LAUREN SANDERSON
“I’ve always loved music but growing up in a small town, I didn’t think it was a possible career path,” says singer-songwriter Lauren Sanderson. But when she didn’t get accepted into college, Sanderson took it as a sign to try something different: giving Ted Talks. “Doing a Ted Talk was the first time I was on a stage with a microphone in my hand and that was the day I realized I was meant to inspire people,” Sanderson admits. Although she began as a motivational speaker and YouTube personality, “music was, and is, my outlet to express my mind.” Soon beats and raps were slipping into her online videos. She released her first EP, Center of Expressions, in 2016, followed by Spaces (2017), Don’t Panic! (2018), and Hasta La Vista (2019) before dropping her debut album, Midwest Kids Can Make It Big, in 2020. Her songs are regularly featured on Billboard’s Pride playlists and her track “Frustrated,” released on a deluxe version of Midwest Kids Can Make It Big in 2021, earned a spot on Billboard’s “10 Cool New Pop Songs to Get You Through the Week.” Through her music, Sanderson challenges social norms, and harkens back to her motivational roots by reminding us all what we’re capable of. “Every song I put out and every tour I get to go on is a constant reminder that we are the creators of our own paths and we can do the things others may not see as realistic,” she says. Her vision “is to continue going against societal norms” and inspire people “to be whoever they want to be. I want people to listen to my music and not be afraid to express themselves, wear what they want, love who they want, and most importantly, be themselves.”
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