Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Alvarez
Hi Lauren, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Music has been my passion since I was four years old. At the age of five, I joined the Riverside Choir in Lakewood, OH to sing and Beck Center for the Arts in Lakewood, OH to act & sing! I began writing my own music at the age of ten and grew an interest in starting to learn different musical instruments. It started with piano lessons, then to violin lessons and joining the school orchestra at age eleven. Then it progressed to wanting to learn to play the guitar and the bagpipes around the age of twelve/thirteen. Throughout the years, I entered many local singing competitions and found a few live singing gigs. In 2018, I decided to follow my dreams and my true passion of pursuing a music career. I created a social media platform for my music and began my journey. Of course, we all know what happened at the end of 2019 going into 2020. Post covid, in 2022, I decided to once again try to take a chance on my music career. Since 2023, I’ve made an entrance into the Indie music scene with my debut original single, ‘Without You’ (currently on all music streaming platforms) along with its music video. I’ve reached close to 150,000 views on YouTube with my music video & cover of ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno’ from Disney’s, ‘Encanto’, which is the highest number of views I’ve received on anything I’ve ever released. I have joined a new metal band based in Cleveland, OH called ‘Along the Watchtower’ and we will be making our debut album release on October 31st, 2024! I’ve started to gain a small following of over 2,000 fans who I’m eternally grateful for, because without them I wouldn’t even be writing my story for VoyageOhio Magazine!! I’m also releasing my second original song ever called ‘sad’ on August 1st, 2024 with its music video being released on August 31st, 2024!!!! It’s been a long time coming, but I finally feel as though I’m getting to live my dreams. As long as I can write, record and release music… life is good. My cousin, Olga Merediz, has been a huge inspiration and incredible motivator for me since I was a little girl. Olga has been in the music and acting business since the 1980’s and has been turning heads ever since! Her latest projects have included playing Abuela Claudia in Lin Manuel Miranda’s ‘In The Heights’ on Broadway AND the 2021 film and she also did the singing voice for Abuela Alma Madrigal in Disney’s ‘Encanto’!!! I can only hope that one day I will be following her footsteps.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
At thirteen years old, I developed Ulcerative Colitis (similar to Crohn’s disease — a chronic IBD) to the point where not only did attending school become difficult, but continuing with professional choir, acting classes and theater gigs, music lessons, etc., became nearly impossible. As years went on, the disease progressed and became worse. By the time I was twenty-three years old, I was on thirty-two different pills a day and was still suffering daily. Between multiple monthly doctor visits, medical trials, medications, to multiple weeklong hospital stays… my quality of life was becoming unbearable and too painful to live. Throughout all of this, music and singing kept me going. I never stopped singing and writing music because it was the one thing I could still do from my bed. At twenty-three years old, I finally decided to take control of my life & health and reached out to my doctors. Soon after that, I had a consultation with colorectal surgery and began on a three+ year long journey of curing my Ulcerative Colitis. The first year entailed three different surgeries. On February 18th, 2014, I underwent my first surgery which involved removing my entire colon and large intestine. I was given a temporary ileostomy bag (typically called a colostomy bag, but they took out my colon, so they call it an ileostomy bag) for the first year. On August 4th, 2014, I underwent my second surgery which involved a surgeon going in and making my small intestine into a J Shape (they call it a ‘J-Pouch’) which turns into a new acting colon (WOO, science!) and then they let that heal for a few more months. On December 1st, 2014, I underwent my third and final surgery which involved them basically hooking me all up, for lack of better term, and reversing/getting rid of the ileostomy bag! For each surgery I was in the hospital for 8 weeks and basically everything that could go wrong, went wrong. However, as crazy as it sounds, at the end of the day.. music was there for me. I never stopped singing and I never stopped writing. I wrote material in the hospital beds that I’m still waiting to compose and release in the future. The actual recovery time, post final surgery, took about two full years to get into a decent quality of life. It wasn’t until about 2017 when I finally started to feel healthy. In 2018, I decided to follow my dreams and my true passion of pursuing a music career. I created a social media platform for my music and began my journey. Of course, we all know what happened at the end of 2019 going into 2020. It seems that I somehow continue to have setbacks, but I will never stop moving forward!!!!
Currently my father is going through chemotherapy treatments after his diagnosis of ‘AL Amyloidosis’ back in April of 2024. My Father is my best friend and my entire world. I attribute my love for music and musical instruments to him. He loves music and plays the violin, bongo drums and the bagpipes! He is my biggest supporter and my inspiration to keep going no matter what! He likes to often tell me “If you fall down seven times, you stand up eight!!!”
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a singer/songwriter/actress based in Cleveland, OH! Currently I’m known for my music video cover of ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno’ from Disney’s ‘Encanto’, singing and performing all nine+ parts which has reached close to 150,000 views on YouTube! I’m also known for my debut original single, ‘Without You’ which is out on all music streaming platforms now! I’m most proud of my newest single that will be releasing on August 1st, 2024 called ‘sad’. I put my heart and soul into this song and I’m making the switch from pop to rock, which rock n roll music is where my heart truly lies, so I’m very excited for this one! What sets me apart from the others, I believe, is my range of musical genres. I can sing most genres down to pop, rock, country, hip/hop, rap, oldies, metal, choir/opera. showtunes/musicals, etc.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
“If you fall down seven times, stand up eight” which my Father reminds me often during some of the hardest times in my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://open.spotify.com/track/5d30DwZtnvnT0hiQa6RAUo?si=C-bp5qJ3TJexrFOIGWlr8w
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenalvarezmusic
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurenalvarezmusic
- Twitter: https://www.x.com/@laurenalvmusic
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@laurenalvarezmusic
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@laurenalvarezx
