Where do you come from and how did you get to where you are?

I was born in Chile, my father is from Cuba, but I was born and raised in Chile. I arrived in Australia in 2014 after living in New Zealand for four years. I initially came with a working holiday visa with my ex-partner and we decided to make Melbourne home. 

Originally I am a high school music teacher. When I arrived in Melbourne I did all sorts of jobs in order to save money. I then studied a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and that’s how I got my permanent residency. For two or three years that was my job, but now I have left the industry because it wasn’t really my thing and I have switched to being a full time artist. I work as a solo artist but I also have two bands, one of them is a 5-piece Folktronica band, SunSeeds, we are currently working on an album.
The other one is on hold at the moment as we only started it a few months before the pandemic started - Fuego Cumbe an all female Afro-Colombian ensemble. 
 

Moving to a new country requires courage, what parts of your culture did you take with you?

Well, of course my values, you know, growing up in a certain culture, you have certain values. And of course, music, music not only from Chile but from the rest of Latin America. We have always been very influenced by music from all around the continent. Food, and everything that has to do with my heritage and ancestry. And my language, of course! I sing mainly in Spanish. Some of my songs I have incorporated a little bit of English to my lyrics, but Spanish just flows for me. 

As a creative migrant, how do you seek out opportunities?

Networking is a big one for me: I am very social, I like to go out a lot, meet people and make connections. Talking and telling people what you do, and then someone might show interest or connect you with someone else; ‘Oh, I know this person and la la la’, or ‘Oh, there’s a festival going on. Would you like to participate?’. That’s actually how I had my first gig in a festival living in New Zealand. I was working in a supermarket and someone knew I was a music teacher back home, but there I was a checkout operator, and then yeah, someone said ‘Oh, I know that one of the girls from the checkouts is a singer, you should go talk to her’. It is always important to let people know what you are doing, and also knock on doors, work hard, put yourself out there.

What have been some of the challenges to kickstart your career as an immigrant?

Well, of course, visas. You have to do all sorts of jobs at the beginning. When I first arrived I didn’t speak English very well so I had to go for very physical, difficult jobs. It is hard when you are a student or on a working holiday visa, you don’t have the freedom or support that being a permanent resident gives you. Also, feeling lonely sometimes, that’s really hard, not having your family close.

What/who inspires you?

Life itself, with all its ups and downs. I write all my music and it is mainly about my life, my experiences, my challenges. The nice things and the not-so-nice things. A lot to do with healing, healing emotional trauma and healing physical trauma. A few years ago I was diagnosed with a chronic medical illness related to women’s health, so a lot of my songs speak about healing and overcoming challenges, trusting cycles of life and acceptance. Also what inspires me is nature; all of my songs mention the river, the moon, the sun. And love, of course, but also heartbreak and grief.

Have you ever doubted your talent? If so, how did you work through your doubt?

Yes, I have. I always question my talent because I am a bit of a perfectionist, and I am always looking at other people’s work and getting  inspired, not really comparing but it does pushes me to say ‘yeah, I can do better’.  Also, because I studied music so long ago, 2005 to 2010 and since then I haven’t really upscaled, I only have the tools that I learnt during that time. So now I have started taking lessons again. I think questioning yourself is normal. Studying, observing, asking for feedback is what helps me work through doubt. I also surround myself with people that love me and always tell me I am amazing (laughs), that’s good as well to lift you up.

When do you feel most energised and inspired?

I guess when I rest. Also when I have a challenge ahead of me. For example last week I was working with a collective of Latin musicians called Latin Muses. And we only had two weeks to come up with a video or something to showcase and I was like ‘what am I going to show?!’ I didn’t had anything ready… But then I came up with an idea, and did something. That’s what I love and inspires me, to have something to look forward to. Also the basics, exercise, eating healthy, feeling at peace, disconnecting sometimes from social media. Introspection is always good. I like to go away for a couple of days somewhere on my own (when we could before lockdown!). Take a small suitcase, drive my car one or two hours, book an Airbnb for myself and connect with myself. That's when I write lyrics.

Vanessa Estrada ft. Oscar Poncell - Renacer (Official video)

What are you grateful for?

Life, my friends. I have a very good network of friends here in Melbourne, I don’t think I could be where I am if it wasn’t for them. Some of them live really close to me, we are neighbours, so we are like a family. I am grateful for music, I don’t know what would be of me during this pandemic if I didn’t have that creative outlet to release emotions. I am also grateful for my family, I am not really close to my mom or dad. I had a very challenging upbringing, but I am grateful because them and that experience made me the person I am today.

Has the pandemic thought you anything new about your creative process?

It’s tricky because it is the first time I’ve ever had a lot of time in my hands to be creative, but it is also shitty because for me there is no stimulus for my creativity. I am a very social person, I need to be out a lot. So it has been hard not having that. But I guess what it has taught me is that self-care is very important and that in order to be creative I need to have a routine. Is hard when you don’t have a boss or you don’t have like deadlines or someone else’s expectations, or a gig. I set my self challenges like ‘ok, today I am going to learn this song’ or ‘today I am going to send these emails’ or whatever. Also I have learnt to celebrate the small wins, like even if one day you do one thing or two things, that’s ok, celebrate that.

What are you working on at the moment? 

I am working on my debut solo album, it's an eight track album; I already have three songs recorded, just need to mix and master them. I will be releasing the first single in December and then the other two I haven’t decided when. I am waiting for a few grants I applied to to make a video documentary. With songs, it is important to release visual materials as well, I think is more impactful, so I want to release the other two songs when I have that.

The other thing I am working on is another eight track album with my band, that one is nearly ready. And I am also working for Lamama Theater, writing the music for a play that’s going to be part of BANKSIA Festival.

Do you have any words of wisdom for someone starting out in your field, specially if they are from a migrant background?

Network, networking is very important. It is really hard when you are working and studying and trying to make music, but it is possible. If you love it, don’t give up. My first year in Melbourne I studied, worked, and then at night, went to rehearsals and performed on weekends. It was really hard, but I always had the energy for it - I was also younger (laughs). 

If you could be any object, what would you be and why?

A guitar, of course! It makes everyone happy, makes beautiful melodies, is wood, it lasts, it doesn’t break easily, and it has a very nice shape (laughs).

A recommendation:

An artist, one of my biggest inspirations is Violeta Parra, she is one of my big references. She’s a Chilean artist, but really an icon in Latin America. She did research on musica campesina, music from the people of the countryside who were illiterate and she studied their traditional chants and recorded songs incorporating them. There is a movie about her life, ‘Violeta se fue a los cielos’.

Do you have a favourite word?

Not a word, but there is a Colombian expression I really like: ‘me la suda’. I guess that really represents my personality, like everything ‘me la suda’, like I don’t really give a **** you know (laughs).
 

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What you've just read  is an abstract from an interview via zoom call between Vanessa Estrada and across the network founder Laura González Saavedra on 3/9/2021
The interview has been transcribed, edited and adapted to an editorial format by across the network. 

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