Cathryn Flores Shares Her Life Experiences through Emotional Covers

Cathryn+Flores+plays+the+both+the+electric+guitar+%28shown%29+and+the+acoustic+guitar+as+well+as+the+ukulele+and+piano.+Although+her+favorite+instrument+to+play+is+the+piano%2C+she+performs+more+with+her+guitars+because+the+piano+isnt+easy+to+travel+with.

Emily Joe

Cathryn Flores plays the both the electric guitar (shown) and the acoustic guitar as well as the ukulele and piano. Although her favorite instrument to play is the piano, she performs more with her guitars because the piano isn’t easy to travel with.

Emily Joe, Staff Writer

I’m passionate about music because it’s a medium that allows me to spread joy, empower my listeners, and share my emotions as well as my life stories. Watching people enjoy my music, especially my friends and family, really inspires me to produce more and it just becomes an endless positive cycle. When I choose songs to cover, I draw from past experiences for inspiration. For example, I conveyed emotions and heartbreak from my past relationships in my cover of “Photograph” by Ed Sheeran.

When I get stuck on a song or lose inspiration, I usually take a break and do something outside. I’ll play a sport, go running, or, what I think works the best, I’ll take a walk to get my mind off of things. Walks allow me to observe the world around me and give me the inspiration to continue whatever project I’m working on. These walks also help me cope with rejections from auditions. Rejections are a big challenge that musicians face because, in the industry, you get turned down from auditions more often than you’re booked, so it’s really hard to pick yourself up and keep going after all the rejections.

While being a musician is not easy, I do want to pursue being a professional singer, so it’s important for me to push through these challenges to achieve my dream. Practicing is something that really helps me to build confidence and relieve the feeling of anxiety when auditioning. I also watch videos of my past performances to identify which areas I need to improve upon as a singer and musician. Additionally, my family is super supportive of my choice to pursue music and has helped me sign with my talent agency, Models Inc.

I’ve sang the national anthem at an Oakland Athletics game and also in John Mayer’s world tour, The Search for Everything, in Paso Robles. It was a really cool experience not only because I got to interact and work with John Mayer, but I also got to experience and observe the tour “behind the scenes.” Getting to interact with different types of people and performers opened my eyes and inspired me further to continue to pursue my dream through producing music videos.

Music videos are are another way for me to express my emotions to my audience while also giving me experience in the mechanics of the industry. First I choose a song that really speaks to me. Then, I rent a recording studio and record the track there during the set time slot that I have. After that, the studio and I usually go outdoors to a really nice place and record the clips that are needed for the music video. Then, I wait for the studio to put everything together and I finally publish the video after. In the future, I’m planning to produce an original pop song with the electric guitar and two more covered music videos that will be recorded at Fantasy Music Studios in Berkeley.