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How the Song Came to Be with Mona Tavakoli - Episode 20
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Mona Tavakoli is a Los Angeles-based drummer, singer and performer who believes in making music that unites, elevates and connects.
While Mona is equally comfortable performing as a drummer and a percussionist, she is especially known for adapting the cajón to unexpected genres such as rock and pop. She began playing the Peruvian percussion instrument as a college student taking a flamenco dance class. She’s since designed a signature instrument called The MT Box. She began her professional musical career in 1999 at UCLA as a founding member of Raining Jane, an all-female rock band.
Raining Jane co-wrote and recorded YES! (Atlantic Records) with Jason Mraz. Mona and Mraz have been collaborating for nearly a decade. They've performed as a duo on The Today Show, The David Letterman Show, Ellen and many others. Mona has also performed as a percussionist on A&E's Private Sessions with Pat Benatar and Spyder Giraldo. She has been the featured percussionist with the Pasadena muse/ique orchestra (led by maestra Rachel Worby), and played with musicians such as Andy Grammer, Colbie Caillat, Keaton Simons, Lindsay Mac, Lucy Schwartz, Natalia Zukerman, Sara Bareilles, Tristan Prettyman and Willy Porter.
Mona is a co-founder and co-director of the Rock n’ Roll Camp For Girls Los Angeles and also has traveled to Africa on behalf of the U.S. State Department as a cultural diplomat. When she’s not banging on drums or corralling day campers, she's listening to Pema Chodron audiobooks or making creative collages.
In our conversation from 2017, Mona shares about:
- Gentle leadership
- Co-writing with Jason Mraz & her band Raining Jane
- Why it's more important to be interested than interesting and
- How one person can change your whole life
27 episodes
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