Dear Diary – A Very Personal Journey

Unless your name is Bridget Jones, your diary is often a sacred and deeply personal expression of self which you do not want to share with the world. However, contemporary pop and country artist, Demi Michelle, has turned this idea on its head with the release of her debut album, ‘Dear Diary.’ A musical novel all of its own, Michelle bares her soul in this highly personal music journey, capturing her deepest thoughts, feelings and insecurities.

A heady mix of fun and vulnerability play out amongst exquisitely seductive acoustic guitar, Michelle’s voice flowing from chord to chord like pure liquid gold leading you into a vapour of conscientiousness. A truly stunning album, which I cannot recommend highly enough. Demi took a break from her hectic schedule to talk to me about the excitement of releasing her first album:

Congratulations on the album, Demi. Can you try to put into words just what it means to get this album out there?

‘’Wow, it’s such a magical feeling. I’ve been working on Dear Diary for two years, and it’s so surreal that it’s finally out in the world. Writing and recording this album was so much fun. I couldn’t have done it without my producer, Bob McCutcheon, who produced the whole album, and my guitarist, Luke Wood, who played on “Find Love” and “Will I Ever (Acoustic).”

‘’Dear Diary is truly from my heart. I chose this title because I think of the songs as musical diary entries. All of the songs are very personal and vulnerable. In some ways, it’s scary to be sharing so much with listeners all over the world, but like I said, this release is truly magical.’’

You have included two previously released tracks, “Will I Ever” and “Find Love” – are they a good indication of what we can expect from the rest of the album?

‘’Yes, Dear Diary explores many of my thoughts, feelings, and insecurities. To be honest, “Will I Ever” and “Find Love” are probably the most vulnerable songs on the album. I love them both, and I released them as singles because they definitely give a glimpse into the rest of the album. Falling in love is something I think about a lot, and that is one of the themes of Dear Diary. These two songs bring out that theme the most.’’

Do you hope that the honesty of Dear Diary will speak to people and help them on their journey of self-discovery?

‘’Absolutely! Writing Dear Diary took me on a journey of healing and self-discovery. Through writing it, I realised so much about myself, particularly how I feel about my insecurities and hopefully falling in love one day. The biggest lesson this album taught me is that it’s okay to be open and talk about these things. We all have insecurities, hopes, and dreams. For such a long time, I felt so ashamed when I talked about things that are personal and make me feel weak or insecure. I hope that Dear Diary will show my listeners that there is nothing to be ashamed of.’’

‘’Also, I’ve found that taking time to reflect on myself during the whole writing and recording process gave me more clarity. I haven’t gotten to a place of full self-acceptance yet, but I’m definitely a stronger person now than I was two years ago. I think that taking this time to self-reflect is so important. I hope this album inspires my listeners to reflect as well and allow themselves to feel what they need to feel and self-discover.’’

What would you say is your favourite track from the album?

‘’This is a difficult question because I love all the songs on Dear Diary, but if I have to pick one, I’ll go with Will I Ever’ That song is so special to me. Writing ‘Will I Ever’ allowed me to work through very rough thoughts and emotions. The question I ask in the chorus is, ‘Will I ever know how it feels to fall in love?’ I think about this all the time, and I feel like writing ‘Will I Ever’ helped me to process my emotions. This is also the first song I released that is so vulnerable. As a songwriter, I believe it’s important to be authentic, and finding the courage to release ‘Will I Ever’ was a huge step for me’’.

‘’This song is also what made butterflies become such an important part of my brand. It was totally unexpected. I actually had different lyrics for the second verse but rewrote them about a week or so before recording it. The lyrics, ‘I fall for dreams, trust butterflies, keep counting my clouds, but they don’t add to nine,’ are my favourite in the song. These are the lyrics that inspired the single artwork. I actually took pictures in front of a butterfly wall during my photo shoot. Also, after releasing ‘Will I Ever’ as the album’s lead single in May, fans totally ran with the whole butterfly concept. One of them actually suggested for me to call my fan-base, Butterflies, which I now do. Also, my Dear Diary inspired merchandise has butterflies with a quote I wrote, ‘Spread your wings and dream.’ That all happened from a lyric in a song that’s so close to my heart.’’

‘’Another reason why ‘Will I Ever’ is my favourite is because I included an acoustic version on the album. I wrote that song with my guitar, so I really wanted to share the song the way it was always meant to be heard. The acoustic version really brings out the vulnerability of the song, and my guitarist, Luke Wood, did a fabulous job, as always. So, ‘Will I Ever’ is definitely a special song.’’

Will your UK fans get a chance to see you perform the album live at all?

‘’I truly hope that all of my lovely UK fans will get to see me play Dear Diary and my other upcoming music one day. The UK has been so beyond supportive, and that makes my heart so happy. If I get to travel across the pond someday to meet everyone in person, that’d be such a magical trip. For now, just know I’m sending all my love to all of you in the UK. Early next year, I’ll be releasing a special song, ‘Across the Pond,’ that I wrote as a gift for all of you! :)’’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GKwtjHklwQ