There are many reasons I would like to move to New York City.

One of the main reasons would be simply because of the diverse amount of people that live there.

The clip posted below is a perfect example of that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2P-i_5skhsU

The artists name in the youtube clip is Jessica Latshaw. After seeing her video clip and hearing her interviewed on the radio I felt the need to interview her myself.

Jessica was simply riding the subway when a man with the bongos challenged her to sing and play the ukulele she had with her. She is clearly talented.

The video went viral in the same day and made Jessica’s music popular overnight! I had the chance to interview Jessica and ask her a few questions about her love for music and performing:

Christina Graw: How do you feel about all the exposure you are receiving from the youtube video?

Jessica Latshaw: I feel grateful. It’s a little funny to have people recognizing me as “the girl with the ukulele from the subway,” but it’s good. I have been making music for years and people have been telling me that I have something different or that I really should be on the radio, etc., but, for whatever reason, it hadn’t happened. But I just kept doing what I do–writing and playing and performing wherever I can–and now something has changed. All because I was just doing what I love to do on a subway train, of all places. And somebody decided to film it and put it on youtube. It’s funny how little of the whole thing was/is out of my control. Except for the part that matters for all of us: being authentic. Doing what I love to do. Which is play music. And now things are starting to change. It’s dumbfounding and awesome.

CG:Where did you grow up?

JL:I grew up in Landenberg, PA. There is one tiny post office there and a few gas stations. Not to mention some wonderful people, streams, woods, and animals.

CG: How old were you when you first wanted to be a singer?

JL:I think that, for me, it was more like: how old was I when I realized I AM a singer? Which is a good question. I was little when I first started making up songs to sing to our animals. That is one of my earliest memories. And then around eleven or twelve, I started singing along to the Les Miz and Jesus Christ Superstar soundtracks. I remember realizing that I could sound just like the girls–Fantine, Eponine, Mary Magdalene; that I could match where their voices went perfectly. I didn’t realize that was a good thing; I just knew it was so.

CG:What is your ultimate goal as a singer/performer?

JL:Man oh, man. My ultimate goal? Is to tell my story and encourage and move people along the way, I guess. Every artist has a story to tell. Wait, scratch that. Every PERSON has a story to tell. And everything we do should be a little bit more of a revelation of that story. So, that’s the overall goal, I guess. Practically, though, I’d like to make really good, timeless albums. I’d like to perform on as many stages as possible. And I’d like to be kind no matter where I am and no matter what I am doing.

CG:Who are your musical inspirations?

JL:Like, I said already: Les Miz and Jesus Christ Superstar sort of helped me fall in love with the dramatic ballad. And also helped me to learn how to belt without even realizing what it is I was doing. Other musical influences: James Taylor, U2, Sarah Mclachlan, Eminem, Adele (who ISN’T influenced by her?), Alicia Keys, Billy Joel, Kanye, Ingrid Michaelson…and I am sure there are others, too. We’re influenced all the time, whether we’re aware of it or not, I think.

CG:What is your favorite part about performing?

JL:Is it too simple to say just that– Performing? I mean, I love singing and talking to the audience while I am playing. I love sharing with audiences who listen. I never feel quite so alive as when I am performing for someone, I think.

CG:If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

JL:A thing. That makes me laugh–what thing would I want to be? What thing would anyone want to be?! Oh, but maybe an animal–like of the flying variety or the swimming variety. But, honestly, I am really glad to be me. I don’t really want to be anyone else. Even when my life broke in half and my heart was all smashed to bits, I still liked the way if felt to think my thoughts and write my music and make my jokes and have my friends and family. I can’t imagine being on this earth and not being me; what a strange concept. I wonder what I’d think of me…? Okay, now I am freaking myself out…! She is clearly a talented and kind person! To find more about Jessica visit her blog at thislifeinwriting.com

I was standing up at the front of the church surrounded by five or six other women. The women were much older than me because at the time I was about 11.

The voices around me were uttering words and sounds I couldn’t understand. Before I knew it a woman had placed her hand on my shoulder and was prompting me to speak.

In a loud voice she said,”Say what the Holy Spirit is telling you to say.”

I instantly felt my face grow red as my body grew tense. My mind was racing.

What was I supposed to say? I felt nothing!

The scene I just described occurred at a church I attended as a child. The church was Pentecostal and the women huddled around me were “speaking in tongues.”

Speaking in tongues is a special prayer language some Christians use to communicate with God. (If you would like a further explanation on this prayer language check out Acts 2.)

Immediately after I was told to start speaking I started crying. The women in the church thought I was crying because the Holy Spirit was coming upon me. I was really crying because I was so overwhelmed.

Quietly, I uttered something about loving Jesus. Inside I couldn’t wait for the women to leave so I could just be alone.

That evening as I laid in bed I thought back to what had happened. I felt like a fraud, a fake. I hadn’t felt anything but intimidation and fear.

What was wrong with me? Why wasn’t I able to feel or experience Jesus the way everyone around me was?

FAKING IT:

This pattern continued throughout the rest of my life.

I would go to church, participate in worship and raise my hands all while praising Jesus.

Eventually, I grew up and went away to college. I stopped attending church and going to Bible study.

My life did not seem to change all that much. I did not miss the church or “God’s presence” in my life. I began to wonder if I even ever felt his presence in the first place.

That brings me to the present. I am currently graduated from college looking for a job. I do not miss the church or God. Yet, I have this burning desire to figure out how and why the church and Christianity is relevant to my life.

I do not experience God, nor am I sure I ever will.

I have been told for years that it is important to have a relationship with God. I am not quite sure what that means. It’s hard to have a relationship with someone who I cannot hear or see.

Has God forgotten about me? Why do so many other people in my life seem to “experience God” or see his greatness at work in their lives?

What am I missing?

There are few things that I want more than to be a journalist. I just graduate from college and am in the process of finding a job that will let me do that! In the mean time I have started this blog so that I do the things I love most.

Each post will vary from the next. I named the blog twenty-something because I am just that. I am a twenty-something that is extremely curious about life and what it is all about.

I will explore and write about issues and topics that currently affect twenty-somethings!

Hope you enjoy!