Conversations with Samantha Rose Garrison

Today we’d like to introduce you to Samantha Rose Garrison

Hi Samantha Rose, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ve been singing ever since I can remember. From Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to the early Adele my sister would play in the car, I’ve always found so much joy and solace in music which continued to blossom when I started to write songs. I’ve been so grateful to be able to sway and move into a healing state while listening and writing, and I’ve been able to alchemize my darkest moments into something I find beautiful. I am grateful for all the other artists who do the same and feel honored to be in the community. I’ve gone through many twists and turns on my journey, but being able to escape and ultimately conquer intense emotions is the only way out. Songwriting does that for me. I grew up in a suburb of Miami, but moved when I was 14 and have moved every four years since. Town to town, coast to coast, I’ve started over and over. Escaping toxicities and unoriginal dreams, I found myself chasing art in Los Angeles where I get to live out my ultimate reality of performing and hearing other performers as often as I want. There is always so much to write about and so many experiences to learn from… I hope that I can offer my songs as solace to others in the same way so many artists have for me, and thus the story will never end.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The road has certainly been bumpy. There have been moments where I prayed on my hands and knees for everything to be okay, and it was. As far as struggles go I wouldn’t even know where to start, just that I escaped and I ran and I ran. I am so grateful for every moment I get to breathe my own peace. I think the main takeaway from my struggles is sometimes you have to shed the heavy weights to get over the bumps, whether that is shrugging off old habits or relationships that are holding you back, loving yourself is creating the most refined, pure version of you. I hope to look back on my life having transformed the heaviness into purpose, knowledge, and wisdom.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I play piano, guitar, and I sing the songs I write, sometimes I produce them too. I’ve also been beyond lucky to work with other artists and producers while here in Los Angeles. I often play shows around town and have been most proud of my residency at the nursing home. They always show me the best songs to learn. Further, I’ve been grateful to have my song ‘vampire boy’ amplified by Hank Green on his YouTube channel (shout out to Nerdfighteria). Currently, I am working on forming a band and look forward to this next chapter of inspiration and serendipity. I think this is a time where we need more bands to spread their voice and create revolutions. There is certainly a break in the culture and I look forward to shedding perspective on my own experience and calling out the perpetrators of oppression through music and activism.

Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
I’d like to leave the readers with poem I wrote a couple years years ago while I was finding stability here in LA, it’s called Rock Bottom:

Have you ever been to rock bottom it’s a pretty place
Filled with tears and misery
Yet all the hopes and dreams start here
It doesn’t matter if you’re on Earth when you land
There’s always a way up
Let’s go climb the rocks, watch the sunset, drink a beer, enjoy our life
We’ve been given some sort of life, some sort of light
We are found here

This is okay, this our universe
Look up… the sky is so bright
And there is never darkness
Here at rock bottom we play with cans
And we sing to universe when it calls

Sing with me, sing with me
Let’s cry, let’s cheers
All is good, all is what brought you here

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samantharosegarrison/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/samantha.garrison.372019
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@samantharosegarrison711?si=zD9pmOeWu20MwjTw
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/52vfTPVM1XU5VKmLoOH6zq

Image Credits
1. Cover photo – Samantha Rose Garrison
2. Hanging in the grass with Blue – Samantha Rose Garrison
3. Performing at Bamboo in Culver City – Jinni Li
4. Early moments on piano – Buddy Garrison
5. In the vines of DTLA – Christian Cobian