Day 139: Linda Oh

February 16, 2010 at 12:01 am, Category: Featured, Inspiration

“I think one of the biggest things that I try and do is I try and challenge myself, not to the point where I’m setting myself unrealistic goal-setting, but I think it’s important to keep setting the bar just a little higher because you’ll always surprise yourself at what you can do ….”

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Toni Reece: Thank you so much, Linda, for agreeing to be part of the Project, and before we begin, can you introduce yourself?

Linda Oh: Yes.  My name is Linda Oh.  I’m a jazz musician.  I’m a bass player, originally born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.  I grew up in Western Australia in a city called Perth, and I now live in New York City playing and composing music.

Toni: Well thank you for that.  Linda, when you think about inspiration, who do you inspire and how do you do that?

Linda: Well, first of all I like to … my music, the point of my music is to try and move people.  That’s my main goal, so that’s what I think about when I write and when I play music, so I guess that’s one way.  Through my music, I like to move people and bring a sense of beauty into their lives.

Second of all, jazz is a very male-dominated scene.  The majority of people who play it, who teach it, and who write about it are male, and so I knew it was very tough being female when I was growing up and trying to play music, jazz music.  So I like to think that I inspire young aspiring female jazz musicians, and I do that by basically sharing my story.  You know, it’s definitely not easy.

When I first moved to New York, I even had one person tell me that no one would hire me anyway because I’m Asian and I’m female and the constant … people always say … you know, I share my story and just tell them that it’s all about making the music, and you can’t really get too tied up in the whole gender thing, and just keep doing what you’re doing, work hard and be kind to people and great things will happen.

Toni: Fantastic.  By having that sort of mentality and really mindset, how do you think then that that helps others explore their potential?

Linda: I think it’s a good story to tell people that they, too, can do that too, you know?  They can just focus on what they need to do and not listen to the negative thoughts, I guess, or see a positive viewpoint as well as knowing that little things make a big difference.  If they work hard and spend all the hours like I do practicing, you know?

No one … I don’t believe in complete, natural-born talent.  I think there’s a lot of hard work that has to be put in anything that you do, so I’m a combination of hard work and positive thoughts against the negative thoughts that anyone may bring to you or that you may bring to yourself.

Toni: You know, the other thing I’m wondering, Linda, is for yourself and what you’re doing and what you’re currently living as far as working towards your passion and your purpose with your music and that example you’re setting for other aspiring young female musicians, I would also think moving from one location to another the way that you did also takes a lot of courage and overcoming that fear, if you had any.  Would you think that that also as a story helps others?

Linda: Definitely, definitely.  And I think a lot of people do do that, move and the way I did it.  I guess I had some friends who had done it before, and they helped me.  I think moral support is one of the biggest things and I think, you know, it’s hard to really succeed without amazing people who are behind you who are helping you out.  So I have a lot of moral support in that way.  I guess the move itself, it was exciting, and I basically focused on what I needed to do and that was to make music and to move people.  And New York was definitely the place to be, and so I just kept reminding myself of that, just to be strong and do what I need to do.

Toni: Well now, let’s talk about you and inspiration.  What do you need to be inspired?

Linda: I need, I guess, my loved ones around me.  I have an amazing family, especially my two older sisters who have been real inspiring to me.  One of them is a veterinarian and a mother, and my other sister is a doctor who has worked in Tanzania, on the outskirts of Sudan, in Kenya, and right now she’s in rural Australia helping out Aboriginal communities in the North.

Toni: Wow; and so your family, obviously you draw a lot of inspiration and support from them.  What else as you are on this journey, professionally or personally … Linda, do you find yourself reaching towards certain tools, certain … I don’t know, an awareness, methodologies that when you go “Gosh, I’m looking for that inspiration, I need inspiration”, where do you find yourself going or reaching for?

Linda: Yes, certainly.  First of all, I think it’s important to have affirmation, to tell yourself, you know, keeping reminding yourself why you’re here and what you need to do and keep feeding yourself positive energy.  And I draw that a lot from the people around me and from books I read, from stories of people who have succeeded in some way despite their circumstances.  Those are the big ones, I think, and knowing, you know, that people can get through hard times, especially people who are more unfortunate than I am.

Toni: How would you recommend that somebody do that?  There’s people that are reading these interviews and listening to them all over the world, Linda, and you are following your passion and your dream.  And whether someone is an aspiring musician, or a painter, a writer, a yoga instructor, or a fireman, you know, at such a young age you actually had the courage to take that leap and to follow this dream towards this fantastic music that you produce.  So what advice would you give others as far as the inspiration that you seek?  How would someone stay positive?  How would they, you know, look for those affirmations and find them?  What would you recommend to someone?

Linda: Well, I think that inspiration is everywhere, you just have to basically open your eyes and be aware of it.  And when I was growing up, I grew up in Perth, which is a very isolated city on the West Coast of Australia, and there aren’t that many musicians, but there were a lot of amazing ones and it was just a matter of getting out into the city and finding it.

And I think almost every little city has something there to offer, some sort of art or something to inspire you.  And that’s basically what I did in Perth despite the fact that I had lots of recordings I also went out to see music.  I went out to see and experience art and try and find people who were really succeeding, you know, and doing what they want to do and what they love to do.  Yes, that’s definitely what inspired me.

Toni: I think one of the gold nuggets as well that you’ve given in this interview is to be aware of it, to be aware of it, and almost … that goes back to how you support the young females that are coming up in this as well.  You know, you were told “You’re never going to make it” and yet you ignored that and stayed focused on what you were doing which was your music, and that’s what you’re advising others to do.  And so I think it’s being aware of what you need to pay attention to, and that’s really what I’m hearing you say.

Linda: Exactly, yeah.

Toni: Now, your potential – what do you need to explore your own potential, to keep moving in this business and putting this beautiful music out?

Linda: I think one of the biggest things that I try and do is I try and challenge myself, not to the point where I’m setting myself unrealistic goal-setting, but I think it’s important to keep setting the bar, you know, just a little higher because you’ll always surprise yourself at what you can do, I think, that way.

So I’m always challenging myself to grow, listening to new music, being aware of what’s happening now with the younger musicians, and that’s something I hope to do even when I’m really old and, I don’t know, maybe achieved a lot.  I’m not sure yet.

Toni: So it’s really just kind of moving and focusing and, like you said, challenging yourself to be better.  What a sense of accomplishment you must be feeling right now though, to have met the milestones you’ve met already.

Linda: Yes.

Toni: That’s amazing.  Well, Linda, you’ve given such a nice message, a nice gentle message to people that are listening and reading this interview, and we will post a way that people can find you and hear your music.  And thank you so very much for not only the music you’re producing but helping others along the way as well.  So for coming to the Project, we really thank you for that.

Linda: Well, thanks so much, Toni.

Toni: Thank you, Linda.  Take care.

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For more information about Linda Oh:  www.lindaohmusic.com,  www.amazon.com/Entry-Linda-Oh-Trio, www.cdbaby.com/cd/LindaOhTrio, itunes.apple.com/us/album/entry/id330009808

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