Interview with Joy Melan

artwork by Patrick Duggan

The following is a conversation between singer and comedian, Joy Melan, and myself at Cosmic Coffee on a sunny Tuesday afternoon.

You perform Music & Comedy. Do you ever confuse the two?

No, I think they’re different parts of myself. I get something different from them and I give something different to them.

Do you feel like they feed off of each other or do they seesaw?

I think the writing might feed into each other. But they are really both different emotions. Comedy is more myself on stage. Its harder for me to do that when I perform music. I feel there is this layer of like “OK I’m not like this all the time”. But comedy, I'm like “that’s me” and if people don’t like it then they don't like me. 

How long have you been doing music?

About 8 years. Started in High School with that System of the Down cover band. We played every Tuesday in a coffee shop. Everyone hated it. 

What is influencing you to create these days?

Seeing everyone’s hustle here. Since Ive moved to Austin, and like Ive always lived near it, Just seeing how many people are moving with nothing here and theyre happy to be here just doing what they love to do. It makes me think Why i have taken so long to full throttle it? Because I always had music there but it was on the backburner and i never gave it the attention it needed. Once i came here i realized this was a goal and its gonna take sacrifices. As long i keep doing it, I’m going to get something out of it. 

It’s really special the amount of performers you meet who are semi-homeless.

So happy about it. I dropped somebody off, they needed a ride. Circled around the street to a parking lot and there’s this van. I’m like ‘Is this your home?” and he’s like “yeah”. Which is so funny cause i park by that van all the time. “Alright catch ya later man!”

I googled “Soteria” and was given 3 top answers.

1. Greek Goddess of Spirit & Safety

2. A cyber security solutions business

3. A Baptist church commune in Des Moines, IA

Which one of these inspired the name for the band?

So, First one mainly. But Soteria is kind of a double-entendre. There are Soterias which are safe home communes for people struggling with mental health and getting over drug use. She is goddess of safety and deliverance. It is a safe space with our music. It’s supposed to bring people in to feel safe. I write all of our music, all of the lyrics and piece things together. It’s all very very metaphorical songs but feels super deep to me. People will come up and say ‘Hey, I needed this today. I needed to feel vulnerable.” But we do play off the Greek goddess a lot. Both in the way I dress and some of the sounds l have - ethereal chants. 

Do you find a lot of comfort in the personal distance metaphors can allow you when performing?

I definitely do. I think that started when I did Spoken Word Poetry. I would write some deep dark shit and I’m not actually an emotional person. I’m always Goofy. That’s why comedy is easier. But for me to be personal and be emotional. Id still have to hide behind that metaphor. Like we have a song called “Spiders” about spiderwebs and shit  and it’s definitely not about spiders.

Well this is a sad day for spiders.

To all the spiders out there. I’m sorry, it’s not about you. 

Lot of sunken webs will be spun today.

Tiniest little hands. Tiniest little violins. 

You are hosting a comedy drag show. What do you want people to be feeling walking that out of that show?

I want people to feel lighter. Ever since I had the idea all I could think of was “this is fun. This is fun. This is fun.” this is a way to get people to relax. There’s no judgement. There’s no anything. I just really wanted to have that judgement-zone free zone where people are able to let go of everything for 2 hours. And just laugh. And smile. And clap. And just come out of themselves for a little bit. I want people to leave through the doors kinda feeling like - angelic exhale.

That’s interesting. Because with comedy there’s always that factor of the unknown. You don’t know what’s about to come out of that person’s mouth. How do you feel like that will impact this environment compared to a typical drag show?

That is something I’ve had a few people ask me. Because I do know that comedy can get raunchy. But at the same time, I feel like drag and comedy exist very closely to each other just on different spectrums. And I'm someone who’s all for “Just let it out”. It is what it is and if they don't like it they don't like it. If they don’t like it they can tell you and you can keep doing it or choose to walk away from it. But i just think with the edginess, the irony in drag will come really nicely with the irony in comedy. And i think people will overthink some of the jokes or overthink if someone will get offended or not. All the drag queens I have working the show, I showed them all the sets of everybody and they love it. 

It’s like when there’s a white person that tells a black person what they should be offended about and I’m like “I’m good” its funny. I'm ok. I’m able to realize what satire is and what something rude is. And I think the satire in drag and the satire in comedy are going to come together very nicely. 

You keep yourself very busy  with performing both music and comedy not to mention all the events you host and organize. Do you ever have time to dwell on things like imposter syndrome?

[laughs] Damn that imposter syndrome. That’s something im working on - is having time just at home. There will be bits and weeks where I’m only home to sleep, and that’s just for a few hours. I’m in the middle of renovating my garage into a studio. That’s a big thing i’ve been trying to do. I’ve been trying to start a podcast called The Industry about service industry workers and their stories. Cause something I did for a long.. A long time. 

There’s some great characters in the service industry

I was just talking with some dude who works at Buffalo Exchange..

EDITOR’S NOTE: Will save this story for when Joy’s Podcast is released. 

Its just some of the craziest stuff that people don’t get to hear and don’t get to experience. That’s something I’ve had on the backburner but I’m also someone who won’t present something unless its PERFECT. I think that’s where a lot of the imposter syndrome comes from. It’s not that I don’t think I can't do something - But its more, If i put something forward I want it to be all of me and I don’t have all of me to give to everything these days. 

Which in a timestamp way, kind of feeds into project even more.

Yeah

I think we align ourselves too much with our expectations and you don't realize how much of the process is allowing things out of your control to play as well. 

I think a big thing with me is realizing that I don't have to do everything in one go. I can come back to it. Just doing little pieces at a time. Working on getting this and then If i get busy then now i need to add this and get that. That’s how I’ve been with putting out music. More and more people ask me after I play a show - “Do you have anything on Spotify? Do you have anything out yet?” No! Because i haven;t found the perfect song to record. I’ve met a lot of artists here who say just let go. Just put something out that you feel good about. You will have more. You will have more time. You’ll be able to come back to things. But like, Just Do It. And I’m just trying to have that “Just Do It” attitude more.

Nike. 

This is actually sponsored.

They're funding this? Why are we doing this here and not in the highest tower?

I only get paid to say it one time. 

When you wake up in the morning, do you dismiss your dreams or find value in them?

You asked the right lady. I am the dream lady. So I worked with kids for a long time. I was a sleep specialist. I studied sleep dn dreams and circadian rhythms for a long time. I usually remember most of my dreams. I’ve been working lucid dreaming a lot, just having more power and control over them. I’m definitely someone that takes something from them because that’s your brain, that’s your mind and that’s when you finally don;t have control over them. Cause during the day you have control, you have control to ignore something or for you tell yourself what it is. But it’s just natural and raw when you go to sleep and it gets to spit stuff out of you. I don;t take it all to heart but I do know there’s something in it. I had a dream a while that my tongue was bleeding and it fell out of mouth. Everyone was like aha so silly and this and this. I had to like sit down and kind of ask myself questions like 

“Do you feel like people aren't listening to you?”

“Do you feel like you’re overworking this area?

It’s kind of like that point where I can talk to the inner me that people ignore and keep the mind and body in the same line. I love dreams. I keep a dream journal. 

You do? Do you record all of them or do you let some of sit as long as they wish to stay?

I record the ones that have weight to me. Some of them are crazy. Some of them I smoked too much and I’m like “Ok, ain't no reason killing zombies has anything to do with what’s going on”. Actually a little bit, a lot of my dreams are people in distress and I’ll have to save everyone. Then I’ll get stuck in a situation they just watch. So it’s just like that constant feeling of wanting to take care of everyone and being the savior and always being in charge and wanting to let go -SO ACTUALLY those zombie dreams do hold weight [laughs]. 

That’s beautiful. Sometimes there is benefit to taking a nihilistic approach. Like, if I give this dream meaning it is going to wreck me, so I’m just going to chalk it up as a weird dream.

I had a dream where I gave birth to this little bug. I was watching A Wrinkle In Time  in my dorm and out of nowhere I gave birth to this little bug. Then my roommate came in and she squished it - i was like MY BABY! Then the squished bug turned into a snake. I woke up and was like “you know what, we’re gonna leave that one alone”.

3 years from now - what accomplishments would you like to have under your belt?

I’d like to have a more established booking business. It’s something I really really like to do. Most of it is networking and talking to people and recognizing talent - and those are all of my favorite things. 

One of my biggest things that I’ve been thinking about a lot is that I’ve never left America. I come from a really big family, so a plane ticket for all of us was just out of the question and it just never really came about for me. So that’s something I’ve really been thinking about - just moving to Europe for a few months at least and doing a little bit of touring out there. 

Any particular places attracting you?

Istanbul. Obsessed with Turkey. Ireland, Scotland - just places I feel like I would be inspired. Like I said, I’m very comfortable by myself and would travel alone. Everyone is like “What! Scary News! What are you talking about?”

You haven’t seen Taken (2008) ?

Oh I’ve seen Taken. They would bring me back if they took me. Or somehow I would end up running their organization. 

You guys are doing it all wrong.

Step back. Do you see the knots you tied me in? Do you see how easy it was for me to get out of this?

We’re gonna need a whole re-org. 

But definitely traveling, and getting to the point where music can..Music is the main focus right now, and I don’t want to say consume, but It’s like the only consistent thing I’ve had that i know that I love. We could spend seven hours on the talents I’ve done that I was subpar in and lost interest in.  I think music is the one thing I’ve done for me and always makes me feel good. So I would like it to take over 90% of my life.