Megan Jane
Artists Worked With- Lauren Jenkins, Kree Harrison, Hannah Dasher, Side Piece, Erin Enderlin and many more!
Megan Jane
instagram- @meganjanemusic
FEMMUSIC: How did you become involved in music?
MJ: With my parents encouragement and support, I picked up guitar, drums and bass around 15 years old. Once I saw my first concert (Kathy Mattea) I was hooked!
FEMMUSIC: Can you describe your songwriting technique?
MJ: I haven’t done song writing for many years but as far as coming up with drum parts for different artists, I always make sure my parts support the vocals and lyric.
FEMMUSIC: What has been your biggest challenge touring?
MJ: I think the most frustrating thing for me is having to prove myself in a different way because I am a female. You can see it on people’s faces when they expect you to suck because you are a woman but that just feeds my fire to go out and kill it even more.
FEMMUSIC: How much studio work to you do?
MJ: I do a fair amount of studio work. I definitely do more road work but it’s a nice change every couple of months or weeks to use my creativity a little differently and then have something tangible and permanent to show for it.
FEMMUSIC: How do you separate projects? Personal? Studio? Band Touring?
MJ: Balance and schedule maintenance are key. Whether it is between different projects or work and having a consistent personal life. Everything requires a different amount of attention so time management is important. Equally important is listening to my body/mind when I need to step away bc I am not being productive and the best thing to do is rest or reconnect with life beyond work. If you are juggling different projects in a week- keep a good calendar, make and keep great charts and carve out a little personal time so you can maintain focus and energy to tackle everything with a great attitude.
FEMMUSIC: What challenges, if any, have you faced as a woman in the music industry? And how did you overcome them? Are those challenges increased or decreased when touring?
MJ: There is a shortage of females in the music industry- artists, sidemen, crew, call makers- and while its getting a lot of attention right now, progress always feels slow. I overcome my frustrations by doing my job the best of my abilities, having hard conversations with those that are willing and referring as many women as I can for work. Our project Side Piece is all about getting more women on stage and being seen/heard. It doesn’t matter if you are a pro or novice, there needs to be more places for women to be supported and it’s vital that the next generation of women see other women on stage in a role that can seem and is honestly made to be elusive or a pipe dream.
FEMMUSIC: What one thing would you change about the music industry?
MJ: Country Radio is totally screwed up right now. They are playing 1 song by a woman maybe once an hour and never two women back to back. It’s insane and it just makes it that much harder for women to break thru and have a real impact with no support on a vital platform. I would love to see more women sidemen with bigger acts in every genre. I can’t wait for the day when I don’t have to hear “I’ve never seen a girl drummer/bassists/guitarist/etc before!” Nobody wants to be seen as a novelty when all you want is to have a chance to be taken seriously.