Today we’d like to introduce you to Lacey Bowen.
Lacey, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I am a violinist-fighter enjoying living out the things that make my soul sing!
I spent ages four-22 aggressively pursuing a career in classical violin, graduating from the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music.
Upon graduation, I questioned the path that had been laid out for me for so long and decided to give myself a chance to explore other possible interests that I’d never allowed myself to consider with such a rigorous violin schedule growing up.
With some beautifully unexpected turn of events, I fell head over heels for fighting and began competing in Muay Thai in 2016; in that same summer as my first fight, I joined an indie rock band, City of Sound, as their electric violinist, having met our front-man, Jordan Wright (also a former fighter), at my fight gym!
I’ve been immensely enjoying my chosen lifestyle of recording, performing, and touring with my band while fight training, particularly since my fight trainer and corner for competitions is also the front-man of my band! I still get to enjoy classical music still and forever in my heart with and through my private violin students. All the pieces seem to be fit more and more perfectly into place as I make decisions based on what excites me.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
My path would have been a lot smoother if I had realized early on that the one true north we all can rely on to make life decisions is listening to that voice of joy, interest, and fun inside of us.
I struggled with depression, anxiety, and overall feelings of crippling guilt and inadequacy all throughout my adolescence and early 20’s. It was only when I decided to start listening to what my emotions could possibly be trying to tell me that I was able to step into the sunlight. At that point, there was a lot of difficult deconstruction that needed to be done in my life and with my beliefs, but I decided to take the journey inward. The only sure thing I’ve been able to count on to guide me along the way, even with incredible people surrounding me, is what feels exciting and right inside myself.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into your business story. Tell us more about the business.
I’ve paved my own way into a unique life of classical music meets rockstar meets tiny 105-lb killer. It’s unconventional, but it’s me to a T! 🙂
For good reason, society often focuses more on the problems rather than the opportunities that exist, because the problems need to be solved. However, we’d probably also benefit from looking for and recognizing the opportunities that women are better positioned to capitalize on. Have you discovered such opportunities?
Inequality just hasn’t been a part of my personal experience. I am in a world (fighting) where women are just as tough, train just as hard, and are surrounded with the same amount of hype and opportunities as the men, at least from what I’ve seen and been around.
Contact Info:
- Address: 4950 Coldwater Canyon Ave. #37
- Website: http://cityofsoundmusic.com/
- Phone: 818-522-2449
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laceynova/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=3419573
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/laceynovaviolin
Image Credit:
Leer Gold, Stonewall Peters Photography
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
