QSC Aspiring interview: Hollis Morrissette on writing music in his sleep

L.A.-based independent artist, Hollis Morrissette opens up on going from modelling, to writing books to making music, and how he wrote a song in his sleep.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your musical journey…

I was born in Michigan in a small town called Lansing. If anyone knows where Michigan State University is, that's where that university lives. After high school, I ended up going to college, and after graduating I moved to L.A. 

All my life, I've been in the arts. It's always been who I am. It's how I was born. I played the violin for eight years. I've been acting, I've been singing. I was in a small group when I was in fourth grade and we did Christmas music and we would tour around the city. Then I got into modelling – I was a Hollister model, but I didn't really like it, so I let that go. 

Towards the end of college, I ended up getting on this HBO show and that was a pretty nice dream come true. It was a magical moment. It was very surreal, because you hear stories like that, but then when you actually get to do it, it's a whole different game. From the time I was 19, I was putting up demos and was getting the attention of some record labels. Then I started to work on my other singles and released those, and then worked on my album, which was released last year.

Tell us about the book you’ve written…

I've written a children's book. This was towards the end of 2020. I've always wanted to write a book. I have three, but this is the first one that I've published. I thought about the kids first, because I looked at what was going on in the world and I felt so bad for them. Growing up, I went to camp, I didn't have my holidays taken away from me, and these kids did and it wasn't their fault. 

I wanted them to feel like they were more than enough. We live in a time where people tell you're not enough, which is so weird for you to tell someone else that. I wanted to remind kids that they are definitely worthy. They're more than enough. So when I wrote the children's book, I wanted to pass that message along.

What's it like being an independent artist in the industry today?

It has its ups and downs. You have to have really thick skin to let everything roll off. Sometimes you feel like you have to have fake skin that you can't penetrate, because it's tough. It's great because I have total freedom to do what I want. I don't have anyone telling me, ‘No, you can't perform there, you can't write that, you can't release that’, so you have all this freedom. 

I get to keep all of my royalties, so everything that is done is 100% mine. I'm writing it, producing it and my name is on all of it, which is great. The downside is that you don't always have access to the bigger markets that certain labels would have access to. That doesn't mean I don't have a team, because I do. When you have a label, you have everything up front and you have access to things a bit quicker. 

You have to work harder because no one can talk highly of yourself like you would. Sometimes when you have people who want to talk you up or represent you, they don't always say the right things. I've had that happen to me before where they don't always describe you the right way. When you represent yourself, then you can really hit it at the core and say, ‘This is who I am’.

Where do you get your inspiration from when writing music?

I do my own background vocals. I produce it. I do it all. My inspiration comes from various places. I keep a journal and I have a songwriting journal. My regular journal is where I write my thoughts and my feelings, even if I can't really describe my feelings for the day. 

I like to go outside, or I like to walk around and describe what I see. I don't care if there's a bird sitting on a tree, I like to fill my paper with whatever I can. A lot of my inspiration comes from what's in my journal, but I spin it around so it's not going to be verbatim. 

Funny enough – this is going to sound crazy – but one of my singles, I actually wrote in my sleep. I was sleeping and I dreamed I was in this music video, and part of the song was the chorus. I immediately woke up and I had to type it out on my phone, because I didn't want to lose it, which I found so fascinating and weird at the same time.

If you could collaborate with one of your all time favourite artists, who would it be?

I would love to collaborate with Mariah Carey or Toni Braxton, and if Luther Vandross was still here, I would love to collaborate with him.

What has been your proudest moment so far as a musician?

I had the opportunity to perform my music last year in Dubai for a private event. It was totally unexpected because it was for an engagement party. This guy is a fan of my music. He and his girlfriend were going through a rough patch in their relationship and they were on the verge of breaking up, but my music has really helped them fix things, which is so cool. 

His father ended up flying me out to Dubai and put me up in this really nice hotel. It was a magical moment, and the son wasn't expecting it. It was very small. It was intimate. I was a little nervous because I've always wanted to go to Dubai. That was probably one of my protest moments. I relive it every single day. I want to go back!

You released your debut self titled album in 2023. Tell us about how that came about…

I've always wanted a self titled album, so why not have my first one be that? There were a number of songs that did not make it on the album because it didn't fit the style. I sing about other things as well, but a lot about love and pain, and I love to do my songs in story form. 

So if you're listening to the flow of my album, it starts out like you're interested in someone and you want to get to know them, then it moves into asking them out and wanting to be in a relationship, then falling in love, then not knowing what happened, then being betrayed, and then being upset because you did me dirty. But you also heal, and you're like, ‘Whatever, it happened. There are other people out there that I can fall in love with’, and then you end it with, ‘I gotta let you go because we weren't meant to be together,’. That was an amazing process.

You’ve also written a Christmas song, Give Us A Bright Christmas. What’s the trick to writing a good Christmas song?

I am a huge Christmas person. I love to write my own Christmas music. I released that single last year as well, which is the one that I wrote in my sleep. You have to get it right because it's festive, and when you're dealing with Christmas music, you have to make sure you get it right. Holiday music is definitely one of those, because it's almost like cooking – you're feeding people's bellies, so you want to make sure that if people are coming to your house, you're not feeding them nasty food. 

So if you're going to write a holiday song or holiday music, you have to make sure they stay fed forever. I'm like, ‘Don't mess this up’. But it's more than just that. You have to implement your love for the holiday into your music, or just in your songwriting, period.

What does Play Out Loud mean to you?

What that means to me is being playful, being honest, being brave, doing things your own way, and making sure everyone sees that you're being bold with it. You're making decisions. You're living in your truth, owning it and not caring about what anyone thinks, because you only get one life, and so therefore, why not play out loud? Be bold with it.