Grace Humphries’ “Wanted You To Know” — “I hope listeners feel like they are not alone in experiencing this.”
Born in Ramona, California. Humming in your crib as an infant. Can you share an early musical memory? What sparked your interest in music?
Ever since I can remember, I have been singing tunes or songs throughout the day. I remember as I got to age 6 or 7 I would start making my own little jingles. I never thought anything of them so I never wrote them down. I knew in the first grade, even before I picked up any instrument or wrote any song, that music was what I was going to do in my life.
Personal triumphs and heart-wrenching tragedies. Moved to Austin, Texas after your brother Liam’s passing from brain cancer. Music therapy is used to treat a range of conditions by tapping into the body’s own healing capabilities. Which songs do you listen to during difficult times?
When I am feeling overwhelmed by life, I usually sit down at my piano, play my guitar, or listen to some sad songs or worship music. For sad songs, the main artists that get me through it are Coldplay, Lizzie McAlpine, and Ed Sheeran. They all have a great catalog of sad ballads that encapsulate exactly how I am feeling at that moment.
My favorite sad song is hands down, “The Scientist” by Coldplay. When feeling like this, I also listen to worship music. Some of my favorite Christian artists are Phil Wickham, Charity Gayle, CeCe Winans, Casting Crowns, and Tauren Wells. Any song about Jesus calms me right down and cheers me up.
My favorite Christian song at the moment is “Come, Jesus, Come” by CeCe Winans.
17-years-old. Active member of the Worship Team at Church, singing in both the adult and youth ministries. Completing high school through an online Classical Christian program, maintaining a Merit Honors GPA. How do you make sure to find balance between your personal and professional lives?
Even when I feel overwhelmed by it all, I make sure to spend time with family and with God. If I don’t do this, I am not able to carry out the work in front of me well. Having a plan to get work done always helps but sometimes life can get in the way of your “perfect to-do list.” In a way, being a perfectionist helps me manage everything I have to do.
“I just want to be happy doing what I love: storytelling and performing. Writing music that is meaningful and connects with people in a very real way.” Your song “Good Enough,” — But it’s you who wasn’t good enough for me — was a semi-finalist in last year’s International Songwriting Competition in the Adult Contemporary category. Writing that empowers others across the generations. How do you navigate writer’s block when it happens?
When my mind is blocked from being musically creative, I usually just have to go on break from school and get away from the essays. Though sometimes it isn’t school that stops me from creating. At times it can be a period of overthinking an idea or ideas. When I start overthinking, I still write ideas anyway, even if nothing good comes out of it. Sometimes down the line, that idea I thought wasn’t usable turns into a song.
Multi-instrumentalist. Play a Gibson J-45 and a Martin GPC-16E. Piano lessons started at age 5 but by age 11 you were teaching yourself. Small home recording studio. Recorded last year at the famous Abbey Road Studios in England — “the place where John Willams composed and recorded the soundtracks for my favorite movie franchise, Star Wars. As a huge Star Wars fan, I jumped with excitement as I walked through a corridor with each Star Wars episode poster framed.” What makes the Star Wars soundtracks so special?
As a fan, every time I watch a Star Wars movie, the opening scene with the Star Wars logo always gives me goosebumps. John Williams’ ability to match the music to the scenes from a certain movie–whether that’s Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter or Jurassic Park–is truly incredible. When you’re watching a movie that John Williams composed the music for and it starts playing in the background, you really feel that the music is a perfect representation of the character or scene. My personal favorite tracks from Star Wars, besides the opening theme, is “Duel of Fates” from Episode 3 and “The Princess Appears” from Episode 4.
“Wanted You To Know,” written after observing stories of emotional whiplash in modern dating — the kind where someone promises forever, then walks away the next day. What do you hope listeners feel or think after listening to your new release?
I hope listeners feel like they are not alone in experiencing this. I hope they allow their experience to play out in their mind and start to heal from it.
Outside of music, what are some of your hobbies or passions?
This has been the hardest school year for me in terms of the workload. Before I became a Junior, I always heard that it was going to be the hardest year of high school; that turned out to be very true. Before being homeschooled to focus on music, I used to be in honors drama and I also used to ride horses competitively. I quit horse riding because I wanted to focus more on music. So, to be honest, I haven’t had much time for anything besides school and building my music career. In the rare down time that I do have, I love sitting down and reading a good book (I love almost any genre).