Meet Shannon Waterman, Better Known As ‘Shan in Wonderland’
Shan in Wonderland
Shannon Waterman aka ‘Shan in Wonderland’ (@shannonwaterman) - performing DJ, producer, and model - is bound for success with her impeccable drive. She joins us today to share her mindset and how it has helped both her and those she’s influenced stay positive during the ongoing pandemic while progressing her music career.
Shan in Wonderland’s sound can be described as a mix of deep house and trance EDM but loves to leave that up to her audiences interpretation. She has never felt bound by genre’s or tastes of others as her personally passion for music is what drives her creative process. If you want a taste of her sound, check out her latest singe ‘La Vie en Rose’ streaming on Spotify here!
Shannon’s passion for music as well as her musical inspirations never stop changing. She has great knowledge on the ever evolving music scene that has separated her from the rest in her path to becoming a well-known artist. She says that “once I was introduced to EDM and the festival life in 2015, my life changed. The power of the music, connecting with the other people in the crowd on a deeper level, and dancing like an idiot with zero judgement at all was the end all for me. Since then being introduced to the MANY sub genres of dance music, I am continuously inspired.”
As an artist, we often have blocks in their creative process. Shannon experienced one of those around a year ago where she made huge realizations about herself & career. Overcoming it is always “I hit a creative block with music and modeling about a year ago and had no idea why. My passion is everything to me & I have never been a quitter. If I say I am going to do something, I will do it. Point blank. I realized towards the end of the year what was truly holding me back was myself. I was comparing & analyzing my own work way too much in my head. I then made the conscious decision to look back to when I started , purely having fun and doing what I love the most. Once I stopped caring what others thought of me and putting myself out there, endless opportunities started flowing. I haven't looked back since.”
When asked what her dream collaboration in the music industry would be she replied, “I'd say signing tracks with Night Bass Records and doing a B2B with Justin Martin at CRSSD or Lightning in a Bottle. Hands down.”
As that inspiration has grown over the years and EDM evolved she also had the backstory to her music tied elsewhere. Those stemmed from being a fan of Alice in “Alice in Wonderland” since as young as she can remember. Shannon Waterman says, “I was so shy & introverted when I was young and had these crazy dreams I didn't feel I was allowed to say until they were accomplished. They weren't crazy to me but I thought they would sound crazy to everyone else. So this song is just the beginning of many releases, letting my imagination go wild.” With her favorite track being "Curiouser & Curiouser," it makes her music have more of a backstory.
Of course 2020 has not been the year we expected. It’s always interesting to learn how individuals are handling the lockdown and pandemic. Shannon went on to take on 2020 with quite some momentum. She says, “I had literally just got the courage to release my music on all platforms in January and started getting booked for a lot of DJ gigs right when lockdown started. I'm not going to lie, I was extremely bummed at first but I started looking at the positives of it. I've been able to learn and grow more than ever at home. I started collaborating with incredible artists and learning how much that mattered. I was so used to doing things on my own and not asking for help. It’s safe to say It has been the best experience for my music career.” The production from ‘Shan In Wonderland’ comes out to a mix of deep house and trance, and no doubt, it is certainly vibey enough to appeal to a large electronic fanbase. Through it all, she is “still trying to figure out what genre of EDM I am.”
But even with modeling and music it’s tough to balance those in and of itself. Her close circle of friends and mentors provided some of the best advice for her music career as they told her “It’s obvious where your passion lies. Stop caring what people could say because people are always going to have something to say. Be your authentic self and JUST RELEASE IT / DO IT.” The same mentality that has taken her so far really has continued to ramp up, which makes it very easy to see just how dedicated Shannon is to becoming her true and best self.
Some advice she wished she could give herself a couple years back begins with some of the inspiration from the festival scene. She says, “I was messing around with producing and DJing at home as if I were performing at a festival, just day dreaming I could do it professionally. I would tell her to stop the day dreaming and do something about it…You’re hiding a passion that could impact so many lives, let alone your own happiness.”
Shannon Waterman is on track to have a successful music and modeling career. Catching a live performance from ‘Shan In Wonderland’ is quite a scene already with her own original tracks. It will be exciting to see what she produces down the road. She does have something very exciting to announce though. She says, “I will be on a segment called “Co-Inspired” airing on ABC’s Localish channel in November, where I will be talking about my personal music journey being an introvert and inspire others to enjoy life & learn to produce music from home during these times.”
Be sure to follow Shannon ‘Shan in Wonderland’ Waterman on all of her socials below, stream her latest singe ‘La Vie en Rose’ and keep an eye out for her ABC segment in November!
FOLLOW Shannon Waterman ON INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY
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