“Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
Last year, when my friend, Rebecca, recommended I go with her to a screening of Will Gray's documentary, "Broke," I thought little of it. But Rebecca always has good recommendations when it comes to musical events, so I figured I might as well check it out. (After all, she was the catalyst behind my Enriquez Iglesias experience.) And this documentary was about breaking into the music industry, so I suspected that I'd probably enjoy it.
But "enjoy it" was an understatement. The experience blew me away.
The film screening was held in an intimate setting, a row house in Washington, DC. Upon entering, Will welcomed all of us in what I now know to be his typical warm, affectionate way. I was even a little taken aback by his humility and graciousness, being that he'd made a film, was a phenomenal singer and a gifted song writer.
And let's just say he was quite easy on the eyes.
(Shoot, was that out loud?)
Anyway, what really blew me away was Will's voice. And I'm not just talking about his speaking voice or singing voice, which was, I have to say, amazing. (He and his fellow performer, Reva Williams, treated us to a few stunning performances following the film screening.) I'm referring instead to what Will had to say. He had managed to find his Voice with a capital "V," that inner awareness that so few people seem to achieve in their lifetime. He knew what he wanted: to perform, to create, to tell a story; and he new what he wanted to say: that the music industry was changing in some not-so-beneficial ways and how it that affects the artform of performing and songwriting.
The fact that Will had made his music career- by age 30- something profoundly personal and unique was truly inspirational. What's more, Will had made his life his own in a world of imitators and skeptics, a world I'd become somewhat familiar with from my time in professional acting. Like a breath of fresh air he was genuine and kind. He hadn't succumbed to all of the phoniness of the music business, from the rejections, from the hardships of trying to express his art despite the throngs of people trying to break into showbiz mainly to be famous. He hadn't been hardened by the fact that being the right look or sound can easily trump talent.
What I saw that night was someone who had chosen to transcend that often troublesome world by having faith: faith not only in God but in himself and others as well. He appreciated the collaborative approach to music, writing and filmmaking. He spoke of the miraculous results stemming from working as a team and how he relished that collective creative process.
It became increasingly apparent as the evening progressed that Will was living in a truly multifaceted way, using his whole person. He had tapped not only into his songwriting ability and singing talent but also his entrepreneurial streak, his sharp intellect, his poetic gift for visual, oral and musical storytelling, and his penchant for finding meaning in life and sharing it with others. He demonstrated all of these extensions of himself in his beautiful music, his insightful documentary and the visual way in which he had presented the entire evening.
Listening to the story and songs of a musician who had gone for "broke" (thus the documentary's title) provided a visceral experience for all of us gathered there. We shared an unexpected creative intimacy in a normally distant, reserved and sometimes unimaginative city. I suppose we Washingtonians just needed a bit of a renegade to shake things up!
So, from a person who has been fortunate enough to experience your talents, here is a belated thank you, Will. Thank you for touching my life in such a wonderful way. You eloquently embody what it means to "create yourself."
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