interview with Riley quin.

A few months ago I joined this Facebook group of just over 12,000 women called The Sassy Club, by Dani Austin. This group has been such a great opportunity for me to meet so many amazing people. It's also where I met Riley!

Riley is a beautiful up-and-coming singer/song writer with the sweetest soul you could ever find. A few weeks ago, we got into a conversation where she gave me so much amazing advice. After that I knew that she would be the perfect person to interview! So without further ado, let's get to know Riley!

Where do you feel most at home or most comfortable in your own skin?

"I love this question! When I am at my piano. I know it sounds cliche, but there is nothing more soothing to me than sitting down at my piano and pouring my heart out. Whether I'm writing lyrics that reflect my heart or simply figuring out a melody that's been stuck in my head. The Piano never ceases to challenge me, welcome me in with familiar melodies, and love on me when my tears have flowed. Music is my voice, but the piano is my home."

Who or what did you want to be when you were a kid?

"Girl. This has not stopped changing my entire life. I've always wanted to do music and live the "artist" life, but I've had a ton of in between dreams as well. At points I've wanted to be a baker, a writer, a social worker, a teacher, a model/actress, a wedding planner, an event planner, an interior designer, a wedding dress designer, a photographer, a social media guru, and a charity director. Out of all those dreams I have actually achieved several of them and still integrate some of them into my hobbies. I still bake and decorate cakes for family, I write for Coil and obviously music, I teach and educate on Coil a lot, I have done and still do the social media gig and web Deve,opment, I've integrated modeling and acting into some of my work, I was a wedding planner and event coordinator for a few years, I taught pre-school, and I was head over an anti-human trafficking group for almost a year in high school. Out of all of the careers I have wanted to have, music still managed to come out on top."

What brings you joy?

"Music, the look on people's faces when they connect deeply with a song, the look on people's faces when they know. And I love Jesus and donuts."

What's your go to song to sing if someone puts you on the spot?

"Haha, this hasn't happened in forever, but when iw as in middle school and high school and people would put me on the spot, I'd always sing 'Jesus Take the Wheel' by Carrie Underwood. I love country music, especially older country music and so this has always been a go-to."

When did you start writing songs?

"I started writing music (that I can remember) in 6th grade. My first song was called 'Step By Step' and I wrote it after watching an episode of 'Good Luck Charlie' on Disney Channel. I still remember that day. It was September and I watched an episode where Teddy wrote a song and I thought to myself, "I can do that!". I ran and grabbed my flower stationary and I wrote a song about the guy at school I liked and how he would just need to take a few steps to get into my arms. I remember singing it for my best friends at the time. They loved it and made me sing it 8000x times. After that I was on a roll and never stopped. At times I'd go few months without writing and then get huge bursts of inspiration and write for a few months. Now I'm in a regular groove of writing on a daily basis. My goal at this point is to get one really good song a week. Songwriting is an art, but it's also something that needs to be practiced on a regular basis to master it. Although in my opinion, it can never really be mastered- it's a constant journey of tapping into your emotions, experiences and looking at things from all sides."

What's one 'must have' for a music video shoot?

"Confidence! Confidence in front of a camera is EVERYTHING. Now I can't say I've completely mastered this because at my last shoot for 'No Turning Round' I'd literally make the camera man set the camera up and he and my husband would have to turn around so they weren't looking at me when I was acting! But seriously, if you don't sing your lines with confidence or walk/dance with confidence, it will show. This really applies to all types of performances, video or live."

What inspired the 'No Turning Round' music video?

"Literally, no clue. One day I was just like let's do something crazy and Dustin was like "let's set up a house in a field and spray paint everything crazy colors and you can go crazy" and I was like "Ok, I'm down!" Haha, we come up with the weirdest ideas, but those are usually the most fun to execute and the one's that people enjoy watching the most. We're not here to fake anything, but people love crazy and weird stuff, so we'll give them crazy and weird! I do have to say though, that set up was the BIGGEST pain in the butt and I 10/10 don't recommend doing that, especially in the August Tennessee heat."

I hope you enjoyed this interview! I certainly loved getting to know her even better! I'd love it if you'll go check out her Instagram and her new song 'B Ok'. Thank you so much for reading!

Riley's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/riley_quin/?hl=en

B Ok: https://open.spotify.com/track/75BFyNcSKX44MBBCIAuKh5