Category Archives: Expansion of Consciousness

It’s Your Time – What Will You Do With It?

Posted on March 5, 2025 | Leave a comment

Oh, it’s so easy to get sucked into the sadness and frustration of current world events. The drama of it all activates the addictive brain functions and can cause long bouts of scrolling or TV-watching accompanied by various comfort foods and drinks that dull our senses and emotions. I am guilty of all of the above.

How to snap out of it? Well, one thing that works is to remind myself to stay focused on the tasks and projects that make my heart sing. Remind myself of who I am and what I came here to do and be. And to allow the knowledge of who I am and what I stand for guide every step, moving forward.

It won’t help the world at large if I become paralyzed with fear or sadness or if I turn my light down or off. As a matter of fact, I think the best thing we can do, to contribute to the fight for Democracy, is to shine our respective lights as bright as we can whenever and wherever we can.

For me personally, shining my light means using my voice to write, compose, sing, speak my heart and to empower others to do the same. And when we do these things that make our hearts sing, we also tap into something way bigger than ourselves. We tap into that great big network of inspiration, collaboration and love that makes anything possible.

On that note, I am going to continue with finalizing the mixes for my new album. It’s called It’s Your Time. And here’s my question to you: It’s your time. What will you do with it? What makes your heart sing?

Let’s do this❤❤❤

Musically Yours,
Caroline

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Posted in A Call To Action, Communication, Creativity, Expansion of Consciousness, Getting out of denial, Healing, Self Awareness, Self Confidence, Self Empowerment, Tools for overcoming depression, Vocal freedom

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The Power of Emotional Communication

Posted on April 12, 2024 | Leave a comment

Many of us learned to suppress our emotions at an early age. We were often told not to cry, to be quiet, or to smile, to pull ourselves together, etc. If you were anything like me, you were raised to be a good, clever, service minded and productive person.

For me, since I was a professional performer at an early age, I felt I had no time for the upset or pain that I felt when hurt or injured. So I chose to ignore it completely or turn it into laughter. I became so good at suppressing pain that sometimes I did not feel anything at all.

The problem with suppressing our emotions is that we then also cut off major aspects of what makes us the unique, creative, passionate, loving and thriving human beings we are meant to be. With each aspect of our personality there is an intricate layer of emotion setting the tone, guiding the way and revealing the subtle nuances of creative possibility that resides within that particular aspect of who we are. And for each layer of emotion that we suppress or deny, we literally prevent ourselves from having access to the fullness of who we are.

When we allow ourselves to be present with these emotions. When we dare to invite them into the room and give them a voice. When we dare to listen fully to what they have to say or sing. When we embrace them with all of our consciousness and all of our love, there are treasures beyond our wildest imagination to behold.

Our emotions hold the key to our brilliance, our creativity, our curiosity, our ability to grow and learn and love and be loved. And when we allow all aspects of these emotions to be heard and seen and expressed fully, we also allow the magnificent texture of the fabric of our being to shine.

In communication, our emotions hold the key to heartfelt expression. This means that if we want to communicate powerfully, we need to be on board with the fullness of our emotional spectrum. And that means accepting every aspect of our emotional makeup. The good, the happy, the brilliant, the joyous, the divine, the serene, the ecstatic, the passionate and compassionate, as well as, the silly, the insecure, the bad, the ugly, the sad, the terrifying, the lonely, the self conscious, the malicious, the devious, the cowardous and the un-feeling.

When I teach Journey to Vocal Freedom, I emphasize the importance of including our most vulnerable selves. Those parts of us that we have pushed aside or denied because they embarass or scare us. These parts often belong to our younger selves. And when we allow those parts to be heard and seen and loved and nurtured, there is magic to behold. We suddenly discover that we have so much more to say, to sing, to discover, to explore, to give and to receive. And we begin to realize the symphony of possibility that resides within our own being.

When we add the texture of these voices to our own, we discover a whole new world of possibility in terms of communication, connection and authenticity. Each layer of emotion that we welcome into our conscious communication opens new doors of heartfelt connection with others. This, in my opinion, is also how we make the world a better place: By gently inviting every aspect of who we are, one emotional layer at a time, to sing along.

If you are curious to learn more about Journey to Vocal Freedom and how we can work together, feel free to visit www.journeytovocalfreedom.com and sign up for a free Discovery Call.

Musically Yours,
Caroline

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Posted in A Call To Action, Communication, Creativity, Expansion of Consciousness, Getting out of denial, Self Awareness, Self Empowerment, Vocal freedom

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Motherless Child

Posted on August 23, 2023 | Leave a comment

I posted a video today of me singing Motherless Child. The song was spontaneously recorded on my iPhone as I was mourning the loss of a loved one. And then I created the musical arrangement and the video around it.

This old African American spiritual, written by Harry Burleigh and Harry Brown, is from the US Civil War era and depicts the anguish of slaves torn from their families, their homeland, and even their own identities.

For me the song also brings up strong emotions in relationship to missing my own mother, who passed away at 61. And it brings up feelings of deep loneliness and despair.

In just a few hours from now I’ll be giving my first Journey to Vocal Freedom webinar, where a key element is how to express ourselves authentically, from the deep of our heart and soul.

How do we uncover the fullness of our being? How do we express ourselves with no holds barred? How do we gain access to our most vulnerable selves and thereby also our most powerful and valuable assets?

Let me know if you want to join and I’ll shoot you a Zoom link. More info here.

Musically Yours,
Caroline

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Posted in A Call To Action, Expansion of Consciousness, Healing, Liberation, Self Awareness, Self Confidence, Self Empowerment, Vocal freedom

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The Power of Silence

Posted on July 20, 2023 | Leave a comment

Growing up with three much older siblings and parents with tremendous verbal and vocal ability, I learned to speak up, as well as, sing so I could reach the farthest end of the theatre.

I got so good at being heard that I was able to sing without a microphone, in front of a forty-piece orchestra to an outdoor audience of thousands, and be heard.

Then I met Sue Raney. Yes, the legendary Jazz Hall of Fame singer, Sue Raney. She became my mentor in vocal performance while I was studying at the Dick Grove School of Music in Los Angeles.

One of the first things she said to me was, “I would love to hear you sing at no more than 10-20% of your capacity. And I would love for you to take time to pause after a phrasing. And I would love to see you sustain that pause, in silence, as you energetically reach out and stay present with the audience and allow the them to receive the message you just gave them.”

Sue Raney taught me the art and power of silence, of allowing extended pauses, of taking the voice down to a whisper while still holding the energy of being fully present and engaged. She taught me to hold an end note, perfectly still and then add vibrato for only the conclusion of it.

In her teaching and by the example of her brilliant performance, she helped me connect my voice and my song with the very core of my being. Sue Raney taught me to sing from my heart and soul.

Here she is, performing one of my favorite songs, I’ll See You In My Dreams, written by Isham Jones and Gus Kahn. Just click on the image and it’ll take you there.

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Posted in Communication, Expansion of Consciousness, Vocal freedom

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From Gunk to Grace

Posted on July 1, 2021 | Leave a comment

More often than not, I see myself as a positive person. Someone who tries to make the best of things, no matter what. I try to see the beauty and the light in everyone and everything, no matter what. But sometimes I fail. Sometimes I lose sight of the light and the beauty. Sometimes I fall into a black abyss pit, – a pit containing all the feelings I try to avoid.

I am in this pit right now, tempted to cancel my upcoming performance. Tempted to cancel most things. Tempted to give up on my self. It’s just a feeling, I know. A temporary state of being. It’s no more real than anything else. But at the moment it feels like everything. At the moment it feels like my whole life. At the moment it is nearly unbearable. And at this moment of nearly unbearableness, I can feel a slight shift in the energy.

As I let the pure energy of the black abyss pit wash over me and have its way with me, – as I allow the discomfort of feeling this low, this alone, this helpless, without trying to fix it or avoid it. As I allow it to simply be felt by me in its entirety – as I surrender to it, I can feel it transforming and releasing and dissolving into grace. Such is the gift of grace.

Sometimes I have to let myself feel whatever gunk it is that wants to come to the surface and be released, in order to let grace carry me. Otherwise, I am too busy managing my life. Figuring things out. Making things happen. Being a doer. Sometimes the gunk that reside in that black abyss pit is a huge blessing in disguise, allowing me to surrender completely to my higher power.

Ah, what a joy it is to let life carry me.

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Posted in Communication, Expansion of Consciousness, Healing, Self Awareness, Self Empowerment, Tools for overcoming depression, Vocal freedom

How To Stay Positive During Covid 19

Posted on May 4, 2020 | Leave a comment

It wasn’t fun, I can assure you, to have my entire tour cancelled, due to a tiny little virus. After having spent nearly a decade preparing the Finding Venus album to be launched world-wide, I can safely say, my timing sucked.

My whole, entire, plan for 2020 was about live shows, live seminars and touring. That was how I was supposed to make back all the money I had spent, preparing, producing and pre-marketing this product.

Needless to say, as the pandemic hit, I felt as if the whole rug of financial possibility, my one genius plan for getting out of production debt, got ripped from underneath my feet in one feel swoop.

But I didn’t give up. “I can always stream concerts and seminars via Facebook”, I thought. Since I had spent the last ten years, also building rapport with nearly 5000 Facebook fans, I now focused my attention on how I could reach my goal in a digital fashion.

As fate would have it, less than one week into my new resolve, someone managed to hack their way into my Facebook account. Before I knew it, my personal account and all related business pages, along with all my contacts and content, had been permanently deleted by Facebook.

At this point, you might be wondering what any of this has to do with staying positive during Covid 19. I am getting to that.

Sometimes, in order to appreciate what we have, it has to be taken from us.

All the things I have taken for granted; the ability to travel the world, the ability to perform live concerts and seminars, the ability to reach out to friends and fans via Facebook and the ability to visit my 96-year-old aunt, I don’t take for granted anymore.

What I have learned from this experience, after feeling all the angst and worry, disappointment and despair, from not being able to count on any future plans as I had imagined them, is this:

Being fully present in the moment, is everything.

There is nothing more important than who I am being, right now. As a result of this thought, I become more fully present in each moment and pay attention on a whole new level.

I appreciate my self and everyone around me. Talents, strength, vulnerabilities, differences, nuances, become so much more interesting when I am fully present and aware. What we appreciate, we also nourish. So, when I appreciate my self and those around me, I prepare healthy meals, exercise, rejuvenate and celebrate on a whole new level of being.

When I realise that every moment is precious, because I have no idea what will happen tomorrow or the next day, I fill each moment with what I value the most. For me, that includes catching up with friends and family over the phone, taking care of the house and garden,  singing, playing instruments, writing, composing, arranging, hiking, bike riding, taking care of paper work, updating web pages.

Every challenge that we face is an opportunity to grow and learn and appreciate.

When we can’t make money a certain way, we have the opportunity to let our creative juices flow, to surrender to divine inspiration and to let our talent organically flow towards the possibility of the present situation.

When we can’t travel the way we planned, we have the opportunity to deal with what is here and now and how to make the absolute best of our present situation. For me, right now, it means I get to take care of all those things I put on the back burner when I was busy being productive out in the world.

Now, that I have let go of trying to fix the future, of which I have absolutely no control, it’s actually pretty great. At this moment, I get to finish and record songs I almost forgot about. I get to learn things about my loved ones that I didn’t have time to listen to before. And, because many things that otherwise serve as a convenient distraction has become unavailable, I get to deepen my self awareness.

Because of the pandemic and all the restrictions that come with it, I get to sit with my discomfort and really feel it. I get to allow it to move me to a new level of awareness, where new concepts, songs and musicals are born.

My top 7 keys to staying positive during Covid 19 are:

  • Stop criticising yourself and others. It’s a brand new world.
  • Appreciate what the pandemic has to teach you, personally, professionally and globally.
  • Be fully present to each moment, to yourself and to each other.
  • Allow whatever feelings are there to guide you into the next moment.
  • Celebrate and Savor and Allow your heart to fully open.
  • Find fun, creative ways to express how you feel.
  • Nurture your body, mind and spirit in a joyous, non-judgemental manner.

Enjoy this time, as much as you can. Let it inspire you to create, relate and celebrate. And, please let me know if I can be of assistance to you in any way.

For those of you who wish to empower and enhance your vocal ability, I now offer Vocal Freedom sessions via Zoom. And for those who wish to access and process the emotional root cause of a current issue, I also offer Journey Therapy sessions via Zoom.

Musically Yours,
Caroline

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Posted in A Call To Action, Caroline's Concerts, Communication, Creativity, Expansion of Consciousness, Healing, Liberation, Life and Career, Self Awareness, Self Confidence, Self Empowerment, Tools for overcoming depression, Vocal freedom

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Finding Venus Goes Vinyl and Touring

Posted on August 8, 2019 | Leave a comment

“It was a miracle that I made it, after the lawyer, who appeared to be driving drunk and driving like a maniac, hit me so hard I flew twenty-eight feet with a severed leg. I landed on my nose. My name is… I’m not sure. I mean, I don’t know. I reside in the physical form of a woman named, Venus. There was an accident. A green Mazda and an eighteen-year-old on a ten-speed bike. It was a miracle that I became a human being again. And it took more than all the king’s horses to do so. Mama and Papa didn’t know what to do, so they decided to do what they knew best. The show must go on, they said, and left for a tour of America.”

This is how the Finding Venus album begins, accompanied by a tango of joyously gorgeous cello and grand piano. Adding deeply expressed vocals that range from lonely despair, longing and fury to humorous introspection and sensual awakening, we are taken on a quest to find identity, love and meaning. A quest that takes us all the way into the Nevada desert, in serial killer territory, in a desperate attempt to find the one person who made sense to us. A quest that forces us to face our deepest fears, admit our deepest longings and let go of what we love the most, so that we can, in turn, return to and realize who we really are.

“This is art. High art. It is also a compassionate, realistic study of what unsolved mysteries can do to a human life. How do we let go? How do we say goodbye when we can’t? How do we move on? How do we smile again? We find Venus.”
A.J. Llewellyn

As many of you already know, Finding Venus is my way of sharing my own incredible, but true, story of hope and transformation. It was, indeed, a miracle that I made it. I mean, recovering from the horrible accident that crushed my body and sent my brain into the land of deep confusion and indescribable pain was one thing. Making sense of the scattered pieces of memory that gradually was presented to me, was another story.

To be honest, I am still trying to make sense of it. And, in this making-sense-of-it process, I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to express what I have experienced in such a deliciously musical format and with such incredible musicians and actors. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for being part of this journey, as listener and co-conspirator, as mentor, supporter, friend, ally and fan! I could not have done any of this without you. It is my deepest prayer and desire that this story will help and inspire those who are struggling with issues related to trauma, identity, recovery and the loss of a loved one.

The Jazz-, blues-, pop- and cabaret arrangements on this album are brilliantly executed by bass players Abraham Laboriel and Jennifer Leitham, drummers Mark Schulman and Chris Wabich, pianist Tom Zink, guitarist Julian Coryell and cellists Irina Chirkova, Carter Dewberry and Elisa Herbig. The voices of Mama, Papa and Stefanie are beautifully expressed by J’Nae Fincannon, Gary Imhoff and Aina O’Kane. Katisse Buckingham flavours the album throughout with his poignant, sultry, lavish and energetic sax, flute, beat box and synth programming. And phenomenal sound engineers Tom Zink, Bob Rice, Leslie Chew, Tony Shogren and Jan Erik Kongshaug makes us all sound awesome!

The Finding Venus album is now available as a Limited Edition 2 LP white Vinyl, as well as CD, Downloads and Streaming at www.carolinewaters.com

The Finding Venus Tour 2019 is happening in Sweden, Norway, UK, USA and Canada, starting next week!!! Amazing cellist, Ruti Celli, is joining us on the first leg of the tour and others will join as we proceed. Concert dates will be posted as they are confirmed at www.carolinewaters.com/calendar

If you like what you hear, purchase the album, buy tickets for our shows and share with others you think might resonate! Also let us know where you want us to perform next. Click here to make contact or to join the VIP email list.

Love Always, Caroline

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Posted in A Call To Action, Caroline's Concerts, Concerts, Creativity, Expansion of Consciousness, Feel Good Music, Healing, Liberation, Musical Theatre, Self Awareness, Self Confidence, Self Empowerment

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Overcoming Procrastination and Finding Venus

Posted on April 28, 2019 | Leave a comment

Roughly seven years after the birth of the idea to create a musical, based on chapters from the novel-eh-thriller-memoir that took a half a lifetime to dare to write, I am finally ready to release the double album, Finding Venus.

I am both excited and absolutely terrified. Not that the album itself is so dangerous. But the emotional content that is attached to each of the songs, brings up a world of issues for me. They remind me of times in my life where I have felt utterly powerless or deathly buried afraid or wanting to kill myself.

The songs, in themselves, are tremendously empowering, full of hope and strength and courage and humor and powerful expressions. Yet, for me, they bring up all the hidden passages of what it took for me to overcome the fear and pain and uncertainty of the trauma I lived through.

In addition to working hard to have it all come together, the book, the musical and the album, I must confess that procrastination techniques have been at play. Techniques such as, nitpicking, delaying making a decision, constantly debating the pros and cons of each decision made, beating up on myself for not being slim enough to present it, etc.

Now, that I have made the decision to move forward with the release, I realize the amount of fear that has been holding me back. I realize the kind of self doubt that I have carried with me for so long. In spite of the fact that I have been a great promoter of Vocal Freedom, I have held myself hostage, in a way, to my own fear.

The fear that I now have surrendered completely, in order to move forward with this release, is connected to a very old message, launched deeply within my younger self. This old message is about Not sharing personal stuff, about Always smiling to the camera, about Appearing strong and happy, even when I feel vulnerable or sad. Serendipitously, herein lies the core of the new message I wish to relay with my music and story:

Don’t be afraid to Be and Share who you are. There is tremendous power in opening to the inner wisdom of your being, allowing it to move you and expressing it powerfully in words, music and action.

All the songs for Finding Venus can now be enjoyed and purchased via www.carolinewaters.com and we’ll be super happy if you can make it to the Release Party at Kulak’s Woodshed in North Hollywood on May 4th.

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Posted in A Call To Action, Caroline's Concerts, Concerts, Creativity, Expansion of Consciousness, Feel Good Music, Getting out of denial, Healing, Liberation, Musical Theatre, Posttraumatic stress, Self Awareness, Self Confidence, Self Empowerment, Tools for overcoming depression, Vocal freedom

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Let’s BE That Change!

Posted on October 14, 2018 | Leave a comment

If we want to live in a world where truth matters, where equal opportunity matters, where preserving our soil, our water, our basis for living, matters, we need to be honest to the core of our being.

We need to speak the truth about ourselves, about our own experiences, about how we feel. We need to stop spreading and feeding into the poison that fear-based propaganda is. We need to focus, wholeheartedly, on cleaning up our own, distorted, world views and make sure we come from a place of love and integrity with every single word we speak and type and sing and act on.

When we take 100% responsibility for how we feel and act, when we heal the internal wounds that are so easily triggered by external factors, when we stop projecting our feelings of hurt and anger and fear and instead channel all those feelings into a conscious, loving commitment to positive change, then and only then will we see the change we wish to see in the world. Let’s BE that change!

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Posted in A Call To Action, Communication, Expansion of Consciousness, Getting out of denial, Healing, Liberation, Planetary Relief, Self Awareness, Self Confidence, Self Empowerment, Sivilized Debate, World Peace

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From Paralyzed to Energized

Posted on May 12, 2018 | Leave a comment
I admit it. I am petrified. Frozen with fear. Emotionally locked inside a deep darkness. The big fat void of avoidance, of all things postponed, is now staring me down to the ground. I am, literally, chained to the floor of my internal torture chamber, as the poisonous venom of guilt, shame and feeling inadequate works its way through my veins.
 
These are powerful feelings and I allow them all. “Bring it on!” I say, as I close my eyes and prepare for death, still unable to move or even brace for the impact. And as I allow the waves of distain, of self loathing and blame, of hatred and shame to wash right through me, to the very core… As I allow this nuclear explosion, this unhinged train, this blow torch, this torrential rain, to have its way with me, I am strangely okay.
 
“How is it possible,” I ask, “to feel okay in the middle of my very own, personal, Armageddon?” At the moment of asking, I don’t know the answer. I don’t have to. It is what it is and I accept it as is. I’ve paid my dues. I no longer need to prove myself, not even to myself. And herein lies the answer to my quest. I no longer need to prove a thing, not even to myself. From this statement alone, another revelation is born: When we surrender the ego, all ego-related feelings, such as guilt and shame and feeling inadequate, automatically falls away.
 
In the ten minutes it took me to write this, I have moved from feeling completely paralyzed to feeling completely energized. This, to me, is the power of surrender, of being totally present in the moment, in the body, letting whatever emotions are there be fully felt and pass through unobstructed, without trying to deny it, fix it, explain it or change it.
 
Bring it on and enjoy your day!

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Posted in A Call To Action, Communication, Creativity, Expansion of Consciousness, Getting out of denial, Healing, Liberation, Life and Career, Self Awareness, Self Confidence, Self Empowerment, Tools for overcoming depression

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