Meet Lyndsi Austin | Musician

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lyndsi Austin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lyndsi, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
At a very young age, I was fascinated with music. My parents let each of my siblings choose one thing that we could take lessons in. Of course I chose voice lessons. In school, I always signed up for choir. At age 14, I thought it would be super cool to learn bass, so I saved up my money and bought an Ibanez. Since then, I have learned multiple instruments and have played in a variety of bands. Throughout the years, I have essentially learned to be my own manager, booking agent and content creator on top of writing, producing and performing. Music has always been the thing that has made the most sense to me, and I can’t imagine a life without pursuing it.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My priority has always been singing and songwriting. Even before I learned any instruments, I would write songs in my head. I could still sing you the first song I ever really wrote (although not my best work). No matter what I’m doing, I constantly have melodies and rhymes running through my mind. If you took a look at the voice notes on my phone, you would never find an end. The years of studio work have trained me to use my voice in multiple ways. My style is different from most traditional pop singers, and it took me a long time to realize that being unique is part of my edge. I have always been able to learn melodies and pick out harmonies very quickly which makes studio work really fun for me.

Starting in college, I became fascinated with learning music production. This has been a huge challenge for me in more ways than one. Most things that I have learned in my life have been self-taught, especially musically. Ten years later, I still feel like I have just scratched the surface. There aren’t many female producers who are well-known in the industry, and I want to contribute to changing that even if it takes an eternity.

My journey has been interesting, but certainly not easy. I grew up in a family of 10 (crazy, I know) with very little money. At age 7, my parents were divorced and my mother had to find a way to provide for us on her own. Watching her raise us has always been a source of inspiration for me. As soon as I was old enough, I got a job washing dogs at a pet groomer and have basically been working ever since. In 2012, I lost my oldest brother to suicide. There are no words to really describe the pain from that. I was wrecked, and basically ended up writing an entire album about it. The hardest but best decision I have ever made was to leave my hometown of Salt Lake City to move to LA. There is something very special that bonds together the city of Los Angeles – people leave everything that they know as comfortable and safe to pursue their deepest passions. THAT is magic.

I think my #1 key to survival has been to remain humble and remember what it took to get to where I am today. I am grateful for every challenge that I have overcome because they have all shown me what I am capable of (which is hard for me to recognize sometimes).

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love having friends visit me in LA because I get to show them all of the cool things I’ve found. Obviously it’s a bit different these days with Covid, but I’m going to give you an itinerary of what I would do in a world that was a bit more normal.

One day would obviously have to be a beach day. I love the dog beach in Huntington (I have 2 border collies).

We would definitely have to go dancing at The Echo for Funky Soul night. Maybe catch a show at the Hi Hat. Then we would circle around my favorite dive bars, including Cha Cha Lounge, HMS Bounty, La Cuevita and Venice Room.

I have a major passion for donuts, my favorite being California Donuts in Koreatown. Pre-Covid they were open 24hrs, so oftentimes we would have too many cheap Jamesons at HMS Bounty and stumble over for donuts after.

Food wise, where to even start. One experience that I always love is getting tacos on Avenue 26 in Cypress Park. This is about as close to a Tijuana experience you can get in LA that I know of – the whole street is covered in vendors and the food is amazing. We would also have to hit Little Tokyo for ramen and shopping. You can’t get out of my neighborhood without trying the deep dish pizza at Masa of Echo Park. I love food so I could go on forever, but I’ll stop there for now.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My husband Chris Qualls has been such an inspiration to me in more ways than one. I certainly would not be where I am today without his knowledge, support and endless desire to help others. He writes a to-do list every day and fills the entire page. Despite his mountain of tasks, he will always make me a priority. He believes in me and pushes me to realize what I am capable of and I am so grateful. It is likely that I may never have moved to LA if not for him, a decision I will never regret.

Of course, no one can get through life alone. I feel so incredibly blessed to have a solid crew of supportive friends and family that have been there from the start and will be there ‘til the end.

Website: http://tidalbabes.com

Image Credits
Giselle Dias, Orlando Welsh