February 5, 2023, was the 65th annual Grammy Awards Ceremony. Of all the Grammy winners, each one who gave an acceptance speech shared the passion they have behind the stories they aim to tell through their music. Following Beyoncé’s four Grammy wins, Bonnie Raitt won Song of the Year for her track “Just Like That.”
“I was so inspired for this song by the incredible story of the love, and the grace, and the generosity of someone that donates their beloved’s organs to help another person live,” Raitt said in her acceptance speech. “This story was so simple and so beautiful for these times… People have been responding to the song partly because of how much I love, and we all love, John Prine, and that was the inspiration for… this song,” she added, sharing a nod to the great folk singer-songwriter who spoke frankly of the experience of everyday people in his music. “I’m so proud that you appreciate this one and what it means for me and for the rest of the songwriters [without whom] I would not be up here tonight,” Raitt emphasized, acknowledging her inspiration from “the art of the great soul-digging, hard-working people that put these songs and ideas to music.”
When you are passionate about your story, you convince others to care.
Passion is a powerful trait, and it doesn’t require expertise; it fuels creativity and resiliency. As public relations practitioners, we are often tasked with creating media releases, blog posts, pitches, social media programs and much more, all with tight deadlines. These deadlines can be daunting when our plates are filled with other deliverables. However, the passion we carry in each of our roles helps us problem-solve in the never-ending game that is PR Tetris. If we aren’t passionate about the work our clients do, how can we create a meaningful brand narrative for them? It would be near impossible to have passion for a company whose mission does not align with ours.
Music and public relations are very similar – songwriters artfully share the human experience through music, while public relations practitioners skillfully shape brand identities, increasing visibility, credibility and connectivity to the public through a cohesive narrative. In this way, both songwriters and PR experts carry the heartbeat of their subject’s story.
Storytelling in any format is about conveying a message to create a narrative that resonates. Without passion as a driving force behind these messages, storytelling would cease to exist.
Photos courtesy of Pixabay