d never met before, rekindled a creative flame in me that needed stoking. My cup now runneth over, and I’m already plotting my next trip. See my amateurish pics of trip highlights below.
Nina Simone’s Tribe
Paintings and photos of Roberta Flack and Nina Simone (née Eunice Kathleen Waymon) adorn many an Asheville wall in businesses that cater to tourists. They are two of the regions’ reigning musical icons who grew up during the early to mid-1900s. I pondered what was it like coming of age in North Carolina at that time in history? More specifically, coming of age as a creative black woman during that time…
Side Note: In keeping with Southern traditions, I will affectionately and respectfully refer to these women as Miss Nina and Miss Roberta.
Both were born into religious households with gospel as their musical roots (though Miss Roberta moved to Virgina at a young age). Both played piano and turned to classical music as college admissions required. Both became major recording artists after shifting toward blues, jazz, and folk music. As black women, both suffered the hardships of racism and later became civil rights activists.
Nina Simone’s autobiography, I Put A Spell On You, details how she felt emotionally isolated as a small-town black child prodigy with dreams of going to Julliard and playing Carnegie Hall. She sacrificed building social circles to practice piano while getting straight A’s at school. Miss Nina didn’t feel like she “belonged” even after moving to New York where her dreams of graduating Julliard were dashed by lack of funds after attending her first year.
Miss Nina eventually began playing piano at a bar in Atlantic City for much needed cash. She changed her name to Nina Simone, in part to hide the sinful nature of her employment from her religious family back home. This is when Miss Nina’s talents attracted the attention of record labels. Even after getting signed, getting married, and becoming a star, she still felt like she was going through the motions. Feeling alone and without purpose.
That changed when exiled African singer/songwriter and activist Miriam Makeba introduced Miss Nina to the Civil Rights Movement and its leaders. For the first time, Miss Nina connected with people to whom she could relate and who held the same values she did. She finally felt a sense of purpose that energized her writing/composing and produced passionate songs like “To Be Young and Gifted and Black” and “Mississippi Goddamn!”
People began calling Miss Nina “The Voice Of The Civil Rights Movement” and “The High Priestess of Soul.”
Miss Nina found her tribe… And her creativity flourished.
Where Is Your Tribe?
Even if you’re surrounded by people who love you, creativity can get stifled if you’re not connecting with like-minded souls. You don’t necessarily have to pack up and move to find them — COVID19 proved we can socialize without leaving our couches.
But as I experienced during my Asheville weekend adventure, a new environment with new (and old!) friends goes a long way. This week, I wrote song lyrics for the first time in 20 years. That says a lot.
An article written by Gianpiero Petriglieri published in the Harvard Business Review, states three positive reinforcements of a tribe from a professional perspective:
— They are strong spaces, not just safe spaces
— They care about learning, not just performance
— They are a source of questions, not just advice
Exploring new places ignites imagination and resilience in modern creative minds as spotlighted in this IUEMagazine essay. Visiting new places with your tribe? An artistic win-win!
Find an activity, day trip, group outing that speaks to your soul and just take the plunge. It may be that extra boost you need.
Do you have a story about finding or reconnecting with your tribe? Please share it in the comments?
Music Makers Patron Sponsorship
Speaking of finding your tribe… If you are a woman who works on stage, on air, or behind the scenes in the music industry, sign up for the upcoming Herizon Music Makers program. Launching soon, this professional and personal development series features tips, tricks, how-tos, resources, and tools from top experts in their fields.
BONUS: We have patrons who want to sponsor you! They will cover your Herizon Music Makers monthly access fee for 12 months — that’s a value of $90!!!
There are no financial requirements to qualify for a sponsorship! It’s available to all female(x) music makers.
Fill out this form, and you’ll receive an announcement when the program launches. We will then pair you up with a patron as soon as possible.
Pics From The Trip!
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Thea 🎶
Terrific stuff, Thea. Thanks a million for sharing your journey and for spreading the power of community within art forms. Excellent work, my fellow Michigander.
Great write up! I've been wanting to vist Asheville for quite a while, and this only made me want to go more.
Seeing that glass sculpture alone seems worth making the trip.