cayla brooke

I made myself a promise when I started taking YouTube seriously.

One video a week for a year.

Gulp.

Not because I thought I’d be brilliant every Tuesday. Please. I’m still figuring…

I was about eight years old when I saw Funny Girl on television.

Gobsmacked.

I wanted to be Fanny Brice. I wanted to join the Ziegfeld Follies. I wanted to speak with a Brooklyn accent.

Normal childhood goals, obviously.

Here’s…

One of My Worst Gig Stories as a Working Musician

There are gigs you remember because they were magical.

And then there are the others. My worst gig ever happened when I was hired to sing jazz in an old…

Shangri-La Paradise

If you’d rather watch, here’s the full video.

I sang this for the first time at the Yardbird in Edmonton.

A proper listening room. The kind where people actually sit and hear you.

The song started out of…

For a long time, quarterly planning mostly meant work to me.
Projects. Deadlines. Gigs. The practical stuff.

I still plan those things.
But somewhere along the way, I realized that if I only planned the work, I could end up…

Some weeks fill up quickly.

A gig to play. Another one to prepare for. Piano practice. Bookkeeping.

Left on its own, a week like that can feel draining.

That’s usually when I pull out a simple page I call the…

The need for perfection still shows up in my body.

No matter how much inner work I do, that voice still tries to convince me I’m not ready to be seen yet.

If you’d rather watch, here’s the full video.

Some songs come out of joy.
This one didn’t.

“Freedom” was written during my Vancouver years when everything felt louder. More divided. More tense. I remember watching the news and thinking, this is not sitting right.

I didn’t want to…

Taking 30 Days Off Social Media as an Artist

If you’d rather watch than read, you can see the companion video here: [link to video]

I recently took 30 days off social media.

Not because I had a master plan.

…

There comes a point in life when you stop chasing love.

Not because you’ve sworn it off.

Because you’re tired.

If you’d rather watch, here’s the full lyric video.

Turns out love doesn’t always listen when you say you’re done.

…

How I Plan to Feed My Soul So It Actually Happens

If I don’t plan what feeds my soul, it doesn’t happen.
Life fills the space every time.

That’s why I plan for joy, connection, creativity, and rest the same…

Some songs take months.
Fortune Cookie took about ten minutes.

I wrote Fortune Cookie as part of a songwriting challenge, and it became one of the most playful songs I have released as an independent singer-songwriter.

The prompt was simple…

Looking for simple ways to feel more grounded, creative, and connected again?
These five rhythms helped me rebuild after burnout—and they’ve become the foundation of how I live and create.

A moment that changed everything

After one concert, something shifted.

…

From Deadline to Discovery

A few years ago, I booked a theatre for a concert of original songs.

At the time, I had exactly one song written.

I’m not sure what possessed me to do that. Courage. Stupidity. Probably both…

Colour Outside the Lines: The Song I Almost Kept in a Drawer

Back in 2018, I had just released Plush Red Chair and Christmas With Love. I was in a burst of creativity, writing all the time. But even…

I wrote this in March 2024, not long after moving to Alberta and starting over.

New province. No built-in audience. A lot of questions.

I was asking myself why I keep doing this. Why I don’t choose the easier road.

…

There’s something magical about the moment a song clicks with you; it's not just heard but felt. That was "Blue Bayou" for me—an iconic tune that’s always tugged at my soul. But transforming this connection into a cover was more…

Feeding your soul is essential if you want to live a fulfilled life. But, to do so consistently, you must be intentional.

The Monthly Feed Your Soul Checklists provide plenty of ideas. But unless you actively use them, they will…

It’s the most wonderful time of year. 

Eggnog, cozy fires, and Christmas Movies. 

We all know Elf, White Christmas and Scrooge – (Alastair Sims please). Well, here’s a list of 20 movies to watch that are outside of the ‘norm’

…

The season is changing. Spiders are spinning whispers of webs on anything attached to my home. My evening walks collide with dusk. Morning light is sleeping in. 

Autumn is announcing its arrival whether I want it to or not. 

It’s…

During the summer of 2021, I decided to join a songwriting challenge. It would give me something to do outside of the ordinary since I had stayed home for 2 years in a row during the pandemic. I needed some…

My best friend Eva and I both celebrated milestone birthdays within the last couple of weeks.

We were chatting on the phone, deciding to get together for a celebratory glass of wine. The subject of aging came up. More to…

Today is my birthday. I’m sixty. Sixty freaking years old!! How the hell did that happen?

I keep reminding myself because I can’t believe it’s true. I feel 30 inside - except when I bend down, but that's not what…

I met a man last weekend that inspired me to no end. His name is Mel Zajac, and he is 94 years old.

I spoke to him for less than a minute, but he shared so much wisdom I wanted…