Today we’d like to introduce you to Claire Hudson.
Hi Claire, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I got into music when I was pretty young, around 5th grade. I was in an after-school music education program called School Of Rock, to which I owe a lot of my love for music. The first instrument I really learned was the guitar, which I still play today. I sort of found singing by mistake, though. I guess you could call it a happy accident. I was playing a show with my bandmates in School Of Rock, and the singer was sick, so they needed someone to fill in. I remember feeling so excited to sing for people, even though it was one of my first times doing so. Ever since that moment, I’ve been using my voice to fuel my storytelling.
I was very involved with music throughout high school as well. I was in my school’s drumline, jazz band, and student-led contemporary/pop/rock band. Outside of that, I was a student at the Septien Entertainment Group, where I learned how to write for the first time. That led me to start my first band, Atlas Personality, with my twin brother Cole Hudson and friend Jayden Nylec. We released our first EP “Almost Somewhere” in 2021. It’s been amazing to see some of the first songs I ever wrote blossom into what they are today.
I’m currently entering my second year at Berklee College of Music, where I’m majoring in Music Production & Engineering, and Songwriting. I started another band at Berklee called Yet To Bloom, and we just released our debut single “People Pleaser” earlier this month.
At the present moment, I’m trying to soak up as much as I can studying at Berklee. I’m digging into my major-specific courses and trying to make the most of them. I’m also writing, gigging, and recording with Yet To Bloom. We have more music coming very soon!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Being a musician is a deeply emotional thing. I feel like all artists, including myself, have something they have to overcome.
I have a stutter. I’ve had one ever since I could speak. It can make it hard to communicate, especially when I’m feeling nervous or excited. When I’m onstage as the vocalist, I’m typically the one talking to the crowd and interacting with them – which I love to do! – but it’s scary. When I was in high school performing my first solo gigs, I would get so nervous about speaking to the crowd that I would write down and memorize everything I was going to say a couple of days before the performance. I’d notate everything down to a T, including where I was going to breathe and pause. My speech therapist and I would practice it over and over. It was a lot of hard work that nobody else knew I was doing at the time.
With experience and time, I feel lucky to say that I don’t need to write down what I’m going to say anymore. I joined the improv club in high school, which taught me how to be engaging on the fly. That can be really hard for me as someone with a stutter, but I kept working at it until it was very comfortable for me to do. Now, stage banter is one of my favorite parts of performing.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’ve been heavily involved in the rock music scene since I was young. I love playing guitar and singing in bands, playing hard, and making people happy. Above all else, though, I pride myself on being a songsmith. I want my songs to feel like an experience. I try to write songs with lots of hooks and lyrical imagery, and I pride myself on being honest about the things I’m feeling in my music. I recently wrote a song called “People Pleaser” with my band Yet To Bloom, where I talk candidly about my self-destructive habit of sacrificing my own comfort to make other people happy. It’s not a glamorous topic, and I feel very vulnerable sharing that with people. I don’t want to shy away from the things I’m feeling in my lyrics, though. Someone else must be feeling the same thing, and I want that person to feel like they’re seen.
I’m also always learning more about producing. I’ve been producing my own songs in Logic since I was 15, but I hadn’t had any formal training until very recently. I’m drawn to producing for the same reason that I’m drawn to songwriting – having creative control over a song is the most amazing feeling to me. This year, I’ve dedicated myself to sitting in on as many studio sessions as possible – both in and out of school. I sat in on my peers’ sessions at Berklee, and I volunteered at Luminous Sound in Dallas this summer. Now, I feel like I’m finally ready to try to manage studio sessions on my own. It’s like learning a new language, but it’s incredibly fulfilling.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Genuine connections with others probably make me the happiest. I seek to understand myself better constantly – it’s part of my duty as a songwriter. I’m digging into the things I’m feeling and experiencing all the time as fuel for lyrics. It’s nice that I can have that with myself, but sometimes it’s nice to share those thoughts with someone else. When someone wants to dig into whatever’s on my mind with me, it makes me feel so happy.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @claire_hud_
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCInAibyrxbi3z9rsOkNDKiQ
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/track/492TqCvGD8seyNtoWCXGkI?si=c0bfbf1d85f24f82
Image Credits
LA Rodgers
