Diandra Interviews San Mei: Learning How To Cry To Be Happy
San Mei is COOL. Her music surfs through pop-rock chords with an electro etherealness, which is witnessed in her newly released EP: Cry. It is a light, crisp, and thoughtful record on what it is to feel like anything but those things. For San Mei, time is a weird friend. She is precious, fleeting, and oddly pressing. She, simultaneously, makes you want to hold on to her and toss her away: not knowing whether you want her to go back, go forward, stay present, or completely stop. Thus, in our interview, it was not surprising to see San Mei is a mixture of hope and honesty when it comes to being a human being in these times.
Diandra; As artists, anxiety can often feel fueled by our obsession with the future. How has music helped you observe the power of time and wield it to gain inner peace?
San Mei: Truthfully, this is an idea that I struggle with a lot. It seems counterintuitive, but the further I get in my career, the more wrapped up in the future I get, and my discontent with where I’m at grows. I worry I won’t get to where I want to be, or that things aren’t happening for me quick enough. That, maybe, I won’t be able to do this for much longer etc. This is actually a prominent theme in my EP. I’m learning to find perspective and gratitude for my life and career and not let those negative feelings of discontent cloud me. I find that peace in moments where I’m lost in writing the music, or if a fan connects with me and tells me what the music means to them. I think it’s important to look for those gems in the present.
San Mei – Cry (Official Video)
Diandra: Cry is all about appreciating the present. With the craziness of the world right now, what are the things you most appreciate daily?
San Mei: I’ve never had so much gratitude about my life as I have over these last few weeks, with these crazy times we’re living in. It’s been a wakeup call really – I have health, shelter, food, income and family to get me through it all; a lot of people don’t. Because of those things I still get to enjoy the normal comforts & entertainment of every day life. It’s given me a lot of perspective and appreciation of what I’ve got. My song, Cry, actually seems pretty timely right now!
Diandra: In an industry that can feel very much about what you accomplish in terms of streams and money, what are the other goals as an artist that you try to focus on for you sense of strength?
San Mei: I’ve been really striving to hone in on my identity as an artist. Having a strong sense of self musically, emotionally, aesthetically, and in my connection with fans and other artists… That’s what I’m trying to build on and to me is a huge sign of ‘success’. I’ve had to be okay with becoming pretty vulnerable in doing that, but so far it’s absolutely been worth it. I think the more authentic and connected you are, the more people want to engage – and the streaming and money side of things come as a result of that.
Diandra: Is our penchant to live for tomorrow or get something more societal or natural?
San Mei: I hope there’s not a time limit on chasing our dreams! I think drive and passion is healthy – having purpose in life is so important. But I think there needs to be balance in living for tomorrow and also being content and grateful for today. I’m still trying to work out how to have a healthy relationship with both the present and the future. I don’t want to wish my life away.
San Mei – Heaven (Official Video)
Diandra: How do you define joy in your life or rather happiness within yourself?
San Mei: My faith in and relationship with God is my number one reason for the joy and peace in my life. For me, everything flows from that. I also know that when I prioritize the things that really matter in life, I get less caught up in things I shouldn’t be obsessing over (like career, success, popularity, an uncertain future etc.)
Diandra: Describe a moment when you knew you made somebody happy, and in giving that joy, you received it.
San Mei: From time to time, I’ll have someone who’s into my music tell me how it helped them through a hard time, or was a soundtrack to their weekend, or just made them happy, and it brings me so much joy that the thing I’m putting all my heart and energy into can affect someone like that.
Diandra: You have said you feel like you “earned” your songs through hard work. Do you feel that truth and wisdom are things you earn through life experience?
San Mei: I think hard work is a huge part of getting any kind of traction or progress in your career – I really believe that talent only gets you so far. And with my songs, they’re definitely shaped by the different experiences I’ve gone / am still going through… so my most recent songs have come out of situations where I’ve had to be tenacious and relentless and not give up when I feel like I could have.
Diandra: What is this EP’s truth?
San Mei: Life is short, youth is fleeting. Enjoy the good things you’ve got today and don’t get too caught up in tomorrow.
San Mei – Wonder (Official Video)
Diandra; What is one sad reason you have cried and one happy one?
San Mei: Recently, I cried reading stories of people losing loved ones to COVID-19 – it’s so unfair what people are going through right now.
A few weeks ago I cried happy tears when my little nephew was born – in a family of a lot of girls, we finally welcomed a little boy into the family and he felt like a special blessing.
WOW! Such amazing answers from a young woman learning, like most of us, that the most amazing thing you can be is yourself right now. Stay healthy and, through that, be happy. For More Information On San Mei Click Here.
