Meet Michelle Hanlon | Singer/Songwriter, Multi-instrumentalist, HS Orchestra Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michelle Hanlon and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michelle, how has your perspective on work-life balance evolved over time?
My work life balance has gone through many seasons. When I started teaching, I took more gigs, stayed late at work regularly and took on extra leadership roles. I served as TMEA Region 2 Orchestra Division Chair for six years before I got married. Marriage prompted the first reassessment of my work-life balance. My husband’s work meant he was gone often, and his family has a musical tradition rooted in guitar playing and kitchen parties with music, so I would come home and work on my guitar skills. I also wrote during this time. When our children were born, this necessitated an even more serious look at my work life balance. I stopped taking most of the smaller gigs, and had to get creative with how to find time to write and create. I started drawing hard lines in the sand when it came to leaving work so I would have enough time to share dinner with my children, read books every night, and get to enjoy their childhoods with them.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am a singer/songwriter who just released her second album, ten years after the first record dropped. I continue to write and perform music while teaching full time, playing violin in DFW, and raising our three young children (6, 5, and 3) with a loving husband who is a professional pianist who is on tour regularly throughout the year. My father is a legendary studio owner in Tyler, TX, having just celebrated over 60 years of operation. Singing in commercials for things my father was producing was part of my childhood. Having grown up in and around a recording studio, music has always been part of my life. Piano lessons, violin lessons, orchestra class, saxophone lessons,, band, jazz band, and singing in church and later in school choir all shaped me as a musician. I was also exposed to all kinds of music from hymns to the Beatles, to Stevie Wonder, and Corelli. I studied music at the University of North Texas and got a Music Education Degree and Teaching Certificate. I started writing songs in middle/high school, and continued to hone my ability in college. My first album (‘This Is My Day’ 2014) was a collaboration with my father and included songs that I wrote, some of his songs, and a few co-written/cover songs. Although it did not reach any modicum of fame, Texas Music Magazine called it ‘one of the most intriguing albums of the year’.
I continued to write and after marrying my husband, we started working on what was to be an EP of my own songs. The pandemic, the births of our three children, and just life kept pushing the release of that music back. Since I kept writing, we kept adding songs to the record and ended up with a full length album (‘Maybe This Time’ 2024). I’ve done a few local shows and I’ve made a number of music videos to try to reach more eyes and ears on social media and I continue to work towards getting my songs into the ears of as many people as possible.
Over time, I’ve learned to do lots of things for myself- I am more fluent in notation software, I can edit video and audio and make my own videos, and I think I have gotten rid of the self-imposed perfectionistic tendencies that did nothing but delay the release of my music and put me in a position to start questioning my own abilities. What is perfection? Why do I want it anyway? If they like your voice and music, they will like it, and if they don’t, they won’t and no level of ‘perfection’ will change that, so I am trying to just ‘do the thing’ and put more content out. (that being said, I can never be one of those content creators that releases near daily updates! For me, that is a bridge too far.)

My music is admittedly personal. It tells the stories of my life and experiences and each song is produced in a way that I think allows it to communicate in its own voice. I am not trying to craft something to fit into the newest sonic trends, but I think there is an honesty in what I’m making that speaks to people.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If I had my bestie here (her name is Meredith and she’s got a track on my new record!), I’d take her to Steve’s Wine Bar in Denton on the square to hear some music while enjoying a great glass of wine, and we could get some incredible food at any of the places I love there: LSA Burger, Barley and Board, or Queenies. I also love the Dallas Museum of Art and we could take in the creativity and beauty therein and then hear some live jazz in the beautiful atrium. We could catch stand up comedy at the Improv in Addison and would also want to make it out to either (or both!) the Dallas Arboretum or the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens. Last, but certainly not least, the hidden GEM of The Kitchen Cafe, Dallas that always has the best live music and food that can’t be beat. There are SO many places to go that allow us to enjoy time with each other while appreciating the natural beauty and human creativity (music, art, sculpture) that abounds in DFW.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My mother’s unending support makes it possible for me to continue to teach, gig, and keep my household running throughout the busy school year. I owe her so much and am so thankful for her time, dedication, and love.

Website: https://www.michellehanlon.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michellehanlonmusic

Facebook: https://facebook.com/mbhanlon

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@hanlonmusic544?si=oMthnlu7wEkTGhxz

Other: https://linktr.ee/michellehanlonmusic

Image Credits
Alicia Claytor Photography