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Thursday, July 28, 2011

Becoming Magic Mama, Eco-Edu-tainer

The Journey to becoming Magic Mama Eco-Edu-tainer....

I have always been musically inclined, I think I started singing before I could talk and played the piano as soon as I could climb up onto the bench. I played by ear, mimicking what I heard around me; classical, jazz, dixieland, 60’s pop, musicals and the like; I created my own tunes from the get-go. I tried out the violin in elementary school and played in the orchestra, sang in school and church choirs, and took piano lessons. I quickly “outgrew” my piano teachers and my parents signed me up for classes at MacPhail College of Music in St. Paul, MN where I played songs like “Flight of the Bumblebee.” The problem was, I was terribly shy and had such intense performance anxiety that I would totally freeze during recitals. Songs that I could play with my eyes closed for months would suddenly disappear and the piano keys would scramble and become foreign to me. I played the clarinet for awhile in Junior High and enjoyed being a part of a band where I could blend in but because of my musical gifts, I was always placed in first chairs - right at the end of the row, edge of the stage etc. I was especially self-conscious then (as most preteens are) and quit playing altogether.

In High School, I focused on visual arts and received some fairly prestigious awards from Hallmark along with scholarship offers to fine art schools out of state. When the time came for me to choose a college, my parents were not in a position to support out of state tuition, even with scholarships and, I suspect, they were not comfortable sending their first born so far away from home. So, I went the liberal education route. I never took a music class. Knowing that a piano is not very portable, in celebration of my Senior Art Exhibition, my parents gifted me with my first guitar. I traveled to the West Coast to look for work, played guitar and sang around camp fires with close friends, just for fun. I received a BFA from the University of Minnesota along with a degree in Art Education and an emphasis in Outdoor Education. I have held many part-time positions that utilized my “expertise” but never found a full time, paid job as an art educator.

Eventually, I moved to Minneapolis with my two kids. I built a little moon lodge in my parents back yard, one tiny place amidst a metropolis where I could feel close to the earth, create some sacred space and pray. This was 2001. After what felt like a long, dark journey, I called music back into my life and began to play my guitar again. Shortly thereafter, my friend Craig Minowa invited me to perform with his band Cloud Cult as a live-action painter. OK - What?!

While the band set up and did their sound check, I set up an easel, paints and brushes. As soon as the band began to play, I began to paint. Since my back was to the crowd, I didn’t feel the same kind of anxiety I used to experience as a child. I learned a lot about non-attachment. You may know that many artists are perfectionists. I had never before let anyone see my artwork before I thought it was finished and yet, here I was creating the entire piece in front of an audience. The paintings were auctioned off the stage at the end of the show; paint still wet. I found myself disappearing during those 45 minute sets, I just merged with the music and the images came through me as a dance. I felt a kinship with the musicians and we spent time together between shows, gardening, sharing meals, making music around campfires, dreaming of building a sustainable community.
One day, the drummer (Dan Greenwood) called me up and invited me to become the new singer-songwriter for one of his other bands. I remember saying “What? Me?!” He really liked the songs I had shared around the fire and encouraged me to play in the studio. The next step was to try performing at some open mics in Minneapolis. Magic Mama’s musical debut was at Galactic Pizza in Uptown. Next, the Cloud Cult bass player invited me to record a demo CD at his recording studio, Essential Sessions in St. Paul. About the same time, I formed two bands with women I had met at the open mics. The first one was an all-female collective we called GRUVZ and the other was Black Blondie. I recorded a demo with Black Blondie, very impromptu and they sold out at our first show. At that same show, we were offered a contract with hip hop label, Interlock Records on the spot. I was the primary instrumentalist for both bands, the other ladies were singers, lyricists and percussionists. We wrote songs together, practiced on the light rail just for kicks. Suddenly, I found myself as a musician, sharing the stage with acts like Dessa, Heiruspecs, Omaur Bliss, Wookie Foot, PeeWee Dread, and other Twin Cities Super Stars. Trouble was, I had two very young children at home with a baby sitter and really wasn’t into the whole late night bar scene. I don’t smoke, even second hand makes me feel sick. I don’t really drink alcohol either and don’t enjoy hanging around intoxicated people. So, it seemed like the music profession was not really going to be a good fit for me. Meanwhile....

One of the GRUVS had met a producer who invited her to rehearse at his studio and when he heard about our group, he extended the invitation to all of us. After one of our rehearsals, I gifted him with the demo I had made at Essential Sessions. He really liked what he heard and called me up the next day to offer me the opportunity to work on a “real” record.
Trying to impress me with his resume, he dropped all sorts of names that, being the media drop out I am, I had never heard of. Apparently, he had been the sound engineer for Jessica Simpson’s World Tour, worked with Mariah Carey and clocked many hours at Paisley Park working for Prince. OK, to be fair, I was a Prince fan but honestly had never heard of Jessica Simpson. My only prior experience in a recording studio was at Essential Sessions, I had my headphones on backwards and didn’t know a quarter inch from an XLR! Not exactly a professional. I am so thankful for the time Kevin spent with me at Parlour Music Company, I learned so much!

Although I think he really wanted to turn me into a pop star, after my experience with the city scene, I felt compelled to focus on the music I had been creating with and for my children. I hadn’t found much music in the “children’s section” that I wanted to listen to so we made up our own. Those songs became my first album Rodeo deGaia (deGaia means “of Earth” and is the last name I gave to my babies, the rodeo is our traveling family circus).

Once I had made a professional album, I had to figure out a way to promote it and perform the songs live. After investing over a year in the project, moving to Wisconsin and taking on a mortgage payment, I had to create some kind of sustainable career that could support my family. I felt that I had finally discovered my true calling, one that made meaningful use of the gifts I was born with, combined with my education and experience, provided me with a platform to help heal the earth and feed the children’s fire in a joyful way.
It was then that I created a Stage Persona as Magic Mama, Eco-Edu-tainer

And the rest, is OUR story! I may have always had a bit of magic, but I wouldn’t be mama without my kids. They are certainly the source of much of my inspiration, my loyal crew and loves of my life! What kind of world will we create for their children’s children to inherit? I choose clean air, clean water, fresh and vital food, healthy and loving communities, and still-wild places. It will take a world of villages committed to conserving and preserving Earth’s resources for this to become reality. I cannot do it alone, nor do I wish to - join me, joyfully, in song and dance and celebration of the beauty and abundance of this Miracle of Earth! May it be so!



Magic Mama is an Eco-Edu-tainer who performs Organic Hip Hop & World Beats for all ages. Through her music, Magic Mama delivers an empowering and hope-filled message of love and respect for all and inspires creative thinking and Earth-friendly actions.
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