To better connect you with the brilliant talent behind our music, we're proudly spotlighting various artists, composers & producers on the Megatrax roster. Juliet Lyons is a Billboard-charting recording artist and singer/songwriter/composer for film and television. She is best known for her soaring, emotional vocals in trailers, Trance, and New Age music. As a composer, she writes mainly production music for reality TV shows. Her instrumentals have aired thousands of times on television shows including VH1's "Love and Hip Hop," MTV's "Catfish," Bravo's "Real Housewives of....," and NBC's "The Voice."

Hi Juliet! Please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?

I was a musical theater nerd in high school and began singing on cruise ships as part of the production shows soon after graduation from UMKC Conservatory of Music (Bachelor of Music - Vocal Performance, with honors). On sea days we had ample time, and I began songwriting and discovered I loved it. I've been writing, singing, producing, and collaborating on songs and instrumentals for Film/TV ever since!

How do you think the music industry will change over the next decade?

I can't possibly predict it! I couldn't have predicted Napster, Spotify, or AI apps like SUNO. All I know is that none of these things have been good for songwriters. With that said, we are still here, and we will continue to advocate and fight for fair compensation for our work. We appreciate the organizations who are advocating for us, and we appreciate the music libraries that aren't engaging in the race to the bottom for music creators.

Has there been a particular challenge that you’ve faced over the years?

Many to choose from. A challenge that is unique to me is the rare airway disease I was diagnosed with in 2019. It's called idiopathic subglottic stenosis, and it can make breathing extremely difficult at times, and also makes me need to cough often. What this has meant for me is stepping away from performing live for the most part. But when music is inside you, you find a way. I continue to be recording vocals on a weekly, if not daily, basis. There will be times that I'll need to breathe in the middle of a phrase to get enough air to complete the phrase. But that's the beauty of comping. I've learned how to sing into and out of those spots for a seamless comp. No one ever hears those half phrases I have to sometimes do.

Any advice for fellow composers out there?

While it isn't news to anyone, it really is true that it's a relationship business! Get out there and build your community. If you're not in an entertainment hub like LA, you can absolutely still network like a boss! Save up and come to music conferences like the PMC. Participate in Zoom meetings, i.e. with the PMA, SONA, or AIMP, and engage in the online conversations. Ask questions, and don't force your music on anyone. Make your goal simply to make friends. Then watch as those friendships turn into opportunities in time!

What can you tell us about your composition and production process?

A brief in hand is the perfect scenario. It gives you all the guidelines, it gives you a goal and a vision, and all you have to do is create. You don't need to wait for inspiration, you've been given the canvas and the paintbrushes; you just need to paint. I love briefs. I love to topline for the same reason - the vibe is already there. Melody and lyrics always come easy to me. If I am starting from scratch, I need to have a genre in mind and a tempo in mind before I begin. Then I'll usually record bits and pieces into my voice memos until I've got a full song. If I'm the producer, I'll put down the scratch vocal, basic beats, and some basic piano to get started. I build from there and remove the basic scratches as I develop better, cooler sounds. 

How do you see the music you created being used?

I've been fortunate to have seen some really cool uses of my music already - film trailers, major motion pictures, a recurring theme on a news channel, dramas, comedies, horror, and LOTS of reality TV! With that said, I still dream of something incredibly juicy (meaning prominent) and cinematic, something like Lisa Gerrard and Hans Zimmer's "Gladiator." I love to sing ethereal, epic vocals the best.

Tell us about your upcoming projects! What does the rest of this year have in store for you?

I'm so excited to be releasing my next vocal New Age album, Breath of Gratitude, later this summer. It's an incredibly personal project - that's something different for me to be open. The album is a musical representation and exploration of my journey with idiopathic subglottic stenosis. Navigating the disease, I work through sorrow, fear, frustration, acceptance, and most powerfully, gratitude. The moment I wake up from the surgeries I need to undergo twice yearly, able to breathe freely again, is such an intense moment: Gratitude that I can still breathe. That I can still sing. That I've been given more time to live, love, and make music. I feel a calling to be open about this - as an emotional release, yes - but even more so to shed light on this rare disease, and let others know they are not alone in their struggles.

Listen to Juliet Lyons' tracks for Megatrax here.

Keep up with Juliet on Instagram and at julietlyons.com