Merel Jay flew a long way round the world before finding her nest in Mallorca some six years ago. Merel is originally from the Netherlands and in Dutch Merel means blackbird. Her real surname is Jansen but she has since adopted Jay.
Merel has always been extremely musical. Right from a very small age her music teacher at school told her mother that she had an extraordinary talent and that it should be put to the test. But Merel admits that, at the time, she didn’t fancy the idea of singing and having music lessons. However, music and songwriting helped her through the pandemic, especially the lockdowns in Palma, and she rediscovered her passion, not only for music but communicating with people. And she got to embrace the fact that it is therapeutical in a very personal way, that is intuitive and that is what she does and her reputation is growing fast.
Her journey to where she is in her life right now and on a path she intends to follow has not been an easy one. “I was named Merel by my father, who was inspired at a very young age by the daughter of the music teacher in school. So you can see how Merel connects to music and Jay because of the bird. About two years ago, I found a beautiful blue feather in my room in Italy and I asked my mum what the beautiful incredible feather was and she told me that my brother had found it in the mountains near our house. I tried to look up some information about the feather but found nothing.
However, my surname is super common in Holland and eventually I found a picture of a Jay bird and I realised that it was very similar to the feather that I found in my room. So that is why I’m called Merel Jay and the feather has the connection with being pure, being authentic. It’s something that goes beyond what we perceive and feel, it’s a spiritual connection as well - and peace, so I think it’s very important to me and what I aim to transcend through my work,” she explained.
With Indonesian and Austrian roots, Merel and her family moved from Holland to Italy when she was 13. She then returned to Holland aged 21 to study international communications at university.
“I have to admit it was a bit of a culture shock coming back to Holland from Italy. They were, are, very different, but at the same time bridging the cultures fascinated me and I also had a calling to explore Latin America or Spain, so I went to study, as part of my university degree, for nearly a year in Buenos Aires. I loved it because of all the Latin vibes and attitudes I had become used to in Italy.
“Then, I completed an internship in marketing in Folkstone where I was in charge of dealing with the international clients. I then returned to Holland to complete my degree and wrote my thesis for a cycling hotel which was being run by my best friend - the first song I ever recorded in the studio was about her baby.
“Then, for personal reasons, I returned to Italy, but I was not happy. I guess I had a kind of crisis because I didn’t know what to do with my life. I was not sure what I wanted to do or even what I wanted at the time. Then, my parents moved out to Mallorca for a business project which was only going to be for a season and we ended up living in Caimari and I loved it from the very start.
“It was the break I needed, I was jogging in the hills, the glorious Tramuntana and I immediately reconnected with nature, I began talking to nature again and began to feel so much better about myself and my future and decided to stay.
“I started off working for a wine company, but it was nothing really stable and I had a hankering to go to Australia. However, I then began working for the Palma branch of an international corporate trouble-shooting company. F*****p Nights is a global movement and series of events where stories of failure are shared. Each month, at events around the world, we get three or four people to face a room full of strangers to share their own mistakes. Stories of businesses that go bust, partner deals that fall out, products that have to be recalled, we tell it all.
“I guess we were like corporate social workers and I was the international coordinator for Europe. So I found a stable job and Australia was put on hold - again.
“At the same time, I began to explore and get to know Mallorca more - the sea, the beaches, the culture, the diverse community and of course, musicians and music, and there was so much of it. Then the pandemic hit and I continued remotely working for a Dutch IT recruitment agency.
“Then, one day I looked around my flat and there was my guitar - staring at me.
“I was living in Calle Sindicato at the time and from the balcony I had a view of the sea and I began writing songs, playing the guitar again and singing. I had never had any proper lessons, but thanks to my dad, I had grown up surrounded by music. He was always either listening to opera or the great rock and roll legends like Elvis. As a kid he would always take me into to the city once a month to a music store and let me choose a CD. Yes, I did sing as a child but only in my bedroom, I was afraid to sing in public.
“But Mallorca changed all that for me. I found my heart in Mallorca and I suddenly wanted to share my voice and my music to try and help make the world a better place.
“So I made the most of the pandemic. I started online lessons and I really got into Dutch podcasts by Michael Pilarczyk, who believes in and teaches how to ‘live your best life’. That is what I wanted to do, just didn’t know how, but he, helped me. And then by chance I actually got to meet him in person and he helped me break down my fears, to realise that it’s not all about having a job which you’re not happy doing but it’s about surrounding yourself with the right people and positive energy.
“So I used the pandemic to go deeper into myself, to find out who I really was and get really comfortable with myself. It was the change from simply ‘doing to being’ and that is when I started out on my new journey of creating spaces which bring people closer together through music, song and improvisation, I take people on a musical journey. Music and song can be, should be, very emotional, it’s about growing up and having a conversation.
“If, for example, you are playing a live concert and the audience just sits there, it can be very lonely for the artists on stage. It’s extremely uncomfortable and, to be honest, a waste of time for the musicians and the audience who have bought tickets. In my opinion, live music has to be interactive, it should provoke a response, emotions and pleasure.
“Music is a therapy. For example, I have been invited to perform at retreats in Mallorca. I perform my music, most of which I have written, but people always love a good cover version which they can all sing along to together. And after the performance we talk about our feelings, what the music meant to them, and it’s not simply about the music.
“There is also a very important side to music which is Cymatics which is studied and practised a great deal in Japan, for example. Dr. Emoto was a pioneer in the study of water. His work demonstrated that water is shaped by environment, thoughts and emotions. Emoto also studied how sound affects water. The Emoto music studies demonstrate how certain types of sound, like classical music, generate beautiful crystalline patterns, while heavy metal music, generate ugly and distorted crystalline formations.
“And I have begun studying this and the effects that noises have on people, their feelings and emotions.
“What I am doing is singing and hosting ‘life’ music experiences, I guess you could say I am also a musical life coach. We also have the matter of breathing, which is not only important for singers but everyone in their everyday life. This is all part of the musical journey I take people on and it’s also great fun, it can be very playful.
“I’ve been asked to perform at birthdays and other special occasions plus private parties or family gatherings. I perform during the meal and then we all have some fun exploring music afterwards.
“My music is acoustic but I would not put my style into any particular genre or box; it is just that I don’t go well with labels. The universe is unlimited! If anything it’s a mix between pop, folk, indie, it’s wholehearted music. But like I said, it’s my music, most of it has been written in English but lately I’ve written a few in Dutch and Spanish, and it’s very organic and spiritual. Music can be a great healer and here in Mallorca I’ve found my inspiration and I want to grow and expand.
“This island has given me the energy I needed to become more proactive and creative - Mallorca is like a massive painting full of fascinating and extremely talented open-minded people.
“Plus I’m no longer obsessed about money, for example. I’ve found that the more you have, the more you worry. Now I go with the flow, there are so many other important things in life. We live in such a material world, music and musical therapy can help people navigate their way through all the complexities in this ever-changing world we live in,” explained Merel, who is also a professional Frisbee player for Mallorca’s only professional team the Dimonis Ultimate Mallorca.
To contact, listen to and follow Merel: @merel.jay