As the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic continues to rock the music industry, the Recording Academy reached out to a few musicians to see how they were spending their days indoors. Today, pop performer AJ Mitchell shares his Quarantine Diary. Mitchell's new song "Burn" is out now.
[8:30 a.m.] Quarantine definitely has its ups and downs. For one, not trying to go stir crazy on a daily basis. So throughout the day I like to keep myself busy. When I wake up in the morning, I either go on a run or workout in my apartment. It’s always a great start to my day. Plus, I’m trying to come out of this quarantine healthier than I was going in. I’m always inside now so I’ve really found a love for running during this quarantine because it’s a good way to keep my mind and my body busy.
[9:30 a.m.] After I get done with my workout I usually like to sit at my piano or studio and start writing and creating new ideas. Playing the piano and writing is like therapy for me. I’ve had so many emotions and feelings that I want to talk about, but sometimes it’s hard for me to talk about those things so writing them out in a song makes that easier for me.
[2 p.m.] Once I’m done writing, my friend Shawn and I love to be active and play sports. One sport we’re really into right now is tennis. We’ve been playing almost every day, especially because that’s a good time to tan too, haha. So we like to kill two birds with one stone.
[3:30 p.m.] After tennis, we’re normally starving. We can eat pretty much anything and everything, especially after tennis, so we both like to come together and cook a big meal. Shawn's speciality is pasta and mine is eggs. I know that sounds pretty lame, but we’re still learning. We definitely wouldn’t invite anyone over for dinner just yet, but this quarantine is going to help out. We have a lot of time to learn new recipes, so hopefully after this we'll host a big dinner party to celebrate.
[6 p.m.] Once it starts getting close to the end of the day, my friends and I who have also been quarantining meet to play games. We either play Mario Kart or board games like Settlers of Catan. I love that game, man. We’re all pretty competitive, so if anyone watched us play they’d think we all want to kill each other (which we do sometimes), but it’s because we’re competitive. When the game ends, we all laugh it off and either stick around for a movie or call it a night.
[10 p.m.] Come 9 p.m. or so I usually wind down, drink some tea, and watch a little Netflix or write in my studio for a little more.
[12 a.m.] Time for bed. I just got a new mattress so I've been sleeping like a freaking baby.
If you wish to support our efforts to assist music professionals in need, learn more about the Recording Academy's and MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund.
If you are a member of the music industry in need of assistance, visit the MusiCares website.
