The Elon sophomore builds upon her performanace at Elon's New Student Convocation in August and other music released earlier this year.
Eliza Spear ’22 has already had quite a year as her musical career takes shape.
Her song “There has to be more” was released on Spotify in January and has already surpassed her initial goal of 100,000 streams, having racked up close to 133,000 by early November. Spear produced two all-Elon-made music videos, including one for her song “Cut my hair.” She performed at Elon’s New Student Convocation in August, and on Oct. 25 released the EP ”The Pineapple” that she recorded this summer in her hometown of Los Angeles.
During the last year, Spear became more involved with the Department of Music, working alongside Elon professors to “join forces to do what we love the most.” But for Spear, one of the things she loves the most at Elon is the community.
“The people are incredible,” Spear said. “That’s continued and gotten stronger. I am kind of just going into this year thinking, ‘let’s do what we did last year, but better.’”
Spear admits that during her duet at New Student Convocation she was the most nervous she had ever been for a performance, but that it was an honor to be asked by President Connie Ledoux Book to perform standing beside her on stage. Spear also joked about finally meeting Vice President for Student Life Jon Dooley because she didn’t know what he looked like, only that he emailed her frequently.
For Spear, however, her outlook on life and the music industry this year has not changed. It’s always been about determination. Spear said she now has a more realistic view of the industry, but that her understanding of the challenges artists face breaking into the music scene is what motivates her.
“It’s scary and there is just a lot of doubt,” Spear said. “But it kind of motivates me because it is so difficult and I’m excited to see what could happen, if I don’t do it then I never know.”
But even though Spear has those moments of doubt, she feels much more comfortable at Elon now, especially because she has a strong group of friends who help keep each other grounded in these moments.
“I feel really lucky to be at a place I feel so comfortable at,” Spear said. “Every day is an opportunity for something new and I’m stoked to find out what tomorrow holds.”
Spear will perform tracks from her new EP ‘The Pineapple’ at Taphouse at 8 p.m. on Nov. 14. Her music can be found on all streaming platforms including Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and on her website.