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Where You're At: MU Senior And Musician

Kristofor Husted
/
KBIA

We at KBIA have found strength in our community during the COVID-19 crisis. In our series “Where You’re At,” we’re talking to our neighbors to see how they’re coping during the pandemic.

If you want to share your story, email KBIA at news@kbia.org.

Here is Olivia Moses’ conversation with Kelsey Christiansen, a musician and a senior at the University of Missouri studying English:

How is the coronavirus and the pandemic affecting [this] process for you?

It's actually been kind of a blessing in disguise because I finally have time to work on my music without feeling guilty because, you know, with all my classes online now I can just work at my own pace and then have like the energy and the free time to do what I love later, or throughout the day. It's just been…being alone and only surrounded by a very select few amount of people, lit really like forces you to look at yourself a lot more just because you have so much space. You're not getting out into the world. And so, it's been a really reflective period for like myself over the last like, several weeks, and that's really shown up in my music.

I know that, like a lot of people feel that the transition was difficult. And you mentioned that it was like a blessing in disguise. Can you maybe give a little bit more detail on why it's like a blessing?

I've never really like, been able to pause, essentially. And, you know, there's been a lot of just other like stress in my life thus far. And when I say blessing in disguise, it's just like, the break that I've been waiting for my entire life. Like, all the rest of the world has stopped too. And I can finally catch up. And with my music, it was almost like there was like a block in the road with that, you know, because I was so…my life was so clustered. And now it seems like I can see everything very clearly.

So, you've been writing songs and playing the guitar for years now. Why do you think that now you're just starting, or you have been working on it, but why do you think now is a time where the EP is something so real for you?

It's always been a dream, but it's never been something I felt like I could actually…attain. And now…everything is stopped. And the more and more I progress through school – I love my major, I love studying literature and everything, but the more and more I progress through school, the more I realize that, music isn't just like, it's an escape for me, but it's also something that I could actually do for real. I'm starting to like realize that. I do recognize my talent. Whereas before it was, you know, like I've definitely grown more confident in it. And it's something that I know I can do and I want to do it. So, because of all this chaos and because the quarantine, it's like some higher power here is trying to tell me that I need to like pay attention in this moment I think because, if not now then like when?

Thank you for talking with me Kelsey.

Yeah, thanks for interviewing me.

Kristofor left KBIA in fall of 2021
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