51: Danielle Juhre
Source: daniellejuhre.com
“I’m in front of my peers, I’m with my family—who have spent every last dime to get me to this moment—and I just want to prove to everyone I’m supposed to be here right now. So, I wrote my name on the list...”
About Danielle
Danielle Juhre is a Nashville-based singer-songwriter whose pipes are what I can only describe as a mix between Adele, Amy Winehouse, and Audra Mae, whose unforgettable voice graces Avicii’s remake of Feeling Good.
Danielle’s soulful sound traverses three octaves and does so with grace, her slight rasp a hint of the raw emotional undercurrents of her music.
Born in Rockton, IL, Danielle was surrounded by music from an early age – quite literally. Her father, who did live sound for artists like Charlie Daniels and Bonnie Raitt, had a recording studio at home and, as Danielle says, would “take her car seat and put it by the stage.”
Despite this immersive childhood – and playing and singing in bands as an adolescent – Danielle didn’t take music seriously until she was accepted to the Berklee College of Music in Boston. At Berklee, she spent her last savings on the hustle, traveling to New York to share her demos outside Atlantic Records.
While at Berklee, Danielle wrote “Does She Know?” with friends Charlie Wallace and Emiliano Santoro. The song would go on to be placed on the 60th Grammy Ballot for Best R&B Song, the first of multiple songs to have the distinction.
Although it took her years to feel comfortable taking the stage, looking people in the eye, and pouring her heart out to the audience, Danielle now commands the room with a rare poignancy. Her goal is to create space for intimacy, a moment for presence, and an authentic connection with each person in the room.
She is still plagued by self-doubt at times, but reactions from the crowd remind Danielle of her gift. Willing to sacrifice her privacy and share her personal struggles, she writes for catharsis but also in hopes that her story will help someone else.
Her talent has not gone unnoticed: in March of 2023, Danielle signed a publishing deal with The Stereotypes, the Grammy award-winning group known for collaborations with Bruno Mars, Justin Bieber, and Beyonce.
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Max Chopovsky: 0:02
This is Moral of the Story interesting people telling their favorite short stories and then breaking them down to understand what makes them so good. I'm your host, max Drapowski. Today's guest is Danielle Gere, the Nashville-based singer-songwriter who spipes are what I can only describe as a mix between Adele, amy Winehouse and Audra May, whose unforgettable voice graces Avicii's remake of Feeling Good. Danielle's soulful sound traverses three octaves and does so with grace. Her slight rasp a hint of the raw emotional undercurrents of her music. Born in Rockton, illinois, danielle was surrounded by music from an early age. Quite literally, her father, who did life sound for artists like Charlie Daniels and Bonnie Rait, had a recording studio at home and, as Danielle says, would take her car seat and put it by the stage. Despite this immersive childhood and playing and singing in bands as an adolescent, danielle didn't take music seriously until she was accepted to the Berkeley College of Music in Boston. At Berkeley, she spent her last savings on the hustle, traveling to New York to share her demos outside Atlantic Records. While at Berkeley, danielle wrote, does she Know? With friends Charlie Wallace and Emiliano Santoro. The song would go on to be placed on the 60th Grammy Ballot for Best R&B Song, the first of multiple songs to have the distinction. Although it took her years to feel comfortable taking the stage, looking people in the eye and pouring her heart out to the audience, danielle now commands the room with a rare poignancy. Her goal is to create space for intimacy, a moment for presence and an authentic connection with each person in the room. She is still plagued by self-doubt at times, but reactions from the crowd remind Danielle of her gift, willing to sacrifice her privacy and share her personal struggles. She writes for catharsis, but also in hopes that her story will help someone else. Her talent has not gone unnoticed. In March 2023, danielle signed a publishing deal with the Stereotypes, the Grammy Award-winning group known for collaborations with Bruno Mars, justin Bieber and Beyonce. This time for Danielle, at least from my humble perspective, is kind of a magical twilight in her career, with the inevitability of her rise to stardom just beyond the horizon. Danielle, welcome to the show.
Danielle Juhre: 2:22
Oh my God, I need you to hang out with me more often, Max. That was the best intro I've ever heard. Thank you so much. That's wonderful.
Max Chopovsky: 2:30
Thank you Down to hang out whenever, and the intro is just the representation of what you've done, so thank you again for being on the show.
Danielle Juhre: 2:38
Oh, my gosh, of course. Thank you so much for having me.
Max Chopovsky: 2:42
So you are here to tell us a story. Is there anything that we should know before we get started? Do you want to set the stage?
Danielle Juhre: 2:50
Yeah, so this is fairly recent. I think I'm going to tell a story based off of where everything started, and it kind of all started at Berkeley College of Music and I will never forget. My Berkeley audition song was a song called Nothing Else by Dave Barnes and it was one of my all-time favorite songs. It's my dad's favorite song and I was just thrilled to be able to audition with that. So, flash forward to today I just moved to Nashville about three, four months ago and I had someone from my team, kyle Cashwaggy, who's the A&R at Beachwave Publishing, with the stereotypes. He was like who are some of the people you'd love to collaborate with? And Dave Barnes was at the top of the list. But I knew that was insanely lofty and it was not going to happen. And Dave's team wrote back and he was interested. And now to sit, like today, I've had two sessions with him and I was just at his album release party for his most recent album and that really hit me because here I was auditioning with his song to get into the school of my dreams. And now, if I I mean I'd like to say we're friends with Dave Barnes, which is so funny, but Dave's written some of the most incredible songs, like God gave me you and you, by Dan and Shay, which is arguably maybe more bias, but my favorite song off the. They're all like other old record and I will never get over this feeling. That was such a win on my end of just being able to know someone that heavily inspired me and to just be at their house recording with them. That was pretty crazy.
Max Chopovsky: 4:40
So tell me more about that story. So, from your sort of audition, walk me through that process. What was that like?
Danielle Juhre: 4:46
So I auditioned for Berkeley in Chicago at Chicago recording company and I went with my dad and I don't know. It was such a I almost want to say cathartic experience, and the reason why I use that word is I had mentally planned for this for so long and it finally came to fruition and it felt like a breath of fresh air of I was able to be surrounded and around people that I wanted to, you know, be with and just kind of be in that moment of being surrounded by insanely talented people. And I'll never forget when I finally got in and I was surrounded by this insanely talented group of people, it changed my entire perspective. I think going to Berkeley changed me as an artist because I was everyone was the best in their high school and then they all came and it was like a collective group of people that were all the best in their high school or whatever, and I don't know to be surrounded by a bunch of people that have been doing any sort of form of music since they were two or three years old. It was just. It felt like I had finally been in the place that I wanted to be for so long.
Max Chopovsky: 6:06
Yeah, like you belong there.
Danielle Juhre: 6:08
Yeah, absolutely.
Max Chopovsky: 6:10
So my little brother. We have a big age difference. He's 14 years younger than me. He went to Boston University, but he's a music producer now and he collaborated a lot with kids from Berkeley and at one point I shot a music video for him and he flew in he was still in Boston at the time and his friend who was the singer and guitarist in this video he flew in from LA and we did this song and I just remember watching this guitarist play the guitar and be so comfortable and have such a good voice and I just thought, my goodness, if this is the caliber of people that go to Berkeley. It is such a rich environment for not just learning but finding people that you might spend your careers with, or at least frequent collaborators.
Danielle Juhre: 6:59
Yeah, absolutely, it was every day. It was something new and you're surrounded by incredible people from all over the world. That was one of the coolest parts is, every weekend we'd get together and everyone would make a dish from their home country and it was everyone missed home and everyone. So they just kind of was like, let's bring home here. And I cannot express how wonderful it was to be surrounded by a bunch of like-minded people but also people that come from so many different backgrounds that it's almost like it's not like-minded at all, which sounds really funny, but I don't know. It was such an amazing experience and actually, speaking of stories, I will tell this because this was probably the most pivotal moment in my entire career, which I probably should have led with the story that was really dumb. So I'll never forget my parents came for freshman orientation week at Berkeley and they have a jam session in one of the it's right next to it's called Cafe 939, which is like the Berkeley like performance area. So there was a whole freshman orientation and then they had the freshman come up and then perform with a band that consisted of all the teachers, but they were teachers of legacy, like Victor Wooten, and just amazing, amazing, world-renowned like people. So my parents were sitting in the audience and there was like a call, like a write-up sheet for you to sign up to sing with the band and they were like are you going to do it? I was like, absolutely not, I am not doing this. I'm in front of my peers. I'm not going to perform. There's absolutely no way. That's so nerve-wracking because they're listening in a totally different way. It's not like you're performing to friends or family that have no idea. These are people that are pinpointing every single note and realizing and analyzing why you chose the note you did and why you didn't. So I was like there's just no way I'm going up there. So I looked at my parents and I was like you know what I'm in this moment and if I don't perform, that would be so stupid of me, because I'm in front of my peers, I'm with my family, who have spent every last dime to get me to this moment, and I just want to prove everyone that I'm supposed to be here right now. So I wrote my name on the list and I got up and I sang If I Ain't Got you by Alicia Keys and one of my Foul Time favorites, and I will never, ever forget. I looked out and I was like I'd blacked out and everyone had their phones out and then I got a standing ovation and the dean of I think the voice wanted to speak with me afterwards and whatever. I only tell this because it was a moment of. I had spent so much time doubting myself as an artist. I was going for a music business degree. I wasn't going for songwriting or artistry, I had told myself. I was like I know the odds, I'm not going to be the artist and to see that and to have a standing ovation at your dream school and I had no, I won't say representation, but I had no one pushing me or being an advocate for me musically at school at all. I auditioned for every audition in high school, never got it. I was put in the lowest choir and I was in the freshman choir for all four years. I was not welcomed in my music department. So for me to go from that to my dream school was just everything to me and that was a huge moment of oh my God. My peers understand what I'm going through and empathize. I don't know, maybe they're just standing up there and clapping and I'm thinking far more into the situation, but I will never forget that and my mom cried. She cries a lot of these situations. I guess I would do if I was a mom and I just remember looking out to my parents and they them looking around and they still talk about this to this day and I do too, but it was one of the coolest experiences as a first week as a freshman.
Max Chopovsky: 11:21
I mean you're telling a story and I have goosebumps Like that's. First of all, any song by Alicia Keys for anyone that has good pipes, is literally a way to you know if you can nail it, you know it's life altering. So actually I play the piano and, yeah, and one of the songs that I really like was that song If I ain't got you, because it's such an interesting way to play it, you know, because the notes are. It's almost like this arpeggio right Of the notes where she kind of does that like pattern, and it's such a beautiful song. And have you seen the video of her and John Mayer performing in Times Square and they switch off between if I ain't got you and gravity.
Danielle Juhre: 12:03
Yeah, it's amazing. Oh my God, oh my.
Max Chopovsky: 12:06
God Right, Because most people don't realize that the same chord progressions account for you know what? 90% of pop music, right, and this one happens to be a little bit different, but there are still. You know, you can't have a completely unique chord progression and this one just happens to be the one used in songs that are written by two incredibly talented people, and so just the fact that the two of them got together, I watched that and I'm like damn, that is fire, Fire.
Danielle Juhre: 12:35
Yeah, I love and respect them both. I'm a huge Mayer fan, so absolutely I like the song too, because it can be done in so many different ways that it can be heartfelt or it can be done almost in a very jazz type of lounge if you will kind of feel. But I don't know, there's so many different ways that you can go about that song and it still creates impact, which I love about it.
Max Chopovsky: 13:02
Totally, and the way it's written, it lets you improvise, you can syncopate, it just gets you know. There's so many directions that you can take this thing, but I think that's what makes for an incredible singer-songwriter is they allow the song to be interpreted differently by each person in the audience. So you know, every person takes away something unique maybe, and it has this like universal appeal, but at the same time it has a very personal and individual appeal.
Danielle Juhre: 13:30
Totally.
Max Chopovsky: 13:31
So I have another Alicia Keys story. So when my brother was in high school he went to the same high school I did. There was a girl? Oh, that's cool, yeah, where we grew up in Louisville. After we moved to the US, and so there was a performing arts school as part of my high school. In fact, randomly, jennifer Lawrence went to the same high school in Louisville in Kentucky, but there was a pretty respected musical program as well, and so there was this girl there and I think her name is Audrey almost positive, it's Audrey. They ended up I actually think she's on Broadway now, if I'm not mistaken, but they did this performance in front of the entire school at this pep rally, and the song that I suggested that they do in very strong words was Empire State of Mind, because my brother got to rap and that's something that he got from me, and Alicia Keys doesn't really do anything up until the first chorus of that song, and when she does, she immediately unleashes these powerful vocals, and so when Audrey did that the entire I mean I have a video of it the entire gym just erupted and honestly, it's unbelievable. What I think is interesting is it's like there was a branch in your life. It's like this fork in the road, and one path is you decide that you're not going to go up there. Your fears, your anxieties get the better of you and then you have a life that goes down that path and the other path is be like, fuck it, I'm gonna go up there and I'm gonna do this thing because who cares? And I think that I don't remember why I read this, but people tend to regret the things that they don't do more than the things they do, and you just never know, like. I come from a family of performers that none of whom actually do any performing anymore, except for my brother, but we all love to have a mic in our hands. That's just, you know, just kind of runs in the family, and so it's amazing because you do something that you love to do and you connect. There's no feeling better than connecting with an audience and having them dig whatever you're doing, and it's like you're suspended in time. There was a time when we were in Nashville and I was there for a bachelor party one of my best buddies and we went to this club and what I used to do when we would do stuff like this is I would always try to get up on stage always and whoever was playing, like if I could play the piano or if I could talk the drummer into letting me play the drums or if, like, somebody was on the mic, I would get up there and grab the mic if I could. And I remember we were at this big bar with this stage kind of up against the window, so the performers' backs are to the windows, and then there's this big crowd of people and I was there with my friends and I was, like, you know, the band was playing and there was somebody that was kind of rapping, but it was kind of one of those things that was, you know, basically impromptu. And so I just remember, like immediately making my way to the stage and thinking, you know, should I do this or should I not do this? And the alcohol probably helped a little bit, gave me a little bit extra bravery. And I just remember thinking, you know, just kind of putting one foot on the stage and then just sort of sneaky, getting closer and closer, and at one point I just jumped up on the stage and I grabbed the mic and I just started freestyling like to everybody in the crowd. But I was talking about, like my buddy's bachelor party and it was something about, you know, I think I rhymed like because I'm from the Ukraine and my one buddy they were both consultants, and so one of them was from Mackenzie and one of them worked for Bane and Company, and so I rhymed like Ukraine and Bane. It was just like I don't know why, but it was one of those things. It was just one of those really funny things and you know I could have not done it, but it was like who cares? Right, life is too short. You got to get out there.
Danielle Juhre: 17:28
That's awesome.
Max Chopovsky: 17:30
So when you collaborated with Charlie and Emiliano, I'm curious what was that process like in terms of the collaboration and how the song sort of came about, Because to write a song requires such vulnerability and then you have to, you know, kind of combine that with the vulnerability and authenticity from your writing partners. How did you go about that?
Danielle Juhre: 17:55
So usually when we're writing for me, I don't know and can't do anything other than insane amount of transparency and vulnerability. And it's really funny because there's times where I'll think about that and I'll say far more in a song than I ever will to a person sometimes, which is so funny. It's so funny. It wasn't that long ago but it feels like a throwback I'm trying to think of when we wrote that. I think that was my first like actual song and structure and I remember I went to Charlie's apartment and we're just kind of. He was like I want to like write you a single and I was like okay, like let's do that. And so he goes what's inspired you? And I was, I just I was like Amy Winehouse, and so I remember he's like we have to do a pop song, like I want to do a pop song. I was like I don't want to do a pop song, I don't want to be a pop artist, I want to do like an ode to Amy and be myself and do you know, like a little bit of jazz with like a little bit of pop. And I remember you know like not fighting with them, but we were like butting heads because he wanted to break me out of this very like jazz style way of writing. And it's so funny looking back now because I signed my deal based on being a pop writer and pop tile top liner, but at the time I didn't. You know, I was very heavily immersed in jazz and being at Berkeley and you know wanting to write cutting edge things, which is so funny because all my favorite songs are the same four chords over and over again and you know, honestly, so we do the number system here in Nashville, so it's like like 154 or like 13, like 64.
Max Chopovsky: 19:37
Just like CGF or like CE. That would be like a, but a minor, though right, like six, exactly yeah.
Danielle Juhre: 19:46
And so you know, just, I was very adamant about like paying like homage to Amy Winehouse, but being myself at the same time, that was my whole thing. And so, yeah, we wrote this song and I just remember Charlie was arranging the horn parts and we were getting horn players at Berkeley to come into the studio and we had a couple different background singers on that song, which is so funny. I think all the three girls, xena and man their names escape me, it's been so long and I was so bummed when Charlie recorded the background vocals I wasn't there personally. I believe her name's Nina, but they're all the girls that sing background are now like touring with Yeba and I think Xena moved back and she's like featured on billboards all over for Spotify and as her own artist. But it was just so cool to be with all, just all different. It was like a collaborative, like Berkeley effort and project and, yeah, that song is very Berkeley.
Max Chopovsky: 20:48
What's the rationale for having somebody else do background vocals versus just tracking it yourself and going about it that way?
Danielle Juhre: 20:56
Yeah, that's a great question. So usually it's just to have a different voice and a different level of depth and sound added to the track. You can totally. Obviously it's just do it yourself, and sometimes I do but to have that like extra added level and sound of someone else's voice as a background vocalist, it really does help the track a lot. So that was really fun. And then I think I originally started when I was writing with Charlie on the track and then my friend Emiliano joined us for the guitar parts and it kind of just fell together from there. But it was the more I think about it. I don't think I've ever had a single song of mine, and probably never will, where it didn't originate with friends. That's really, really important to me. I only work with friends really, and just people that I'm insanely close with, which makes the most sense, because I like that huge level of transparency and vulnerability.
Max Chopovsky: 21:57
Totally yeah. Yeah, because you can really only be vulnerable with them.
Danielle Juhre: 22:01
Yeah.
Max Chopovsky: 22:02
And what a great environment at Berkeley that you can have people who are so talented that eventually they end up on billboards and on tours that are still students Totally, but they're all you know. Maybe they have some refining to do of their craft, but the raw talent is there and so you get to work with these incredible people. It's just such an amazing opportunity.
Danielle Juhre: 22:22
It is so crazy and funny enough. I actually I think I have a session with Charlie next week and we haven't talked like spoke rather, and probably a couple of years. So it's kind of funny. You asked that and talking about that song because, yeah, and then Emiliano, he's like a tick famous on TikTok now and doesn't even do music anymore. I don't know what he's doing, but I like to make fun of him. He's hilarious, he's a goofball, yeah, it's. It's so wild that it kind of all started from there. And then I had a like an epiphany of I love the style of music but pop is so universal and I don't know it really spoke to me, but that was kind of interesting that I really didn't want to go towards pop when I first started and when I wrote that song and I love that song. It kind of makes me cringe now I can't listen to it anymore because I sound so young and you know, whatever, we've all been there Really.
Max Chopovsky: 23:20
Well, I mean. So. First of all, martin Scorsese has said in the past that if you watch your work or, in your case, listen to your work six months to a year down the road and you don't absolutely hate it, that means you're not evolving as an artist, right? So that's the first thing. And the second thing that comes to mind is people reinvent themselves all the time. I mean, think of Taylor Swift, right? She started out as a country singer, like she was full on country and now she's pop, and she's even said that. You know, she's had to reinvent herself to stay relevant. So the fact that you're doing more pop now doesn't mean that you don't ever get to go back to those jazz roots, you know.
Danielle Juhre: 24:00
Totally, totally, absolutely, and yeah, I think about all the time. A lot of my favorite artists, like even John Mayer he did randomly just dropped that born and raised, you know, like country record, folk induced record, just things like that. And Lady Gaga going from like pop to country to like EDM, back to jazz. I just highly respect the artists that are constantly changing and evolving and I think about that all the time. It's like we all listened to all different genres our whole life, so to pick one thing and one lane forever seems really silly.
Max Chopovsky: 24:36
Totally, and you know, I think, that the challenge is the more prominent you get, the more you have a team of agents and managers, publicists, that are vested in you continuing to do what's working. And it almost becomes this level of resistance to exploring something new and evolving, because for them it's like if it ain't broke, don't fix it right. My cut comes from your current earnings and that comes from an existing audience, and if you evolve, you're going to have a whole new audience. So what if it's a smaller audience? What if? you know, let's not rock the boat. But the brave artists say if I don't evolve and I don't follow my heart into a new area that's calling, then I'm not going to be fulfilled. You know, totally. I mean, think about a Veechi right. When he was, when EDM was basically EDM he decided to start doing country and when he did, I think it might have been wake me up. I can't remember if that was the song that he premiered at Miami. I think it was at Ultra, which is a music festival there in Miami. It was either that song or the days or the nights, I can't remember. But he was on stage and people were like what the fuck is this? Like this is not Tim, like this is not what I have come to expect from this guy. And you know what? It didn't matter, he continued to sort of reign. You know, because people respect what he does, regardless of the genre.
Danielle Juhre: 26:01
Absolutely. Yeah, I at one point I just recently dropped a song called sober and really different, totally different than anything I've ever done. But I wanted to prove that I don't just sit in my room and write a Del tracks all day long. So that was like I was like I'm going to show everybody that I can. I was like I can do something else, but I don't want to. So I was like I'm going to you know. So I was like I'm going to release this one pop track and I'll never forget a lot of my demographic. That's really interesting, but it's ages 18 to about 70, 75. And I don't ever want to lose the 50 plus year olds ever. Like that's like my favorite. Like I want those people that hate everything on the radio to at least, you know, tolerate what I listen to, if not like it. That's just my goal as an artist forever. And so when I had cross, had that demographic crossover and like that song sober, I was like, okay, cool, and it seems to me that when someone's a fan, they'll just like it, regardless of what the genre is. It's just inevitable. I mean, I can think of, oh my God, who's like my all time favorite artist right now I don't know there's so many, but I'm in love with this girl named Holly Humberstone right now. She's phenomenal super pop and I don't think she'd ever write a country record, but if she did, I'd listen to it and I'd love it. It's like it doesn't matter. You know, people will move with you. Yeah.
Max Chopovsky: 27:26
And those that don't might not do it immediately, but if you give it some time I think they'll come around to it because they'll appreciate they're tied more to the artist than the artist's current genre.
Danielle Juhre: 27:39
Totally, totally. And then you know, I also think about this too. It's like all right, you don't like this and something's going to change in two, three years from now and maybe you'll like that. Otherwise, you know, just keep listening to the old stuff, yeah.
Max Chopovsky: 27:52
Whatever?
Danielle Juhre: 27:53
works, you know.
Max Chopovsky: 27:54
I have a vast catalog, right, yeah? So let me ask you this Do you have a key that you prefer to write in, or is it different for every song, just whatever feels right for each song?
Danielle Juhre: 28:07
I usually try not to let the key like alter me. I usually stay in like C, a, minor, like G, minor kind of land. But yeah, I tend to not try to. Really, it's really almost about the feeling and the chords, really I don't know. I'm kind of a little proud to say like I can you know, I'll kind of work with it. But it's usually if the chorus is like screamy belty, I got in a little bit of an issue and we kind of just like move the key down. But yeah, I like to stay around, usually like C, minor kind of land.
Max Chopovsky: 28:43
It's interesting. I ask because, like I love Elton John and a lot of his music is in B flat, major, and there's a specific, there's almost a certain sound to it, like if you play just a regular C triad, it's fine, but if you play B flat it's usually in version of that chord, like where you have F, b flat and D right. So instead of playing B flat as the root right, there's just something so interesting to that, you know. So I'm curious because some people have preferences.
Danielle Juhre: 29:15
Yeah, yeah, I'm so much about feeling, and almost more just because the songwriter in me is just I'm a top liner. I just kind of really want to just do that melody justice. So it's almost just whatever key really suits. That melody is what I tend to go towards, and if it's a little high it's gonna make it work.
Max Chopovsky: 29:35
Totally, totally, yeah. So let me ask you this the story that you told about going up on stage and deciding to do if I ain't got you, what is the moral of that story for you?
Danielle Juhre: 29:48
I think it's. It's a multitude of things. Number one it's taken me a really long time to get to this point, but don't take a moment that you've waited your whole life for for granted. So it's a little bit of that. And there's like things where I've just now learned to celebrate things, and it's funny in this industry. It's like when you're up there and you've won a Grammy Award and then your publicist and team are looking at you and it's like we're going to be excited tonight but tomorrow we're going to worry because you have to think about how you're going to get your next Grammy, and so in that moment it was just this overwhelming feeling of celebrating this moment, of working so hard to get to this moment. And I think the other is just I mean, it's nowhere near profound, but it's just don't let your you get in the way of yourself. I think that if I wouldn't have talked myself into going, I wouldn't have met the friends I did, I wouldn't have had this talk on campus of whatever and the videos and whatever that was posted, and it really helped me because I don't like talking about myself and I'm very uncomfortable. So I'm kind of glad I did do it because my. I got to sing it instead so that I could kind of be like hi, I'm here, I'm interested in writing with everyone and anyone. So in a way it kind of really worked out where I didn't have to non singing but like verbally try to communicate who I want to collaborate with. So it kind of really did help me. But yeah, it's exactly like what you mentioned earlier. I think I would just be insanely angry with myself if I wouldn't have done it and I had nothing to lose. I just got there, I had no friends and I'm there with my parents, so it's, you know. I had absolutely nothing to lose at that point.
Max Chopovsky: 31:41
As a freshman, to get up on stage and be like I don't care, like I know I'm being judged, but totally. So. What I think happened was because you're totally right, like people, as you're up there, they're listening for is she hitting the notes, is she off key, is she off beat? And but everybody in that room is there because their connection to the music isn't logical, it's cerebral, right? So what happens is that the moment those people, one by one, start to connect with it, the moment the music starts to speak to them on this deeply emotional level, all of that is she on key, is she on tempo? All of that goes out the window and they're just grooving with you and they turn from, like you know, rick Beato.
Danielle Juhre: 32:24
Yeah.
Max Chopovsky: 32:25
Okay, so Beato is like. In my mind he's like the Anthony Bourdain of music, because he could sit there and break down the music theory of any song, right, and when somebody's playing for him, he just loses himself in the music. He's just grooving, right.
Danielle Juhre: 32:41
Absolutely yeah, and I think yeah, it's like a mixture of both. It's like they'll judge you until they start hearing it and that's like no, we're just gonna like enjoy this moment 100%, 100%.
Max Chopovsky: 32:51
And that's when the phones came out, and that's when they were like we don't really give a shit what year she is or whatever. This is an amazing, like magical moment in time and we're just going to be here for it.
Danielle Juhre: 33:02
Totally. I think one of the girls I went to Berkeley with like posted it on Facebook and I still I'm afraid to listen to it because I think I would judge the hell out of it now. But it felt so wonderful in the moment. But it's just insane how much I've grown as an artist and vocalist from that moment. But yeah, that was such a cool time and just a way to be like welcomed into an entirely different part of my life.
Max Chopovsky: 33:31
Yes, all that matters. I mean, it doesn't really matter how you look back on it now, like if you were to re-listen to it. All that matters is you had this magical moment in time when the stars aligned and you belted out this song and you connected with it, and the audience connected with you. Literally, it's that simple, you know. There's nothing else to it, totally.
Danielle Juhre: 33:54
Totally, totally yeah.
Max Chopovsky: 33:58
So, as a songwriter, you are a storyteller and it's a really unique medium for storytelling because, ultimately, that's what songs are. They're stories, right, and so, as you think about telling a story through a song, how do you approach the storytelling piece of it?
Danielle Juhre: 34:15
I don't really approach it any differently than if you were just telling someone what's going on. It's just a little bit more methodical in the sense of it's prethought out and a little premeditated. But what I mean by that is is that, let's say, you have the song and it's like I'm in love with someone, your verses, how you like, you know the first day you met, what they were wearing, where you were, and then the pre-chorus is and in this moment, all these things led me to this moment, and then the chorus would be I'm in, like you know, in love with you or whatever. So premeditated in the sense of you know, kind of an abstracture of where you're going, but it's very, very detailed, trying to make it, especially coming to Nashville, very like thought-provoking. But I really don't see it any differently than, you know, telling a story or how you would communicate. I put it in the sense of, let's say that you're having like a get-together at your house with your best friends in the living room and you're sharing a deep, intimate story, you know, to your friends about what happened or what the situation is, and I see it no differently than storytelling. You know when you want to be super vulnerable. But yeah, I think it's the same thing.
Max Chopovsky: 35:28
Interesting. Okay, so as you think about you know good stories. What would you say do good stories have in common?
Danielle Juhre: 35:36
I think a good element of detail, but I think also just a good element of just your recollection of what exactly went on. But I don't know. For me I'd say humor, to be honest, like some level of humor if possible, unless it's, you know, really sad. But I don't know, a lot of my friends we won't get down this road, but a lot of my friends we love using laughter as a form of a goping mechanism, you know, just like everyone. So, yeah, I would definitely say like a good mixture of like some sort of satire for sure, but I don't know, just very, I guess, detail oriented would, you know, be great.
Max Chopovsky: 36:24
Yeah, I mean humor is actually a wonderful release valve because it really is exhausting to be listening to or watching something that is very monotonously sad, like that's just a lot of stress. So I'm in pre-production for this short film that I'm directing, based on a screenplay that I wrote about my own life and the relationships between a father and a son, and there's an immigrant component to it and the son decides to go into the creative arts and the dad is like the dad doesn't approve of it because he immigrated to the US. And he's like what are you doing? And so I wrote this thing and I sent it to some people to get their thoughts on it and they were like you got to have some humor in this, because I remember my cousin was like if you don't add more humor, this is going to read like a lifetime special. And I was like got it.
Danielle Juhre: 37:13
Absolutely. I entirely relate. My mom is 100% Greek and my grandparents are from Greece. I went through the very similar thing with my family of everyone's either a doctor, lawyer, some sort of whatever in business. They're looking at you at Easter and Thanksgiving and Christmas and it's just kind of like, all right, this has been really fun, but when are you getting a job? It's like no, this is my job. I totally, entirely empathize and that's why I got so lucky when my mom married a non-Greek and there was a counterbalance to it. There was, there was, and it was just kind of like, okay, cool, all the things of me having to marry a Greek man and keep this tradition going on. I'm actually being welcomed into this family, so I fully understand and I can't wait to know more about that.
Max Chopovsky: 38:12
Well, I mean, I'm happy to send you the script. I'm actually looking for a composer to write. There's this pivotal song in the film where the dad plays the guitar and you find out that he's a hypocrite because he's telling his kids not to pursue the creative arts. But that's what he did and it's a very emotional sort of part in the short and so, yeah, I'd love to send it to you.
Danielle Juhre: 38:32
Oh, my God, that'd be awesome. I'd love to.
Max Chopovsky: 38:36
So we talked about the moral of the story. Do you think that every story has to have a moral?
Danielle Juhre: 38:42
No, I don't think so. It's kind of funny. I think that this is kind of deep, but I think the story is the moral, because you went through something to get to the moral, which is the story.
Max Chopovsky: 38:56
Interesting. So you're just assuming that the story has an actual arc and an issue that gets resolved. Yeah, definitely, definitely. Yeah, it's an interesting answer. I actually agree because I think that every story has a moral. It's just a matter of understanding what the moral is. It might just not be an obvious moral, but I think that every story has a moral.
Danielle Juhre: 39:17
Yeah, absolutely. I think that if you only tell a story for a resolution, then I don't know, I think that's kind of silly. But that's also maybe perhaps the pessimist in me, because I love my favorite movies are the most depressing movies ever, because they're real.
Max Chopovsky: 39:33
Oh yeah, well, I think you like the story that I'm going to send, because at the end there is no resolution. Cool Kind of leaves it hanging, you know that's really cool.
Danielle Juhre: 39:43
I love stuff like that because I feel like this may be really hot take, but it's just kind of like also like the superhero movies and just stuff like that. It's like you know that the bad guy dies or whatever, or he comes back and then they prolong it for eight seasons or whatever that's right. But you know, I don't know. I like sometimes when there's no resolution, I don't think that there's enough stuff without resolution, and sometimes it's really cool because then the people can come to their own conclusions of what the resolution is 100% and sometimes that's so much more fun than you leaving and I was like well, that was that, and this ended that way Great.
Max Chopovsky: 40:21
It's because I think a lot of filmmakers do not give enough credit to the audience. In other words, they feel like the audience needs to have the takeaway crammed down their throats and there's no equivocation around the moral of the story. And I think that you should make the audience a little uncomfortable and let them come to their own conclusions, because it might be different for different people, Like make them think a little bit right. Make them think like have some respect for them.
Danielle Juhre: 40:49
Absolutely. Also, I think of, too. If someone draws their own conclusions from the end of something. What if they relate to it 10 times more because they drew their own conclusion to it too?
Max Chopovsky: 40:59
I completely agree with that.
Danielle Juhre: 41:01
I really like allowing people I do that with my music too. It's just kind of like allow the listener to come to their own conclusions. And sometimes it's so much fun to go back and speak with someone and they're like we love this song of yours and this is why, because you wrote this, this and this. And then I have to sit there and be like, oh, that's exactly why I wrote that. Yeah, it was like some sort of conclusion that they drew that I had nothing to do with why I wrote the song and yeah, I think that's. That's like the coolest part really.
Max Chopovsky: 41:32
That's funny. So the music video that I made for my brother with that guitar player. I'll send that to you, but there's the end of it. There's actually a couple of ways to interpret how the video ends and it makes you go back to the beginning and be like wait, was this what we were seeing, or were we seeing something else? I just think that it's because people will come to me and be like, what did this part mean? And I'll be like, well, what does it mean to you? Like that's all that matters, who cares what I thought it meant. What matters is what it means to you.
Danielle Juhre: 42:02
Totally totally.
Max Chopovsky: 42:04
So okay, a couple more last questions for you. What is one of your favorite books that you think just nails the art of storytelling?
Danielle Juhre: 42:14
I love the Catcher and the Rye and the element of storytelling immediately. It's the perfect blend of satire but also realism. I don't know. I've always been drawn to that book. I that's one of my all time favorites.
Max Chopovsky: 42:33
Love it, love it, okay. So last question If you could say one thing to 20 year old Danielle, what would it be?
Danielle Juhre: 42:45
I would probably say, to keep doing exactly what you're doing, which is so funny, because most people are giving yourself advice not to do something. But, yeah, mine is to not change. I think that I'm in the position that I'm in because I never went to the parties. I stayed at home. I would subscribe to billboard and make this Excel sheet of all the people I needed to reach out to, and never left the house. My parents were begging me to get out of the house and make friends, and I think that every single moment led me to now and to be an advocate for my friends when they need references or help or don't know what's going on in the industry. And I just think those tireless nights of doing that. But I probably would say, though, maybe get out a little bit and have a little more fun. You know, like every once in a while I probably should have done that, but truly I think it's to do exactly what I've been doing. I'm really proud of the level of work ethic since I was, like, probably 10 or 11 years old. It's really and truly why I am where I am. So, yeah, but I don't know, that's like keeping up.
Max Chopovsky: 43:56
I mean, yeah, you're right. The crazy thing about this industry is you have to have an insane amount of talent to be successful. But an insane amount of talent does not guarantee success.
Danielle Juhre: 44:06
Absolutely.
Max Chopovsky: 44:07
Absolutely. So you have to be super talented and also the hardest worker out there Totally.
Danielle Juhre: 44:14
Right. That's actually more important, I would say Absolutely, yeah, I totally agree, definitely.
Max Chopovsky: 44:22
Well, that does it, danielle Jere. Thank you for being on the show.
Danielle Juhre: 44:28
Thank you so much for having me. This was so fun and insanely insightful, so thank you.
Max Chopovsky: 44:34
Thank you For show notes and more. Head over to MossPodorg. Find us on Apple Podcasts, spotify, wherever you get your podcast on. This was Moral of the Story. I'm Max Tropowski. Thank you for listening. Talk to you next time.