A Chat with Jenny Räisänen (16.04.25)
Powerful and poignant with sincere tenderness and soulful understanding, singer-songwriter Jenny Räisänen shares stories in moving melodies. We discovered the Irish-based Räisänen a few months ago, and since then have been intrigued by her work. Join us as we chat with this talented songstress about her new album, The Sun Between The Shadows, creative collaborations, music videos and more.
OSR: Your album title, The Sun Between The Shadows, is incredibly evocative. What does that phrase mean to you personally, and how did it shape the overall vision for the album?
Räisänen: The world sometimes feels a really dark place. Sometimes it’s hard to read the news, because it feels like there’s so much evil everywhere. Environmental disasters also depress me. But songwriting helps me get my feelings out. Deep down, I enjoy the little joys of life every day and I also want to remind people of the light we have and that we should notice. Whether it’s a single smile or a flower at the foot of a tree.
OSR: Many of the songs deal with heavy themes – domestic violence, isolation, environmental destruction. How do you balance darkness with hope in your songwriting?
Räisänen: Good question. Sometimes it really feels that we don’t have hope. But I think sometimes it helps to know that you are not alone. That’s why in my songs I want to raise awareness of people’s challenges and distress and social injustices so that you can share the same feeling, the same world with others. I want to believe that together we get stronger and can fight against evil. For the darkest moments I wrote ‘Breathe’ because sometimes the only thing we need to do is breathing. Also adding little sparks of hope to the songs like praise the friendship or nature, keeps the mind hopeful.
OSR: You’ve described your sound on this album as a blend of organic and electronic elements. What inspired you to move in that cinematic, experimental direction?
Räisänen: I wanted to let the songs shape themselves freely without forcing them to be purely organic or purely electronic. The previous album was mainly recorded with my folk pop ensemble in Finland but this time I played most of the instruments myself on MIDI. My musical ideas were pretty cinematic, so using soundscapes was a natural choice.
OSR: There’s a strong thread of empowerment running through songs like ‘The Past Don’t Exist Anymore’. What was your personal journey behind writing that song?
Räisänen: Yes it’s a women’s empowerment song. As a female musician I have always had to fight my way forward. Especially this was a really strong feeling when I played in rock bands. I got degrading comments just because I’m a woman and when I did something very well the comments were like: “Pretty good for a woman”. But the song meaning is more general. There’s so much to do for equality. And until that we shouldn’t be silent.
OSR: You’ve collaborated closely with Juhani Konttinen and featured Eilidh Pope on violin. How did those creative relationships shape the final sound of the album?
Räisänen: I feel that songs are always better when you collaborate and get impulses from others. Juhani is better in rhythmical stuff and plays guitars so he helped me to improve rhythmic ideas and brought amazing guitar work to the songs. He also mixed songs so he brought his visions in sound. I just love acoustic instruments and especially violin so Eilidh brought her musicality to that side. With the touch of these two people I feel that my songs became more interesting. Priceless collaborators.
OSR: Tracks like ‘Breathe’ and ‘In a Vacuum’ feel deeply intimate. Were there moments during the writing or recording process that felt especially vulnerable for you?
Räisänen: With these two songs? I think I’m always vulnerable when I put my honest emotions in the game. You open your heart, and when you open it, you can get hurt. When I wrote the song ‘Breathe’, I remembered the time when my brother was in the hospital suffering from incurable cancer. I was listening to his breathing and hoping he had the power to take the next breath. Remembering that feeling and that time is still painful.
OSR: Your music videos have built a strong audience in a short time. How important is the visual storytelling side to you, and do you see music and visuals as one creative process?
Räisänen: When I’m writing songs, I see them. Like a movie and moments. Sometimes colours or atmospheres. So visuals are kind of there when I write songs. But with music videos, I often want to offer something more. Some aspects that we necessary don’t hear. It’s not always the same picture that I have when I write songs. With good visuals, the music can be deeper and more powerful. But it needs to work without visuals as well.
OSR: You’ve lived and created music both in Finland and Ireland. How do those two cultural landscapes influence your sound or your storytelling?
Räisänen: Greatly. My roots are in Finland. I guess I get my musical inspiration from Finnish heritage. At least melancholy and attitude come from Finland. In Ireland, I started to write in English. That is a big change for me. I guess I breathe Irish vibes anyways. I get a lot of inspiration from my surroundings, so obviously there are influences from the Irish nature, culture and people.
OSR: With a background in music pedagogy and songwriting education, how does teaching inform your own creative process, or vice versa?
Räisänen: Well, I think we get good tools from education, but theory or these tools shouldn’t ever lead your creative process. I think, for example, theory helps me find quicker answers to what I’m seeking for. I don’t need to try so many times to know what sound or vibe I want to create. Teaching is very inspiring because you are all the time connected with other musicians, learn and hear new creative approaches. I think the greatest thing I have learned through studies and teaching is reflection. I think I can get deeper in my songs because of thinking things so deeply, and I use creativity in my teaching all the time. That’s kind of my trade mark as a teacher, I guess.
OSR: If someone listens to The Sun Between The Shadows from start to finish, what’s the one message or feeling you hope they walk away with?
Räisänen: You are not alone with the darkness and there is hope and beauty, if we want to see it. We can do it together.
Many thanks to Jenny Räisänen for speaking with us. Find out more about Jenny Räisänen on her official website, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, TikTok and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
