taylor oechsel

Project statement

When deciding to submit for the Hokin Honors exhibition, I thought to myself, "what better way to express my writing than to take three songs from three different stages of my life throughout college?” That’s exactly what I did. In this submission, I have included three songs from the beginning, middle and end of my journey at Columbia. These songs are my heart and soul and I am very proud of them in different ways.  

To mark the beginning of my college experience, I chose the song “Just Kidding, It’s Trust”. I wrote this song during my freshman year in attempt to leap forward into something new. When I was in high school, I thought I had my sights set on Musical Theatre as my passion, until contemporary music and Columbia changed my mind. With very little knowledge of writing or singing contemporary music I decided to leap into songwriting and chase the dream I never knew I had. That is what this song represents for me. Something that is new and exciting yet scary and unknown, but in the long run worth the risk.  

Second, is the song “Loner”, which is the epitome of what my college experience was like. Amid the midst of performing and getting into the groove of college the pandemic hit. Suddenly we without everything musicians thrive on gigs, concerts, and interaction we were all loners. Not to mention the divide in the world. Everyone was so alone, and this song is the musical translation of those feelings. Loner is a declaration of “I’m a loner” with a chance that someone else will hear you and say that they feel the same way. This song at its core is an anthem uniting anyone who has ever felt like a loner.  

Marking the grand finale of the college experience is “End Up Sorry”. The song is told from the perspective of a wise elder giving advice to a younger, naïve girl. The elder speaks about bad situations and tells the young girl that she might end up regretting some of the things that she did, but ultimately life shouldn’t be rushed. Life is precious and moments are fleeting, so we should take it all in before the moment has passed. 

About the Artist

Taylor Oechsel, originally from Naperville, IL, began her love for music during her involvement in local community theater productions at a young age. When Taylor was in her junior year of high school a teacher introduced her to Phoebe Bridgers, and she became fascinated by the lyrics and unique melodies that Bridgers produced. Taylor was inspired and enlivened when she began by songwriting herself, seeking to recreate Bridgers’ melodies. This sparked a realization that Taylor couldn’t ignore the love she held towards contemporary music and had to continue down that path.  

When Taylor toured Columbia College Chicago it checked all her boxes. It was like all her dreams had come true. She could study as a Music major while taking Music Business and songwriting classes without double majoring and live in the city while being close enough to visit home. 

After finding Columbia everything fell into place. Taylor was introduced to her current music partner Christopher Marszalek the summer before coming to Columbia. They hit it off immediately and formed their Folk/Rock band, Each Day. Throughout her time at Columbia, she navigated the recording and gigging scene around Chicago with Each Day. Taylor is so excited to see what other opportunities come her way after college. 

connect

Website: eachdayband.com

Instagram: @tay_tay_oech and @_eachdayband_