Today we’d like to introduce you to Lena Stojiljkovic.
Hi Lena, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I started playing piano at 5 years old. My mother and sister both played piano so we had a piano in our house, and one day I was at the keys hitting random notes when my mother came up to me asking if I wanted to take lessons. I immediately said yes. I was always in love with playing the piano. I remember as young as kindergarten wanting to showcase the songs I learned to my teachers and peers. This continued in elementary school and middle school, but I decided to quit lessons to take up track and field in high school — I was also a passionate runner from an early age and I wanted to take more time to focus on that. However, my love for music did not go away. I was a fanatic about the recorder in third grade which influenced me to start band classes with clarinet in fourth grade. I was inspired by a caretaker at my after-school program to take up the oboe, and when I entered high school, I was finally able to fully switch to it from clarinet. Though I was not taking piano lessons throughout high school, I was heavily involved in all possible music classes my school had to offer — I was in band, orchestra, choir, and theatre all the way up through my senior year. Throughout my childhood music always spoke to me, so I decided to use this passion and continue with it at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a music education major. I was so in love with oboe playing, and even though I had less than four years of experience with it, I was able to land a scholarship in college. But halfway through my first semester as a Freshman, I was diagnosed with Bipolar 1 disorder and my life took a dark turn. With this new diagnosis, my college career was at stake since I was so debilitated from a psychotic manic episode. When I returned to school for the next semester, I was crippled with depression from the different medications I was on. Though my spirits were low, I knew I would let the music-loving child within me down if I didn’t continue studying music. It took five long years for me to finally graduate with a Bachelor’s of Music from the University, and I also acquired a music teaching license, but by this time my passion for oboe completely went away. In the beginning, orchestral music gave me life, but by the time I finished school, I couldn’t stand listening to any orchestra without horrid flashbacks of my failures. I still have trouble with it. If it wasn’t for my gentle love for piano, I would have completely given up on music. Because my passion for piano never went away, I was constantly challenging myself to become a better piano player every day. I had spent hours between classes in the practice rooms playing Chopin and Debussy, as well as the songs I started composing myself — and I was constantly composing. I produced and recorded as much as I could, and this stuck with me after college. Others started noticing my unique talent for piano, especially when I arrange covers and medleys of famous rappers’ songs and perform them on my Instagram. The recognition I receive today sparks the child in me that always loved playing piano for others. And this is what I do — I take my piano playing and do whatever I can to share it with others. The rap community reeled me in, and since discovering I have a love for hip-hop, I’ve caught the attention of rappers across the country with my piano covers. It brings me joy to see other people enjoy my piano playing, and I’m always challenging myself to keep pushing out content and pursuing this newfound love I have for rap music.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I developed an addiction to weed around the time I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. To most, it may seem wrong to even say I could develop an addiction to weed, but I did and it almost destroyed me. I started smoking weed at 15 years old, and even though at first, I didn’t smoke often, over time the addiction became stronger. I had smoked so much that every professional I came across will argue it is the reason I developed bipolar disorder. I’ve been hospitalized for manic episodes three times in my life. The first one was a nightmare, and parents did everything they could to figure out what was wrong with me. After a couple years, I seemed to have regained my stability, but I was hospitalized again due to problematic drinking hindering me from taking my medications. Because I was at college, I didn’t take the necessary treatment I needed to really get at the core of what was causing my first two hospitalizations. It wasn’t until I was hospitalized a third time when my family decided I needed very intensive treatment. I had graduated college at this point, and my weed using was out of control. To put it in perspective, I was buying vape cartridges less than once a week to fuel my horrible addiction. By this time, it was clear my hospitalizations were due to my unmanageable addiction to weed. After my hospitalization, I continued treatment at a mental health residential facility in Chicago and then ended up at a treatment facility in Utah where I underwent intensive psychological testing for six weeks. I discovered my bipolar disorder will always be at the mercy of my weed using, and every time I smoke weed, I step in the direction of insanity. After this, I decided to move to California to take part in rehabilitation programs and get at the core of why I smoke weed. It was within sobriety I discovered not only that my addiction to weed and my problematic drinking will cause me to fail, but without these substances in my life, I can gain extreme success. And I have gained enormous success— I continued pursuing my love for rap music by covering various artists’ songs on piano, as well as covering them by dancing and lip-syncing lyrics when not at the piano. Even though I was a part of rehabilitation programs, I worked hard to support musicians and I managed to gain more than 10,000 followers on Instagram in less than 6 months, as well as landing respect from major artists across the U.S. I’m still struggling with my addiction even though I’m sober, but I’ve found peace of mind within sobriety, as well as comfort and success so I have every intention of remaining sober for the rest of my life. The possibilities of success are endless; however, they are only opportune if I live within sobriety.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My decision to play piano at 5 years old was paramount for me to pursue a calling. I went on to study music in college and I use that knowledge to challenge myself with my piano playing daily. I’m most known for my talent with piano, especially on Instagram. I always knew I had something special with my piano playing, however, those around me growing up and my teachers throughout my life always reminded me I had great potential in music. I found out toward the end of my childhood that my piano teacher growing up dubbed me as a piano genius by the time I hit 8th grade. I wish my father had told me sooner because I would’ve never given up on lessons knowing I was noticed by others as extremely talented. I knew I had talent, but not to the extent of genius. I guess this makes more sense when picturing what I do today because I don’t think anyone else can play piano and rap, let alone take multiple songs and arrange them into piano-rap medleys. This is what sets me apart from others, not only because I have talent but also it is because of the way I look. As a white female participating in Black culture, others may say I do not belong. However, I don’t think love has boundaries. I love what I do, and I’m very proud of my ability to take music and create it into something I can claim as my own. But my purpose does not lie in setting myself apart from others, it exists in a realm where I can exist with others in music. Even though I have many haters who cringe at what I do, the most important respect comes from the artists themselves. There isn’t anyone else out there that looks like me and does what I do. I love showing respect and using my talent to highlight others’ talent. It is not easy whatsoever to play piano and rap, but it is challenges like that which inspire me to do great things. I live in San Diego and do all of this from the West coast, but my support network is in Chicago because this are where the artists, I support most live. I want to go back and be there with them, creating content never before seen by others. I have amazing potential to break serious boundaries. With opportunities hitting me left and right, my ability to impress the world never gets boring with me. I want to reach unpredictable success.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
The most important lesson stems from within my sobriety. I learned that no matter what I must remain sober. Today, I have over a year of sobriety thanks to the support from my family and those close to me. Yes, I can still play piano if I smoke weed, but addiction is extremely time-consuming. I wouldn’t have found success in music if it wasn’t for my sobriety. I am confident when I say that because I achieved many accolades within sobriety, and I believe I would not have acquired them if I wasn’t sober. I am my true self away from substances, and only when I am my true self can I manage to meet and exceed my potential. Though it took a lot of struggle to learn this lesson, I do not regret my choices in life. Each decision I make is a part of God’s Plan, and it is up to me to make sense of the knowledge I learn about myself to lead me in the right direction.
Pricing:
- $250 for voiceover cover
- $350 for piano cover
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melodybylena
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/melodybylena
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_CocLZnvXayneFTDjNtmwg
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/lena-stojiljkovic-1
Image Credits
Lena Stojiljkovic
