|  |
 |
 |
English-born artist Elizabeth Owens has always held music & art close to their heart. After seeking classical training in piano, voice, and guitar in adolescence, Owens decided to pursue degrees in Filmmaking & Psychology in Richmond, Virginia before returning to their roots with songwriting in 2014. Since then, they have been forging a path of relentless self-discovery and aural storytelling through such unique releases as Altruism and indie hit, Coming of Age, to stunning reviews.
An educator at heart, Owens teachers private piano lessons and General Music, grades PK–8, at a small private school in addition to several local multimedia camps and programs.
Owens believes that, like music, teaching is an act of radical social transformation.
Music
A young girl wanders through misty pines holding a framed photograph close. A scary sound. A rip in time. A familiar figure appears…
Originally created as a teaser trailer for the album, the music video for “Interlude” beautifully summarizes the themes of Coming of Age in under 2 minutes.
Co-Directed & Edited by Elizabeth Owens. Co-Directed & Shot by Oscar Keyes.
Directed, co-shot and co-edited by Owens, “I Long” fuses vulnerable diary-esque shots of the songwriter with old home videos and ethereal imagery of nature. The result is a heart-breaking visual narrative that depicts the yearning of a person held captive by the trappings of their own psychological time and space.
Press & Accolades
“The first time I heard the opening song, "5Am" I got chills down my spine.”
—Indie Witches
“Elizabeth Owens offers a collection of folk-rock gems so unlike anything you’ll hear today. There’s a real freshness and modesty to it, so wildly one-of-a-kind and worth thoughtful listening.”
—The Music Mermaid
“[Owens’ Work] is as intimate and emotionally powerful as any lo-fi darling spilling their guts. . . yet many of these arrangements are downright immaculate… bright, sparkling guitar work abound…”
—Cassette Gods
"Dreamlike arrangements are polished with a spectral veneer, enhancing the abstract familiarity that’s strongly anchored by the raw intimacy of Owen’s lyrics…"
—The Auricular
“The impetus behind the debut from songwriter Elizabeth Owens is growth that comes from transformation and improvement. . . . an attempt at identifying what frightens us the most and where we grow to become better versions of ourselves afterwards. For fans of Big Thief and Angel Olsen.”
—Whurk Magazine
Was featured on popular state-wide news segment, Virginia Currents (at 24:04), October 2019.
Has shared the stage with such artists as Lucy Dacus, Angelica Garcia, Minor Poet & Kenneka Cook.
Featured in Whurk Magazine’s Virginia Album Roundup in November, 2018.
Won 3rd place and $3,000 for the song, “The Light's On,” in a contest sponsored by online art gallery, StoriesToArt in 2016.
Video
KUWABARA KUWABARA
(a mythic Japanese phrase used superstitiously to ward off lightning) is a short, experimental film essay exploring the existential questions that accompany being an American 20-something year old "kid" in the early 21st-century. Deeply personal, the film centers on the lives of the filmmaker's dearest friends as they struggle to "grow up" in a culture that has so far allowed them to do so vicariously through the use and abuse of media, drugs, unrealistic expectations, and comfortable homes.
A video documenting the process of local musicians working with nonprofit, Region10, to collaboratively write a song.
An animated “How it Works” video commissioned by StoriesToArt.
A creative marketing video commissioned by StoriesToArt.
This video was created as part of a week-long summer intensive with incarcerated youth through ART180. I worked closely with a group of teens to help them come up with a premise for their film, storyboard it, and shoot it.
Educational Videos
A sample of educational content I’ve created for my Music students during the quarantine.