Spotlight Interview: Singer Marina Morgan

I recently had the great pleasure of phone interviewing an emerging star who’s starting to shine brightly on the music scene. When this beautiful and talented singer contacted us with her story of struggle and strength, we knew right away that we wanted to feature her positivity in our magazine so that others could be uplifted as well.

In 2016 she was featured as Elvis Duran’s artist of the month, and she had the opportunity to perform her debut single ‘Paralyzed’ on the NBC’s ‘Today show’.

Here is a transcription of my telephone interview with Marina Morgan.

1. Trainer Z: Now Marina; your song ‘Paralyzed’ was conceived from your physical ailments and struggles., and it’s a song in a reality aspect of life that many people can relate to as many of us have felt ‘Paralyzed’ in life either physically or emotionally, but specifically you have had to deal with Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis and also Lyme Disease which subsequently created a myriad of health issues for you to have to overcome. For many of us who don’t know; please enlighten us about Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis.

Marina: With Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis or ADEM, basically what happens is your body has a virus and instead of the antibodies attacking the virus, the antibodies mistake a part of your brain for the virus and attacks the brain instead of attacking the actual virus. In my case, it attacked the part of the brain that allows me to walk and move my arms.

2. Trainer Z: You first contracted ADEM at a young age and overcame the issues but then as life continued to unfold for you that’ when the contraction of Lyme disease occurred?

Marina: Yes; I had ADEM when I was 13 years old and so I resided in a children’s hospital where I relearned how to walk, I was doing great, I became an avid runner and I was going along with my life. 10 years later when I was 23 is when I started getting the symptoms of Lyme disease and then started having issues again with walking.

3. Trainer Z: Do you know how you contracted the Lyme disease?

Marina: I’m not too sure, possibly while upstate; because I am a runner, I do run a lot at the parks and through grassy areas.

4. Trainer Z: Now despite the adversities of health, when did the music start to work its way into your life, to actually want to write songs, sing, and record?

Marina: I’m 24 now and I’ve been singing pretty much my whole life starting around the age of 6 or 7, I started taking it more seriously like around high school. About 4 or 5 years ago is when I decided that I wanted to go the recording route, that I wanted to become an artist, that I wanted to write songs. I started doing YouTube videos as a YouTube artist. I’ve always relied on music out as an outlet throughout my life, no matter what I was feeling, I always expressed myself through music, so I always knew when writing a song that I wanted to write a song that would impact people’s lives.

5. Trainer Z: Well, your song is definitely motivational and inspirational. So tell us; what keeps you motivated to pursue what you’re doing despite the ailments and everything you’ve had to contend with thus far, what keeps you striving for goals that you ultimately want to achieve?

Marina: My family, my friends, and my music is what truly motivates me. I have always said that if I was able to make one person smile with my music and just have some kind of impact then I did my job, and that’s what keeps me motivated throughout the day. I’m constantly sending out emails and trying to get my story heard just so I could help more people in their lives; and even though I do have my rough days and what not, just knowing that I could help and be there is what really keeps me going.

6. Trainer Z: You wrote the song ‘Paralyzed’ with the purpose that you wanted to create an awareness for the Lyme disease or for any issues that people might be dealing with where they may feel paralyzed, and you wrote it with the mindset to motivate people to “Always Stay Strong And Never Give Up” no matter what the circumstances are; that’s why your song has hit so deep, and I see from some of the YouTube comments that you definitely hit the mark. Now you’ve also done quite a few covers as well which are on YouTube; can you give us the names of some of those covers that you’ve done because you covered them very well?

Marina: ‘Warrior’ by Demi Lovato, ‘Visible’ by Hunter Hayes which was another song that I felt very deeply about when I covered it, and I actually teamed up with an anti-bullying organization when I covered that song because that’s another organization and cause that I feel very strongly about. ‘Stone Cold’ by Demi Lovato, ‘Something In The Water’ by Carrie Underwood, ‘Love Runs Out by OneRepublic to name a few.

7. Trainer Z: For those who want to show support for your music; where can people go to purchase your song ‘Paralyzed’?

Marina: They can go to iTunes, Spotify, and all online stores.

8. Trainer Z: Now in addition to the ‘Today Show’ performance which I strongly encourage people to check out; you were spotlighted on Fox 5, plus you have some upcoming interviews scheduled with other tv shows and with magazines, you will soon be honored and receive the “Starlight” Award by the Global Alliance at their “Time for Lyme Gala”; so I am very grateful that you took the time to grace us with an interview before you become all that is destined.

Personality and Lifestyle Questions for Marina:

Trainer Z: Now we’re going to have some fun with a 60-second Blitz. Within a 60-second time period, I’m going to call out a series of comparison words and Marina will quickly choose one of the words that relate most to her lifestyle and/or personality.

1. Trainer Z: The City or the Country.
Marina: Country.

2. Trainer Z: Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Marina: Christmas.

3. Trainer Z: Art Galleries or Museums.
Marina: Museums.

4. Trainer Z: Galaxy or iPhone.
Marina: IPhone.

5. Trainer Z: Talking or Texting.
Marina: Talking.

6. Trainer Z: Cats or Dogs.
Marina: Dogs.

7. Trainer Z: Candy or Gum.
Marina: Candy.

8. Trainer Z: Crab Legs or Lobster Tails.
Marina: Crab Legs.

9. Trainer Z: Hamburgers or Hot Dogs.
Marina: Hot Dogs.

10. Trainer Z: Pancakes or Waffles.
Marina: Pancakes.

11. Trainer Z: Lace or Leather.
Marina: Lace.

12. Trainer Z: Cardio or Weightlifting.
Marina: Cardio.

Trainer Z: There you have it! Now people have a slight glimpse into your personality and a sense of you as a fun individual that they can relate to. Now we’re going to wrap up this truly enlightening interview but first tell us if there are any up and coming projects on the horizon?

Marina: Yes there is; I have I have an EP that I’m going to be releasing, hopefully in the fall, and I’m looking to possibly release a single in the summer, so I am working on new music.

Trainer Z: Great, great great! Now for those people who want to get in contact with you, connect with you and/or follow you; what are some of your social media handles?

Marina: I can be reached at either Twitter or Instagram or Facebook; my handle is @TheMarinaMorgan., and also I have contact information on my website which is www.MarinaMorgan.com

Trainer Z: Thank you so much Marina Morgan, an emerging star…