Meet Mollie Danel | Musician & Music Teacher

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

Hi Mollie, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I found joy and solace in creativity at a pretty young age and my family has always nurtured that passion in me. When I was little, I’d take whatever supplies I could find- leftover paper scraps, rocks, sticks, Scotch tape- and craft with them. When I began to learn musical instruments, creativity took on a whole new form. I fell in love with making music more than any other creative trade, and taking part in music lessons and classes helped me to find friendships and community throughout school. When it came time to consider a career, I couldn’t ignore that lifelong passion and knew I wanted to continue to make music and invest in creative communities in some way. Pursuing a creative career has evolved and continues to evolve for me, but creating music and art and working with musicians and artists is what I’ve longed to do for as long as I can remember.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I play weekly solo acoustic gigs around DFW and am currently working on recording a small collection of folk/Americana songs, the first songs I’ve written. Most of my musical experience has been in a classical music context, and branching out into singer-songwriter territory has been eye-opening. I’m starting to see my musical worlds collide a bit more in recent years, and I’m so interested in and inspired by how musical genres inform one another and are interconnected. I’m having a lot of fun with the recording process and am learning more than I ever thought I would about music production- how vulnerable, tedious, yet rewarding it can be. I’m really looking forward to releasing the songs!

I also teach beginning piano and guitar lessons to a wonderful group of students, which I’ve been doing for about three years now. I see teaching as a creative act just as much as songwriting or performing- I’m always trying to learn more about what my students connect with and build our lessons around those things. My students teach me so much every day about what it looks like to hold joy and playfulness as an integral part of learning a creative skill, which I’m deeply grateful for.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’d take a visiting friend to the trails by either Trinity River in downtown Fort Worth or by Grapevine Lake for a walk or a bike ride. If we were feeling adventurous, we could swing by a Movement gym to rock climb- I love bouldering! We’d obviously have to catch some live music, and I’m always game to hear local songwriters. The Cicada and Magnolia Motor Lounge are great Fort Worth locations for open mics and local songwriter nights. I’d be sure to stop by the Magnolia Wine Bar in Fort Worth too, one of my favorite spots! The Kessler Theater in Dallas is another one of my favorite venues for live music, and if we went to Dallas for a show, I’d definitely want to stop by Xamán Café in Oak Cliff for any/everything on the menu.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have a support base in my family that has sustained me in the difficult, messy, and discouraging times of pursuing a creative career. I truly have my family and my parents specifically to thank for never giving up on helping me figure out how to hold onto the things I am passionate about and teaching me to work hard in pursuit of those things. I don’t think I would have kept trying without their support; I love them dearly.

When I moved to Dallas-Fort Worth just before high school, I was overwhelmed by the sheer size of the Metroplex and the amount of talent, activity, and opportunity that all live in one place. I turned to music to cope with the changes and difficulties in my life at the time, and in doing so, met my first private lessons teacher for flute, Christine Cleary. Christine inspired me to see what being a musician could mean and challenged me to grow in discipline and dedication. Christine is still a mentor and dear friend to me, and I cannot thank her enough for the compassion and wisdom she has shared with me over the years.

I would also love to shoutout Art House Dallas, Lifesong Studio, and Songbirds of Fort Worth, a few wonderful communities for artists in Dallas-Fort Worth that have been incredible sources of support and inspiration for me in the past couple of years. Connecting regularly with communities of artists has breathed life into my wellbeing and growth as a person and an artist. I so appreciate the fine folks who make up these groups and cannot recommend them enough!

Instagram: https://instagram.com/molliedanel?igshid=MzMyNGUyNmU2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrFNNe_CynRic_-die1hzJQ

Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2zJeLMHirLoz0KkEPRxy8c?si=ZHBK1cH3ROm4LIiUAxhJSQ Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/mollie-danel/1679972509

Image Credits
Dallas Dickerson
Sean Sheridan