You might see Shauna Dean Cokeland appear on your TikTok For You page and think she’s just like any other high schooler posting videos online. But she has a secret weapon in her back pocket: a mastery for songwriting. With 258.2k followers and 8.3 million likes, she is bent on world domination. I had the pleasure of being able to interview the wonderfully talented Shauna Dean Cokeland (or SDC) on her musical inspirations and her social media success.
Hi Shauna! Please introduce yourself to our readers here at Turntable Ruminations.
Hi, my name is SDC, I’m a singer-songwriter, I’m 18, and I’m from Maryland.
I’m assuming Shauna Dean is your real name, but where did you get “Cokeland” from?
None of it’s my real name. I don’t have any super deep name for a stage name. I think coming up with your real name is fun. I was watching the Simpsons and that’s where I got Shauna from. Cokeland just sounds cool, coke land has an Americana vibe.
What got you interested in music? Has it always been something you’ve wanted to pursue?
Music has always been really the only thing I’ve wanted to pursue, I think since I was 3 years old.
Now on social media, people scroll past posts in 3 seconds, and when they stop to view a post, it’s estimated that they spend eight seconds interacting with content. Your content has to stand out. You have very unique and distinct lyrics. When you hear them, you automatically know it was written by SDC. What inspires your lyrics?
Well, I guess lately some of my stylistic inspirations in my lyrics have been Kesha, Britney, and Eminem, I guess when I’m feeling anything intense lyrics kinda happen.
How would you describe your music and sound?
The stuff I’m posting right now is very much working with what I have, it’s all kinda stripped down and working with my phone. It’s a moody 2000’s dance-pop vibe with a darker undertone.
How would you describe your creative process, do you usually come up with the lyrics or the chords first?
I get one lyrical idea that’s all really cool, and then I figure out the chords that would best fit with it, and I build the rest of the song out from there.
What has been the biggest success of gaining a following on social media, and the biggest pitfall?
I think the biggest success is being able to take these people on a journey of me growing artistically and personally.
Do you feel like you have to constantly be creating content, even when you don’t have any inspiration?
No, I never push myself with my actual songwriting. I love writing songs more than I love anything. It’s this magical, deeply personal thing to me. I’m cautious about pushing myself to write.
Your Spotify wrapped showed that you have been streamed in 89 different countries. What was your reaction when you found out?
It is mind-blowing, I think it would be more mind-blowing if I could actually grasp it, it’s incredible but I don’t think I could comprehend it.
In this era of COVID, musicians are being pushed by their labels to create viral content for tik tok to promote their music. You’re not signed to a label, but do you feel any pressure to constantly keep the viral moment going?
I don’t know if I’d call it pressure. I really want to keep growing my career and keep connecting with people. I want to keep creating content with which people can engage with.
You can listen to SDC’s music on Spotify, and find her on Instagram and TikTok
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