Today we’d like to introduce you to Breigh Hammel
Hi Breigh , please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I couldn’t talk until I was 5 years old, yet somehow I could always sing. It was a great phenomenon, yet also an unfailingly funny caveat that cemented my childhood and, ultimately, my life path. My singing of Whitney Houston and Freddie Mercury had gotten so repetitive within my household that my mom finally thought someone else should hear me. We found a voice teacher based in NYC and that was it for me. He taught me not only how to properly use and control my voice, but he was an artist himself, and he taught me the importance of not just being “a singer”, but also writing my own story. My dad took me 5 times a week at the age of 10 years old to the Upper West Side to sit in his studio and write for 9 hours. Which at this point, sounds like too much given my young age, but I was enamored at the time. I, like many artists, was not well-liked in my public school in Pleasantville, New York, so music was my only feeling of acceptance, it was home to me. From there, I couldn’t stop writing songs, it was bad, truly. Looking back, the songs were pretty funny, but I believe, to this day, every song I ever wrote mattered. I graduated high school early, because A. I hated school, and B. I wanted to do music. I got signed when I was 17, moved out, and was doing the label thing for a little bit, until the pressure of being something I wasn’t, and not being able to write my own music eventually caught up to me, and I asked to kindly “go home.” After a few other label situations came and went, I realized I had written over 500 songs, and not one of them was released due to contracts, and red tape in the music industry. So with that feeling of emptiness, I looked for community, and I went to music school. I got into the Music Conservatory at Purchase College, where I majored in Studio Composition (songwriting in 2024). I met some amazing artists, producers, and creatives. I also had my first heartbreak and grew up. Finally, I was independent and released my first song ever, “m.i.a.,” a song I wrote during the gallows of the pandemic in 2020. I went on to release my first EP titled “Manifestations of a Popstar,” my creative director and longtime best friend Armani Saccente coined the title. Most people take some time after releasing a project, but by chance, at a college writing camp, I met Pierre Regensburger, and the idea of a debut album was born. I honestly did not set out to write nor wanted to make an album, but the first song Pierre and I worked on came together so fast and effortlessly that we kind of just didn’t stop making songs, and they all felt better and better. Soon enough, there was a debut album that timelined the past 2 years for me, from getting dumped two weeks before graduation to falling in love again and learning to trust myself. At the end of the whole writing/production process, I had learned that grief, like most things, isn’t linear. I didn’t wake up one morning and say, “screw my ex, I never loved him anyway.” It was much more layered and nuanced than that. There were moments when I let go too easily and held on too long to people and things. But there were also moments when I felt growth, I felt secure, I felt love. It can all exist at once. It really is all a journey. Grief is just a stop you have to pass every once in a while on that journey. So this debut album, I think, captures every stop I’ve had so far, with a couple of detours of course. I can’t wait 4 everyone 2 hear this body of work and EMOTE heavy (just like I did making it) <3
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think being bullied from a young age gave me a lot of, should I say, thick skin. It also made me think something was quite literally wrong with me. We all struggle with self-image and self-esteem, but my experience has been shaped by not fitting in, so I always wore that tag, and it made me work harder. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only obstacle that stood in my way. Honestly, it continues 2 challenge me 2 this very day. Being a woman in the music industry who “pushes her pen” and writes her own story has made me feel like I wasn’t good enough 2 do so, or that I should stop writing and advocating for my writing at so many points in my life. I have had countless talks with myself and my supporters about what 2 do in those situations. But, I always chose my voice and my story, and that is something I am very proud of. I implore every writer 2 stand up for their unique pov as well. I’ve also accepted that real growth comes with real adversity, and every time I thought it was over, or I was done for, it was actually quite the opposite: it was the beginning of something better for me. After seeing it 4 myself time and time again, I am a firm believer in “rejection is redirection.”
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a Singer/Songwriter. I try not 2 give my music a genre, but I would say it runs the gambit of Pop 🙂 I specialize in storytelling, I love creating movies with scenes from my life as the connecting thread. I am most proud of my DEBUT ALBUM, which I literally can not wait 2 release this year! I think what sets me apart from other creatives, is I don’t look 4 or follow trends, if you’re doing that you’re already late. I don’t like following rules with music or anything creatively speaking. It has 2 feel authentic 2 me or else I’m not doing it, or releasing it.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Being genuine matters most 2 me. Every artist I ever loved, or even found myself going back 2 time after time, had said something real and genuine 2 them. They pushed the boundary of what it means 2 be a songwriter and what “pop” music is, and I think if it resonated with me so much, being authentic will resonate with other people 2 <3
Contact Info:
- Website: https://breighhammel.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breighpronouncedlikeslay/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@breighpronouncedlikeslay/shorts
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@breighpronouncedlikeslay
Image Credits
Danny DeRusso
Maysen St. Germain
