Bradley Baumhoover

Junior Arden Dickson acts out applying makeup onstage. Dickson believes that acting teaches you how to tell a story, which is also important for singing. This led her to create her blog where she shares her experiences with friends and family. “I have heard people [respond with] ‘thank you for sharing’ or ‘I have been in a similar situation myself,’ so it’s good to hear that other people are also facing similar situations and that my work is helping others.”

Publishing her first post in December 2019, junior Arden Dickson writes her blog “Good Song, Good Soul” about her passion for music and acting to remind herself of her writing roots and share experiences with others who might be going through similar situations.

“For a long time, and still now, I am not completely sure about where my path is going as far as music and performance. I want others on a similar journey to know that it’s okay,” Dickson said. “It’s okay to be confused, and I just want to share what I know. I’m in no way a professional. I just want to share my journey.”

For Dickson, sharing her journey involves mental health awareness alongside singing and acting techniques and tips.

“I really try to focus on health and mindset along with the performance arts and technique advice. [I also try] to maintain a space where everyone feels comfortable, and I want to write to readers on a personal level,” Dickson said. “I do want to be professional to a certain degree, but I want to make it a very comfy, happy space where people can express themselves.”

Her blog centers around an original theory of how singing and acting relate based on her own experiences in the fields.

“One of my biggest beliefs in music is that everyone should be an actor first because the point of music is to convey a story. Putting music to text conveys a completely different tone than just speaking, so I feel like if you’re going to sing, you need to know how to act first,” Dickson said. “If you’re going to tell the story, you need to know how to tell it.”

While the goal of the blog is to share her experiences and explore her theory, another goal is for Dickson herself to have a creative outlet.

“I found [the blog] partly because I missed writing, and I knew that I had to keep writing if I wanted to keep growing as a performer and a student in general,” Dickson said. “I also wanted to share things that I’ve learned as a musician with kids that might be struggling on their journey because I was for a while and I still am not completely clear about everything.”

Writing takes Dickson back to her roots. According to Dickson, she used to write more and wants to get back in touch with that side of herself.

“I have been a really avid writer since I was [around] 11 years old. I produced two plays when I was 12 [in] middle school just for fun. It wasn’t a huge deal. Since [then], I’ve gotten busier with other things,” Dickson said. “I feel like I haven’t written as much. I’m Vice President for the National English Honor Society right now, and I really believe in the power of words, so this is just my way of tracking myself and tracking what I’ve been through.”

Often when blogs start out, they do not instantly go viral. The same is true of Dickson’s blog, but to her, this isn’t discouraging.

“I’m friends with a lot of people who are in music and performance, so hearing feedback from them about it really makes me happy. [Some] of my friends who aren’t in performance are also reading my blog, and I’m genuinely lucky that I have friends that are interested in the work that I do,” Dickson said. “[Low readership] doesn’t discourage me because I know that even if it doesn’t take off, it’s still a space for me to share with my friends. If it’s just a small thing, I’m okay with that.”