Daily Inspiration: Meet Fana Misa

Today we’d like to introduce you to Fana Misa.

Hi Fana, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Music is my dream. I grew up with ABBA records playing on Sunday mornings, amazing soundtracks in video games, and a piano in my room. I started teaching myself in the summer of 2018 in Belgrade, Serbia. It was like an outlet to me–if I was happy, I’d play brightly and energetically. If I was feeling frustrated, I’d play messily and brunt. As I grew, this relationship with music became a part of me. I went to California School of the Arts for high school, originally starting off as a vocal arts major, and eventually switching to popular music keyboard. This experience absolutely changed me from my core–I fell in love with performance. I often tell people that going to an art school was the best decision I ever made in my life!

I’m currently a music industry student at the Herb Alpert School of Music at UCLA with, eventually, a double major in communications! I do concert and artist photography and write on my typewriter every so often. Evidently, creativity is an irreplaceable part of my identity. I’ll soon be putting out music under the name Letters to Fei, recorded with Brandy Melville at their Santa Monica studio! As I said, music is my dream, and I love every day I spend living it.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely not. When I was 17, I had my first ever encounter with imposter syndrome. Everything I played or performed never felt good enough. The standards I set for myself were impossibly high, mainly due to the fact that I was never properly trained in the piano. My technique, rhythm, musical knowledge–I critiqued everything.

It was my unrelenting love for music that saved me–I play because I love it. I perform because it makes me feel alive. When I dedicate myself to feeling the music and finding the pocket, the weight of technicality just lifts off my shoulders. From that point on, I performed with literally 100% of me, my body, heart, and soul!

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Recently, I’ve been developing my work as a photographer! I’ve traveled all over the world, and I’ve become fascinated with capturing the everyday life from Prague, Jakarta, Vienna, and more. I’ve shot 5 album covers (and more to come!) and do concert photography and freelance photoshoots. The magic of concert photography, for me, is capturing the life of a performance in one single, still image. Emotion, movement–that’s what I’m drawn to.

I’m most proud of all the amazing people I’ve got to work with. Honestly, I can be a bit shy at times, but through my photography, I’ve started reaching out to so many amazing creatives and musicians. I’m proud of the person I’ve become through pursuing my love for creating!

Musically, I’ve been known as a very expressive performer, along with background harmonies! I’m incredibly proud of the songs I’ve written and the people I’ve gotten to work with on them. My song “In My Dream” was written as a choral arrangement, and was performed by the Pasadena City Choir earlier this year. That night felt like a dream come true.

What do you like and dislike about the city?
I speak for thousands of other people when I say this, but I’ll always be grateful that LA is never skipped on a tour. It doesn’t matter how small or renowned the artist is–LA will be a part of the tour 99.99% of the time! I want to take this opportunity to shoutout some of the most life changing, jaw dropping, aw inspiring concerts I’ve ever seen: Alice Phoebe Lou at the Lodge Room, BADBADNOTGOOD at Hollywood Palladium, and Lamp at The Novo. Such a blessing to be able to see so much amazing music in this city.
My least favorite thing about our city is the safety–luckily I love to drive, but I can never feel at ease on public transportation here. I wish I could romanticize and experience walking around the city at night, but you never know.. it’s really a shame.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oyasumisa_/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fana-misa-1084b6397/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@letterstofei