Check Out Tiril Jackson’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tiril Jackson

Hi Tiril, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I got started in music when I was around 12 years old. My mom had enough of me and my sister’s constant singing around the house and thought it would be best to send us to vocal lessons to put our singing to good use. From then I was able to sing around in cafes, bars and different events in my hometown. I am from a small place in Norway called Senja but there was a lot of music culture there to be such a small place. I started off playing some jazz standards and I also did a lot of karaoke on my computer I miss that period.
For high school, I decided I wanted to still do music and moved to be able to go to a music high school when I was around 15. During those three years, I had a big learning curve. I learned a lot about living away from home, my own voice and just how to be independent. I also started songwriting more in high school. I did not sing them out loud yet but I was writing a lot back then. Looking back I had a lot of amazing teachers and many of them helped me more than I could understand back then. I took a break from music after high school to see if I would still miss it, I did miss it and decided to do this full time. I am currently in college taking a music production major.

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?
It has not been a smooth road haha. I feel like most of the time I end up taking the long way to get somewhere. I took a break from music after high school because I was not sure if I had chosen music or if people around me had chosen it for me. Moving away from home at 15 was also challenging but it worked out. In my break from music, I was in the army for a year which was also a strange part of my life. I also managed to get a vocal issue that I have spent the last 3 years figuring out, took my tonsils got a tongue tie the whole show. I moved to the capital in Norway and applied to a bunch of music schools there but ended up not getting in. I got on the waiting list two years in a row until I finally got it the second year from one of my waiting lists. I think my sound was not that popular in Norway, it was hard to get people’s interest and find people who liked the kind of music that I was writing. The school I went to there for a year dabbled mostly in pop electro music and rock so I felt like I did not fit in. It can definitely be hard to believe in what you are doing in an environment that is not fully sold on your sound. I also had 3 jobs for a while to make sure I had enough money for my decision to go to music college in Boston. Moving to Boston was also a drastic change for me, it surprised me how much of a difference it was from home just because I had visited before to see my family in LA. But all to say it has not been the easiest ride but it is interesting.

I then decided to go to the US to study at Berklee. In the beginning, moving here I thought I might have made a big mistake. I was super nervous and was starting to wonder if my impulse personality might have done me wrong. But it also worked out, I have learned a lot here both good and bad. I have learned beyond music

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a singer-songwriter and producer. I think that is a line most people say nowadays. I make a mix of soul, indie R&B, and jazz. I think the music I have made lately has been very moody it has been centered on the self-exploration and growth I have had in the last 4 years. My songs often focus on what I go through, not only in the lyric writing but also in the production portraying the feeling of what I am going through. For example, in my song Amnesia, I am not being specific about what the story is but the song is made so that the instrumentation is showing you what I am feeling about it, like anxiety, extreme sadness, and sometimes happiness on occasion.

I think I am most proud of the EP that is coming out on September 27th. The songs on the EP are very close to home and feel very personal. My goal with my music is to always write honest lyrics true to my own experiences. I also would love for people who have similar experiences to feel seen or relate to what I am writing. My music is for everyone but some of my songs on this EP is especially for people who have personal experience with the topics I am singing about.

I think most artists are apart from each other due to everyone having a different mind and way of doing things. I feel like what sets me apart is the tone of my voice and also lyrics because no one else will experience things the same way so therefore the way I look at my life will be different

What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
I think the most important lesson I have learned is that things take time. I would like things to happen immediately but that is usually not how things work. I have also learned that growth takes place with time my top goals are important to me but the little steps I am taking toward it is also something to be grateful for.
I have also learned as an independent artist to not assume someone will do anything for you. Being an independent artist is a lot of work you have to believe in your own music/art because not everyone will. Sometimes you don´t fit in because you as an artist are doing your own thing and people try to make you fit into something that is already out there. But you could be that person who makes your style popular.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tirilljackson/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tiril.jackson
• Youtube: UCWX-LTHJKVDfZKxUVCWIg2A

Image Credits
Three images for the EP Dark images with red orange lighting – Diska Livia
Bright Images with blue pants and orange background- Craig Etchison