Jennifer Nevel- Gratitude, Authenticity & Empowerment (With Insights from Joe Mack’s Event Photography)

Edition Fifty- Week Fifty:

Written by: Mercedes Barreto

What is the meaning of music to you, and why is this important or relevant?

“Music is a tremendous source of energy for me. I discovered my passion for music about four years ago. It has empowered me, allowed me to find my authenticity, and be proud of the imperfectly perfect human I am today. It has allowed me to be vulnerable and is a healthy outlet for expressing myself. Music saved my soul. Whether I am learning a new song on guitar, singing a cover of some of my favorite artists, or writing my music, music has allowed me to express myself, regain confidence that I allowed others to take away from me, and learn to live and love becoming the best version of myself. My musical journey is important to me and relevant to others because my story could be about why someone feels less alone or brave enough to ask for help when they are struggling in silence. Bryant McGill says, “Life has some dark moments, and it is out of our darkness that we often find our greatest beauties and strengths.” Music was on the other side of my darkest moments and meant everything to me.”

Where can we learn more about your start in music and your origins?

“I was born in the Bronx and raised in Orange County, NY. Growing up, I always enjoyed music but shied away from it. I refused to sing in front of anyone for many years, other than my children when they were babies, based on a hurtful comment made by someone I loved when I was young. After suffering a very long battle with depression that almost took my life from me, there came a moment when this internal shift happened as I began to learn to cope with my mental health, and that is when I realized my passion for music. Since then, I have learned to play guitar, found my singing voice again, done a lot of songwriting, and taken part in different musical projects.”

Is there a particular inspiration that has lived within you and contributed to your overall musical success so far? Why and how so?

“My recovery turned into my new excitement for life and a journey of fulfilling my life purpose, the gift of my voice. I was 42 years old when I truly understood the passion for music within myself. Somewhere between my life experiences, not feeling like I was enough or if I even fit into this world, and when I started to heal and cope with my mental health, I developed this force of nature drive within myself. After years of feeling like I would only be enough to others if I were perfect, combined with a new outlook on life in my mental health recovery, I realized I had a gift that needed to be shared with the world. This is where the actual work of my musical journey began. Participating in a world where others have been experiencing most of their lives required a lot of dedication and hard work, and I was starting to embark on this journey so late in life. I spent the better of 18 months going to different open mic and karaoke events to overcome the fear of singing in front of others. I was out doing music for 3-5 nights for many weeks. The countless hours I have spent practicing or late nights being out in the music scene (even though I had to be up at 5 am to work the next day), and now the time being dedicated toward writing music for my students, all help me continue to grow as a musician and lead me to different forms of musical success.”

What are some recent highlights or activities to announce to the world despite your musical progress?

“I am a special education teacher and a community habilitation worker. I am currently making numerous moves to pay forward my journey to help others struggling to understand they are not alone in this world. I have recently started building a coaching company (Bettering Now) that focuses on personal breakthroughs and other NLP practices to heal the subconscious mind (a process I went through), as well as working on writing a book and learning how to create a public speaking platform to work on breaking the stigma that still surrounds mental health.

While I continue to grow and create as a singer/songwriter, I want the world to know about my favorite creation. Take A Deep Breath (by Jennifer Rebecca) was produced and released on all music platforms in 2021 and will always hold the most profound meaning to me and my musical journey. Take A Deep Breath is about my journey through darkness to a place of being grateful to be here and living life to the fullest. Those struggling in the world need to know that they can be in a dark place where they don’t want to be here anymore and find their way out to a life they feel blessed about. This is my truth, and I am grateful that I am here to share it with anyone who may need a glimpse of hope that life will be okay again one day, even if it doesn’t feel like that right now.

My plans include traveling the world to share my healing journey to help others, which may not have been possible without my self-discovery of my musical passion. In addition to sharing my voice with the world through multiple avenues, I see myself collaborating with P!NK in the future because there is not another human being that could do justice in bringing such important song lyrics as Take A Deep Breath by Jennifer Rebecca to life than her!”

What three words describe the feeling and rush of an on-stage performance? Is there anything better?

“Suppose I had to choose three words to describe my feelings best when performing: gratitude, authenticity, and empowerment. I am beyond grateful to be here in general and to be able to do something I love; life can’t get much better than that! Performing is one of the only times in my life where I feel entirely whole, and it does not matter if I am having a solid performance or one filled with mistakes. Each time I am lucky enough to share my voice with the world, I never question whether or not I am being true to myself. Having to overcome many of my inner demons to put myself before others was so difficult at first. Still, each time I take the stage, I feel better about myself and all the work I have invested in myself to make it to this place in life.

Music has become the best part of my life. I am forever grateful I found such a passion, even so late in life. Music has become intertwined in every aspect of my life, and I am blessed to be able to use it to continue to heal myself and help others!”

Questions For The Photographer-

What stood out during Jennifer’s photoshoot, and why does this sound like an exciting topic or detail for readers who follow rising musical talent? Her style or her attitude? Her overall vibe?

“The combination of Jennifer being at ease for the shoot along with the location, Downing Park, in Newburgh, NY. The park was designed by the same people who designed Central Park in New York City, and it holds a special place in my heart. I grew up in Newburgh and spent many fun hours in the park, doing different activities at different times of the year. Jen was relaxed, took direction comfortably, and even climbed that big rock in the park. I told her how happy we were shooting at the rock since I always wanted to use that as a backdrop for photos.” 

Why do you recommend her as a star musician overall?

“Jen uses music for a couple of reasons. One, it is therapeutic for her since she struggles with depression, and it’s a good way for her to work around that; second, she loves to sing and play guitar and feels comfortable doing this. She hasn’t been singing and playing for all that long, but listening to her during the shoot, she will do very well in the entertainment field.”