T h e   D a i l y   U W

I frantically submitted my application to The Daily minutes before the deadline — I’d spent weeks going back-and-forth about whether or not to apply, as, while I loved writing, I’d only dabbled in journalism during my stint with Ground Zero Radio. 

However, to my surprise, I was accepted, and dove headfirst into the introductory class. I found that I was most drawn to music journalism — when your best friend and roommate are in a band, you pick up, over the years, a lot of opinions. The Daily became a fun place to explore a different style of writing, an interesting mix of academic writing while trying to remain as cheeky as possible, as I am wont to be in my own writing. I found that I loved trying to put words to the ways music made me feel. I got the opportunities to talk to the musicians I adored, go to concerts for free, and make a bit of money writing about something I’d talk about for free — the work made me so, so happy. 

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One of my very favorite pieces I’ve done was also my first piece with my training wheels off — it covered Mirabai Kukathas, an indie-folk artist based in Seattle. My aforementioned musician roommate saw them open for another small band, and the concert I went to was her first headliner show — at The Vera Project, which, I’ve learned, is every Seattle indie artist’s dream. She was so gracious in taking the time to talk through her music with me, and I cried — hard — during their set. That cemented my desire to play music-journalist as often as I could, which led me to some incredible opportunities, like getting to interview The Crane Wives, my very favorite band, on their first tour in over five years, and talking to Broadway artist and UW alum Brittain Ashford about her 2023 album, Trotter. 

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The Daily became my way to get involved in the Seattle arts community in a way I would’ve been too afraid to otherwise — something about having a pen and notebook in hand, maybe. Through it, I’ve learned new styles of writing, how to not be terrified of giving and conducting interviews, and the value of my voice. 

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Here are some of my favorite projects that I’ve worked on, but you can check out the full log here:

 

Jan 11, 2023: “‘Everybody still loves you:’ an intimate night with Mirabai Kukathas.” For all the reasons above. Baby K’s Lullaby, the song that made me sob, is out now. 

 

April 4, 2023: “Do you ever get nervous?” Roommate musician mention! Charlie Hickey’s EP is forever colored by the memories of driving to Starbucks at 4am to make an opening shift, but his music is the reason I understand the difference between “nervous” and “anxious.” He was also so, so kind as I talked to him about his music. The words came out the right way in this piece, and so — a year later — I still like it.

 

April 7, 2023: “Murder Board: Tips, tricks, and other good things to… crow.” Chloe Peterson (musician best friend, my ride-or-die photographer on my concert excursions) and I began “Murder Board”, a column that has run for over a year about crows on and around UW campuses. 

 

April 16, 2023: “The earth is gone and my grandfather will cry” I have a hard time writing about my family properly. My grandparents, though, are some of the dearest people to me in the world, and so being able to write this was catharsis and such an important expression of that love.

 

May 30, 2023: “UW alum Brittain Ashford brings catharsis in new album “Trotter.” I’ve been obsessed with Brittain Ashford since I saw her perform in the Broadway show Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 when I was thirteen. Thus, unsuspectingly opening my email inbox one day and seeing an email from her asking if I’d consider writing about her upcoming album was a wild moment. The album is fantastic, she is so nice. 

 

October 18, 2023: “Shelly’s Leg Sick Disco Setups, and the 70’s: How one center of queer culture exploded — and not just in popularity” Oh, Shelly’s Leg, my beloved! You can read more about Shelly’s Leg and my interactions with it on this page of my portfolio, but this was a DELIGHT to investigate. I did get too carried away with being cheeky and including too much information, and the original draft to my editor was nearly 2,500 words. The final draft was around 1,100. I’m so sorry, Archives. 

 

October 20, 2023: “‘Ravens’ by Mary Oliver” This was my angsty Anthropocene Reviewed-esque thinkpiece on my favorite poet, Mary Oliver. The piece was for Murder Board, because ravens belong to the corvid family, but, really, I just love Mary Oliver.

 

November 16, 2023: “Thank god I’m gay: Chappel Roan takes The Showbox by storm” WHEN YOU WAKE UP NEXT TO HIM, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, WITH YOUR HEAD IN YOUR HANDS, YOU’RE NOTHING MORE THAN HIS WIFE. Can’t believe I got to be press for this show. Thank God I’m gay. 

 

November 30, 2023: “‘I loved you like the sun’: The Crane Wives shine at The Vera Project” I sat on a call with the Crane Wives in a disbelieving haze for an hour the week before their show. They’ve been my favorite band since 2019 — I cannot believe or even begin to be sufficiently grateful for the opportunities I’ve gotten because of this job.