E136 - What You Need From Your Creativity. Guest, Ezra Vancil, Singer & Songwriter

Artists Have to Live It Before They Can Create It Creativity is not just something you make. For Ezra Vancil, Creativity has been the saving grace that gets him through the hard parts of life, and the gift that keeps handing him back his own confidence. Ezra is a Texas based singer, songwriter, poet, and author whose career spans more than three decades. He is a Kerrville New Folk finalist, a New Song Competition winner, and a South by Southwest showcased artist, and his music has been featured on VH1 and the BBC. These days he lives in an East Texas forest, performs alongside his daughter Cozi, and writes music centered on redemption, resilience, faith, and the pursuit of wholeness over fame. In this conversation, Ezra and Beth talk about what happens when a record deal falls apart and there’s no plan B, why confidence and creativity build on each other in a loop, how decades of scattered attempts eventually turn into something meaningful, and why Ezra’s goal with his creative work is to write his life’s experiences and stories to help others endure the hard parts of life a little easier. If you’ve ever needed your creativity to carry you through something hard, this conversation is for you. Chapters  0:00 Meet Ezra Vancil2:00 Life in the East Texas woods, and why silence fuels the work5:00 Dropped from his label at 21, and why nothing creative goes to waste9:00 Decades spent learning poetry. Learn the rules, then throw them out.13:00 Why “do whatever you want” is a creative's worst nightmare14:00 His unstructured morning practice, and quieting the comparison spiral18:00 The bird analogy. Art as digested truth, given back to the people who need it.23:00 The pressed flower story. Waiting years to get a piece of art back.27:00 Redeeming the past through music, and healing his family through Morning and Midnight31:00 Getting sober, hiring a coach, and rebuilding confidence on stage34:00 Fear as a compass. It always points the wrong way.39:00 “The answer is in the work,” and beating gear acquisition syndrome43:00 Where to find Ezra's music, poetry, and Morning and Midnight Find Ezra Vancil and his musicWebsite: https://ezravancil.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/ezravancil/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/53DBJZYKrYOYUGz0co8XLQApple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/ezra-vancil/412473491 Find Create Today Website: https://www.bdi-create.today Join the Going FourWords™ Membership: https://www.bdi-create.today/going-fourwords-membership Create Today Membership: https://www.bdi-create.today/membership_coaching Sylva Sessions: https://www.bdi-create.today/sylva Instagram: @b.b.buffington_celebratetoday   Facebook: BDIcreatetoday   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bbbuffington/   Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/BDICreateToday/