Brynja Bjarnadottir - Singer-Songwriter

Today, let's meet Brynja, a 29 year-old dancer and singer-songwriter from Iceland.

@brynjabja on Instagram

“Music, to me, gives life meaning. I feel like there is some kind of magic in it. If you’re in your everyday life, everything is kind of normal. But as soon as I write a song, or if I have an idea coming to my mind, some chords or some lyrics, that’s when I feel like there is something bigger. It feels so powerful, the feeling of writing a song. You can really connect with other people through music.

Dancing was actually the first hobby I had growing up—it was something I really felt connected to. I had studied the violin, then piano, clarinet, and later even played football (soccer), but in all this I never really found the passion that I found for dance. And then I got into music. I started playing the guitar and I started writing songs at the age of 20, and now I’m 28. So that was really a surprise for me when I started writing songs because I was so much into dancing. That really changed my life. After I finished my dance studies, I moved to the Netherlands with my boyfriend. I was there for a year before I realised that I couldn’t make my music anymore because I didn’t know how to record myself or anyone else that could help me do it. I got to a really low point and realised that I’d  just have to learn to do it myself. So I applied to a school to study audio engineering. And that was a great decision.”

How did you learn to do all the steps of making music yourself?

“I learned to play the guitar in Norway while working with a street theatre group. I remember after I started playing and writing, I came back home to Iceland and played my songs for the first time to my family and friends. People had such strong reactions, some would cry. When I played my first song for my dad, he cried. I still wasn’t sure about what I wanted to do, if I wanted to do music or dancing, I don’t know, environment studies or photography. I had a lot of hobbies, I still do. I continued dancing on the side of touring, but at some point I decided I really wanted to record my songs. 

My mission was to find someone to help me with that. The funny thing is that I never considered that I could record my music myself. I didn’t really think there was an option for it because it’s just guys, so many guys are doing it. I remember the first day in audio engineering school—I went into the classroom, full of 25 guys and I felt like ‘oh my god… what am I doing here? This is crazy.’ I remember feeling out of place, and just for a moment I thought about turning around. But then I just sat down. I was really insecure, but I remember in that first class my teacher gave us a very inspirational speech, telling us that it wasn’t going to be easy. Then I felt the fire just burning inside of me: I’m gonna do it, I’m going to do it well! I know it sounds really cheesy but I thought to myself ‘I’m not just doing this for myself, but I’m doing this for other women as well who want to get into music production. And I can do it.’”

What would you advise to someone who would like to go into making their own music?

“Right now I’m at a really perfect time in my life because I got a grant. It’s called the ‘artist salary’ (grant given to artists in Iceland). So basically for 6 months, I just get paid for being an artist. And that really helps me stay focused and creative because I don’t have to do anything else, I don’t have to work at a job I don’t really wanna do.

For anyone thinking about going into this career, I say to just go for it. But also know that it’s a lot of work and nobody’s gonna do the work for you. I’ve got people on my team now—I’m signed to an indie label and I’ve got a manager but I still feel like things wouldn’t happen if I wouldn’t make them happen. And believe in yourself. It’s important that you stay true to yourself, because your story is always going to inspire somebody. Maybe you think you have to be a certain type of person to be successful in the music business, but just remember that if you stay true to yourself, people are going to be inspired by it. Stay focused, be open, be ready to put in a lot of work, and most importantly, believe in what you are doing. Step by step, you’ll make progress.”

On Instagram: @brynjabja