Daily Inspiration: Meet Julie Hinton

Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Hinton.

Hi Julie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up all over the continent – Chicago, Montreal, Boulder– but moved out to Los Angeles the day after I graduated college. My degree was in acting, so I knew this was the place to be. Sadly, those dreams haven’t worked out the way I thought they would, and while I retain hope that my path might eventually lead me back there, it’s been fascinating seeing where else I’ve been able to go.

My “day job” when I first got here was at a bead wholesaler. It gave me flexibility should projects arise and was perfect until my “real” career arrived. Fourteen years later I finally realized I can’t keep living life in a holding pattern and I quit. I took odd jobs as I figured what my career could look like. The most important decision I made was to set aside one day a week (when possible) for my aspirations, not just income. The first year I tried to produce a low-budget feature – didn’t work. The next few were spent writing film scripts – I had a bit of interest on a few but nothing yet. During lockdown, I decided to learn digital music production since I’ve been a singer and pianist all my life. I put together a track for a song I composed, and that then blossomed into writing a theatrical musical which I’m working to get a staging produced in 2023. Each step brings me a little closer.

So what do I do now? I’m primarily a singer and professional organizer. I do a lot of church singing and Christmas caroling around the greater LA area this time of year. I record soundtracks and produce practice tracks. I’m a soloist at classical concerts and wrote a pop comedy Christmas concert with a friend we’ve been performing for five years now. I conduct a community choir. I’ve recently started the process of publishing all the choral arrangements I’ve arranged for various groups over the years. I published my first novel this past summer. I’ve narrated and produced 24 audiobooks.

As a freelance artist, I feel a career is like a puzzle, and the key is getting enough pieces to make it work. Those pieces appear and disappear over time, which makes it ever-evolving and deliciously dynamic. I look forward to seeing what the next piece brings.

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?
Hahaha. Does anyone answer yes?

My constant struggle is networking. Especially in the current world, there are so many opportunities around and I feel I have the talent and ability to be part of it, but I don’t have the connections to get me in. Still, after all this time. I’m not good at selling myself (yes, this interview is HARD!), and social media has never been something I enjoy. I haven’t had an agent since college, and even finding the doors to knock on can be a full-time challenge.

There’s also the physical challenges of being an artist. I’m tall and not a size 2, so I’ve lost many roles because the opposite actor is short or there were skinnier women to fit into the costumes. Culture has changed a lot in the past few years in this regard, so I hope the next generation of women like me won’t have to face so many struggles.

Finally, one of the biggest obstacles for me has been content. I grew up conservatively and am not comfortable taking my clothes off or swearing like a sailor. It’s always baffled me that there are so many individuals and families that believe as I do, yet so much entertainment is focused on vice and scandal. I want to make entertainment that is of high quality and high moral standards, and there are so few outlets that can be trusted to do that anymore. That’s why I got into producing my own content – I’m just at the beginning of this and hope it can lead into something fulfilling for many.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I think I’m known in circles as “that girl with the voice and the hair”.

As a singer, I have vocal cords of steel. I’m a high soprano, so I sing the notes mostly dogs hear, but I’ve also got a lower range and often sing tenor on the practice tracks I produce. I’m probably known for my sight-reading skills – being able to pick up a piece of music and sing it through the first time.

I’m often most proud when people come to me after a show (theater, concert, etc.) and tell me I made them cry. Aside from possibly dentists, artists are the only ones who know we’ve succeeded when we make someone weep.

We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I can’t tell you how many times some life-changing moment has entered my life and suddenly disappeared again:

– I worked for a former agent for months and she tells me she’s going to hook me up with her old company, then she dies on the operating table the next day.

– I option a script to a producer, then he decides to change career paths.

– On the flip side – I sang with a community choir for years and they got into recording. I was able to sing notes no one else there could which led me to other recording opportunities and a career path in music.

Contact Info:

• Website: juliehinton.net