Nashville guitarist Mikala Reneé reflects on creativity, collaboration, and sound-driven inspiration
Welcome to The Creative Wayfinder’s Compass, a publication where artists of all kinds are interviewed with the same 11 questions. This month’s interview is with Mikala Reneé, a Nashville-based guitarist who’s been performing live shows in Nashville for more than a decade with bands like My So-Called Band and ERA. Reneé shares how dreamy textures, emotional honesty, and deep listening shape her creative process. She also talks about why honoring your inner pace matters more than chasing perfection. Let’s get right into it.
It’s okay not to know what you want to do, but it’s never okay to stop finding ways to figure that out! You’ll find you!
Mikala Reneé
Who are you and what do you create?
My name is Mikala Reneé, and I create music both through voice and guitar.
What first inspired you to pursue your creative path, and how has that inspiration evolved over time?
Honestly, I don’t know that anything really “inspired me” in any traditional sense. As strange as that sounds and as “full of myself” as this may come across, I don’t really remember anything about life before music came into it. I say that because I dissociate a lot, so I don’t remember large chunks of my childhood. However, my mom said that I’ve been singing since I was three years old.
I will say that in terms of guitar, I was inspired by a classmate in middle school. He played all kinds of stringed instruments. One day he brought a guitar to school for a talent show, and I knew I had to play it. Inspiration
now comes mainly in the form of sounds.
What I mean by that is, I’m sensitive to sound. I experience ‘frisson,’ so I seek a lot of sounds that stimulate that. Usually that comes in the way of reverb or delay-heavy songs. Songs that have certain atonal progressions and things like that. So, I tend to incorporate a lot of that same stuff in my music. Think artists like Radiohead, Bonobo, Sweetback, and Amel Larrieux.
Can you walk us through your creative process? Do you follow specific rituals or habits to get into the flow of your work?
I don’t follow any specific “ritual” per say. But I do enjoy using a looper a lot when I first find a progression. Capturing it on the looper allows me to noodle on my fretboard and see what other licks can be added or how to fill the space in the background and create contrast. It’s really helped me figure out space though, which is so important.
What themes, ideas, or emotions do you find yourself returning to in your work, and how have they shifted over time?
The main emotion in my music is, funny enough, very ‘aloof.’ People will absolutely roast me for being into astrology, but one thing that holds true is how delusional my imagination is. My moon is in Pisces, and they’re known for being daydreamers. I think my head is in the clouds a lot, and a lot of people have thought I didn’t like them because I’m literally unaware of what my face is doing. I’ve unintentionally given myself resting bitch face when I’m truly out of my body at the moment.
I know that was a whole dissertation, but I bring that up to say that those dreamy elements are really present with the effects I use now. I do a lot of ambient and shoegaze-y music that has elements of light rock and R&B. And I think it really represents me fully in my personality. I’m in my head ALL the time, so what comes out is what I wish my brain would sound like so I could stay calm.
What’s been your biggest creative breakthrough, and how did it change the way you approach your art or writing?
My biggest creative breakthrough was when I was in a project called ERA. It was the first and only time that writing songs actually came easily to me. At the time, it was my first band. So, there wasn’t as much pressure to be super professional or anything.
I definitely still have a hard time collaborating in terms of lyrics and whatnot. It’s hard to share your baby. But it taught me how important collaboration can be. A lot of my melodies were created because I brought a progression to practice and my friend, Ben, played a motif over it. Sometimes having a fresh set of ears over something you’ve made can help inspire vocal melodies. And that’s the beauty of a lot of musical partnerships.
How do you navigate periods of creative block or self-doubt, and what techniques have helped you push through?
I actually haven’t figured that out, entirely, as I’ve been experiencing it the last 4 years or so. But I just got done with a retreat that gave me some ideas about how to start writing. And I’ve been doing a lot of learning about chakra work and sound baths to regulate and balance myself internally. Sometimes we don’t realize how much tension and trauma we hold in our bodies. So, I think we have to do the necessary work to make sure we’ve dealt with that, or it will make sure we deal with it.
How do feedback and criticism play a role in your process? How do you decide what advice to follow and what to set aside?
Feedback and criticism are important if you want them to be. I think it’s crucial to know what kind of criticism and feedback you’re expecting out of the one relaying it. Because if your purpose is to do it in order to know whether you have a ‘hit’ or something, I can tell you right now, you’ll get varying opinions.
What you should strive for is having that feedback be constructive in language and structure. What I mean by that is that you want your song to make sense and to mean something to you. Find people who will help you “balance” your song. Even the most jarring progressions, in theory, can work if they’ve been properly constructed. Hence atonal songs. So, seek criticism and feedback for the right reasons. Otherwise, you’ll hurt yourself.
How do you balance personal creative expression with the commercial or external demands of your work?
I’m fortunate that I’ve never really had that issue. But I’m also not playing big enough shows yet for that to happen.
What’s one of the most challenging projects you’ve worked on, and how did you overcome the difficulties you faced?
Probably recording an album. It was during COVID, so everything was kind of crazy. I also felt kind of rushed in the writing process. So, I’m not the most proud of myself due to that. Also, recording an album in general is super stressful when live instruments are involved. You don’t want to damage your hearing, but sometimes you genuinely have to turn the volume all the way up when you’re tracking if you’re all in the same room.
I don’t think I really overcame them, truthfully. But we had a really sweet producer, Nick Bullock, who has a very firm yet calm way of focusing you. His ‘dad qualities’ really shine, honestly. He gives you tough love because he knows you’re overwhelmed, but that you’re capable. Which is really reassuring because creating art is always challenging.
How do you stay motivated and disciplined, especially during times when inspiration is lacking or inconsistent?
I’m not super disciplined like I was when I first started. A lot of that is probably because I got addicted to my phone over the years due to social media. Now that I’ve been cutting that out more, I’ve been trying to create cues and focus on one thing.
I read Atomic Habits a couple of years ago, and James Clear talks about creating ‘visual cues.’ If you have something in front of you, it becomes easier to ‘crave’ it. Now my guitars are hanging on my wall, and my pedalboard and amp are out. So, I just grab them throughout the day or week, depending on my mood.
The main thing now is that I’ve been at a plateau for the last couple of years with guitar. I’m intermediate, but never really learned scales. So, I’ve been trying to make sure that I have a purpose when I pick it up now. I mess around with my pedals for a little bit. But I HAVE to practice a specific scale for a specific amount of time. Or at least practice increasing my metronome beats after I successfully play through the scale without mistakes x amount of times.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out, or to an artist who’s struggling to find or trust their creative voice?
I’d say make sure that whatever you decide to do creatively, never forget what you love about it. It ebbs and flows just like we do. I’ve been reading Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, and she talks about the concept of ideas floating about until they [essentially] find their “person.” We are all vessels for a creative idea, and we have to honor it, and ourselves. We also have to be willing to let go of an idea if we can’t figure out a way to foster it. Sometimes it may boomerang back around, and sometimes it’s just a “darling,” and we have to release it.
As for finding your creative voice…there’s a paraphrased quote somewhere that says, “We’re all a product of our influences.” Imitation may be the best form of flattery, but it’s also a really good way to figure out what and how you play. Listen to the people you admire and try to play like them. Eventually, you’ll discover yourself somewhere in the mix. I can’t tell you how many times my friends have heard something and were like, “That’s a ‘Mikala’ chord progression.” It’s okay not to know what you want to do, but it’s never okay to stop finding ways to figure that out! You’ll find you!
M.K. Hancock here. Thank you for reading The Creative Wayfinder’s Compass, where we’re highlighting insights from passionate artists of all kinds for folks curious for creative advice, community, momentum, and inspiration. I hope this interview inspires you in one way or another.
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She is super talented. Really love her transparency. Great article!