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From Porch Jams to Personal Growth: The Musical Journey of Ali Mills
- Editorial Board
- 12 minutes ago
- 3 min read
From house shows at SXSW to challenging the norms of songwriting, Ali Mills shares her story of resilience, reinvention, and rediscovery.
Today we have the pleasure to have Ali Mills On Goathead.
GHR: Hi Ali, great to have you here! What inspired you to start writing music?
Ali Mills: Thanks for having me, For as long as I could remember, I always had a song stuck in my head. At first, it was the music my mom would play in her car up and down PCH running errands with me. Or The Beach Boys, and Bobby McFerren hits that my Dad would play while he carted me and my brother through Malibu Canyon in his station wagon. But around the same time I realized that liking what your parents like wasn't "cool" anymore, my tweenage self started to get random melodies and words strung together stuck in my head. It drove me crazy because I thought it was a song I couldn't remember the name of, or where I'd heard it. Then it dawned on me that these weren't anyone songs — they were mine, and the universe was pushing me to write them.
GHR: Can you share more about your experience performing live, and what’s been your most memorable performance?
Ali Mills: I've always loved performing alongside other people. There's something infinitely more comfortable about sharing the stage, and the musical connection with a band or other musicians on stage. Maybe it's the gang mentality of "we're in this together" that sticks with me the most... I was playing with my former band, Red Circle Underground at a pop-up show during SXSW, on a porch at someone's residence. It was essentially a house party, and the cops were already on the street. We decided to play it anyways. About 2 songs in I broke a string. Played through it. The porch lights glowed a shade of green that cast a glow on us and the wind was blowing our hair gently, and perfectly off our faces. I remember the crowd cheering us on despite the cops coming towards the house. The feeling of connection that we all had on that porch was incredible.
GHR: How would you describe your songwriting process?
Ali Mills: Sometimes an idea flows out so continuously that I don't have to do much to it, but those are few and far between! Most of the time, I write down a phrase or melody that comes to mind and build a song around that. I have also been trying to break out of my mold as a songwriter, because I've fallen into a habit of piecing songs together in a rather robotic fashion: verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus... etc. You get that in most pop songs, but it feels self-limiting to put all song ideas into that "box." So I've begun writing songs outside the box — for example, without definite choruses, and using more jazz-inspired chords to elevate the music side of things. It's been more challenging for me, but I've grown so much as a writer, "breaking the mold."
GHR: What drives you to create music, and how do you use it to raise awareness about different issues?
Ali Mills: Something I've learned about myself in the last 2 years is that I had never thought about what life after 40 looks like. Mostly I think I was scared that as I got there, doors would begin closing for me. Opportunities for success and time for my creative passions would cease. But on the contrary, I think my creative spark and self-awareness has peaked if anything, and I want to help champion more opportunities for women with families in our industry. My drive to create music has only strengthened and emboldened me more, and so now I know I'm not the only one. It blows my mind how many mothers are out there suppressing their creative passions because they don't think the world wants to hear them anymore. I wholeheartedly believe that we need to start shining a spotlight on talented, artistic, driven mothers in the music industry.
GHR: Could you give us a sneak peek into your next projects?
Ali Mills: Yes! I have a single coming out tomorrow April 15th called: Mercury Rising and I also have a full-length album that will release later this year (date TBD but think end of summer-ish!). There are 11 tracks, 3 of which will be released as singles in the upcoming months! I am also working on music videos for two of the singles which I'm super excited about. Putting imagery to my music is probably one of the coolest things about the process.
Don’t forget to follow Ali Mills on Instagram and Listen To Her Music On All Streaming Platforms
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