- Hey, everybody.
I have a wonderful and special guest.
Emma McGann is here to talk with us about song writing
and how that can be therapeutic.
Like I said, I have Emma McGann here,
and she's a musician on YouNow, primarily, correct?
- Correct, yes.
- And what all do you do now, on YouNow or on YouTube?
Because she also has a YouTube channel.
- I do and so, on YouNow I do my best to share
my music, my audience, to get them to kind of
interact and, you know, request songs.
And, over on YouTube, I king of do the same thing,
but obviously have song writing tutorials there.
As well as cover videos and my own music.
- I'm more interested in when you started writing songs
or playing music for audiences.
- So, I started when I was 18 years old.
Which is sort of a long time ago, I won't say how long.
(laughing)
And I started just in local kind of clubs and pubs
and open mic nights, and it was a real kind of small scene.
And then from there I kind of took it online.
So, I started growing my fan base on there.
And here we are today.
- And it's, it's interesting because I always love music.
I sang in choirs and competed in high school, college.
And were weren't you nervous at open mic night?
Like, I've never been able to do that.
I'm like, I can compete at a collegiate level,
which sounds weird, but it's so different when I'm like,
well, I'm part of a team, and this is what we're doing.
But, by myself, I'd be like.
- I feel like, with an open mic night, it's
almost like a kind of testing ground.
So, maybe you've been at home, and you've written
a song, and it's in it's rawest form.
And then the open mic night is kind of there to test it out.
- Yeah.
- So, I could, yeah.
I can understand, it's really nervous.
Just like, I remember the very first night
I performed in front a bunch of strangers.
And I had, like, a guitar, and I sang using
a ukulele as well, which I, like, just learned,
like, three chords the day before.
And I was so nervous.
You could see me probably, like, trembling.
- Mm-hmm.
- And then once I did it once, I was like
I want to do it again.
- Oh yeah.
- You know, just keep going kind of thing.
So, I think once you pass that nervous stage,
you just want to do it again and again.
- Yeah, and it's fulfilling, obviously.
- It is, yeah, definitely.
- So, writing songs, are there,
do you write songs based on, like, experiences you've had?
Is it kind of like journaling, for a lack of a better term?
- It is, it's like 100% journaling.
A lot of the songs that I've been writing recently
have been about experiences that I've had, that have
happened to me personally in the past couple of years.
And it is very therapeutic to kind of write that way
because you're sharing your story
with people in your own kind of way.
So, you're not kind of exposing everything that happened,
but you're sharing your story in a way that
other people can relate.
- Yeah.
- And, you know, kind of find, kind of therapeutic way
that they can enjoy it as well.
- Yeah, like their interpretation.
- Do you get a lot of feedback from people,
like, oh that really helped me?
Or I've been there too?
- Yeah, I find quite a lot of people,
especially when I'm live streaming on YouNow,
they request certain songs because
they kind of speak to them the most.
And with YouNow, it's a really good way to find out
which songs resonate with people the most.
So, they'll be like, play this song
because this happened to me, and it's like,
that's my life kind of thing.
- Uh-huh.
- I'm like, oh okay, great.
So, it's nice to know that what you're writing about,
you know, personal experiences, other people
are going through that as well.
- Yeah, like, you're not alone.
And that's part of, like, my community.
I always tell them, like, you're not alone.
What you're going through doesn't, you know,
it's not only happening to you.
Like, other people share similar situations.
I think there's a really important part of,
like, community connectivity.
- Yeah.
- That can be so validating and reassuring
and all of that.
So, I would assume that people feel attached to you
based on the songs and feeling like it connects with them.
Do you get a lot of outreach from people
asking for advice, or?
- I do.
Every time I live-stream there's going
to be people that reach out.
Maybe they're going through something in their lives.
Maybe they're going through a bit of depression,
or they're experiencing anxiety.
And it's nice to know that those songs are helping.
But when they do reach out further and say,
well, what can I do to kind of,
you know, get you know, help myself?
I like to push them on to people that
can help in a professional sense.
So, that's why I think it's so great that you've come on
to YouNow, and you're doing all these amazing
live-streams because you're a voice that
can really really help people.
So, yeah, I would say it's, sometimes it's difficult
for me because I'm not sure what to say.
- Yeah.
- So it's good, it's good to have people like yourself.
- Yeah, and I think that that's something that
I've heard from a lot of creators, because all different
sorts of collaborations I do over the years,
I think a lot of them don't know how to answer
and can feel concerned that they
might give the wrong advice.
- Yes.
- Or they might say something that could make it worse.
- Yeah.
- And I think that is the main goal
of my channel is just to be a resource.
Like, for those seeking out help,
and then also for other channels who are like,
hey, I understand, I feel that way too,
but I only know my experience.
Which is powerful, and I always tell you
like, share your own experience, share what worked for you,
also letting them know this is just me,
you may have a different thing that works for you.
You may have a different experience or a different
path to recovery, whatever that might be.
And also I think your channel, and I say channel loosely,
but like, your YouNow channel question mark?
(laughing)
Is great because it's a great place,
I know a lot of my people find music to be
really cathartic, really helpful.
And also knowing that you have been in places
maybe they've been, and they can feel that connection.
I think that is equally as powerful and equally as helpful.
- Yeah.
- And so, if you find yourself struggling,
Emma's also on YouNow a lot more frequently than I am,
and I think it's a great place to just
listen to some music, maybe get some good sage advice
from what she's been through, and connect
with others who maybe feel the same.
I know we talked about this before
we started filming, but you live-stream a lot.
- I do, yeah.
- And then I was like, how do you do that?
I get so tired.
But are there things that you do in your regular life,
maybe daily, or maybe weekly, or maybe monthly,
whatever your plan is, to kind of take care of yourself?
Because I'm always talking to my audience
about self care and how important that is.
- Yeah, absolutely.
I think it's important for online creators
to really take care of themselves in between.
And all the work we do because a lot of people
don't realize how much work this stuff is.
It's a lot to take on.
So, for myself, self care I, well,
writing is, you know, a big therapeutic part of it.
But, I also like to kind of step away from that completely,
turn my phone off, stay away from the PC,
walk the dog, go outside, and look around at the world.
Because I feel we box ourselves in a lot.
- Totally.
We might not leave the house for, like, days.
- Yeah.
(laughing)
Social media really does, like, take over.
So, it's nice to have a little break
and balance your life in that way.
And I think you can kind of tell
yourself when you need that break.
Something speaks out to you, and you're like,
wait, I should step away from this for, like,
you know, even if it's 15 minutes and
just give yourself a breather.
- Yeah.
- Just give yourself a breather because it's important.
- Yeah, and I think that's great advice.
And I like the fact that Emma mentioned
how your body kind of tells you.
Because I'll find myself either extremely tired,
or irritable, or tearful, easily tearful.
There's a lot of different ways, and everyone's
going to be different, but I think those are just
some of the cues for me, where I'm like
wow, maybe I shouldn't do that extra thing.
What can I get rid of right now?
Like, I know I talked in my collaboration with
Mindy McKnight a few weeks back where she'd said
like, you know, taking mental health days.
I need to take a mental health day,
I'm feeling maxed out, and you just kind of, like,
take off any of the things you don't have to do.
So, keep that in mind.
If you're struggling, make sure that you take time
for yourself and your own self care.
So, something that I always ask people
when they come on here to talk about it,
talk about anything, is what advice
would you give to a younger Emma?
- I would probably say to not compare yourself to others.
I think I was definitely was one of those people,
back maybe when I was, like, 16, 17,
before I really got into song writing, like,
really really got into it, I kind of, like,
came away from it because I was comparing myself
to other writers, whether they be,
you know, somebody I admired.
And I might be thinking, I'm not that good, I can't do that.
And that's kind of one of the reasons why
I've put together the ebook as well, because
I want to show people that I felt that way too.
And kind of, you know, got my head down and got on with it.
Because that's what you have to do.
You can't compare yourself to others because
you are yourself and your writing is your own.
And you can't write like another person
because it's just, it's not you.
- You're not them.
- Yeah.
- Yeah, and there's one of my favorite quotes is
comparison is the thief of joy.
- Yes.
- And I always think that, because if we just
enjoy being ourselves, we're not looking at someone else
thinking, oh, I should do that,
or I should be just like her.
- Yeah.
- Instead you're thinking, oh, that's really cool
they're doing that, but I'm doing this,
and it's just enjoying.
Then you can actually feel joy, versus, you know.
- Yeah, I think it's like, recognizing what
you can offer to people that's key.
- Yeah.
I think that's great advice.
Don't compare yourself, just be happy being you.
- That's it.
- I always love that little phrase, like, you do you.
- You're good, no one else.
- Exactly.
Thank you for coming on.
- No problem.
- And I will put all the links to all of her things.
She does YouNow primarily, so if you're looking
to hear some of her amazing covers or original songs,
you can hop over to her YouNow page.
I'll link in the description, and also her YouTube channel
because, do you still simulcast all of your?
- I do, I simulcast all of my live-streams,
so you can watch them on YouTube if
you prefer to stay over there.
- So, I'll put all the links, check it out.
And we will see you next time.
- Bye. - Bye.