Janine Federowicz
First release: Should've Listened, recorded in basement, with brothers. - March 13
2nd release: All of my Life, Piano, vocals. Kind of a mental health song, supposed to, as a therapist would say, be in the present 60% of the time, reflecting (learning from mistakes) 20% of the time, looking towards future and planning the final 20% of the time. We decide what we focus more on, huh? The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, a great book, what will we (choose to) remember or forget? (And it's not always that easy.) To be released-3/20
3rd release: Live in Peace (Thy Kingdom Come) I think it's important to try to be, to become the person God created us to be. We may not all have that luxury, as perhaps survival is the only thing we have time for. I was thinking about that recently. (War and economic injustice, i.e. poverty, Colonialism, all affect man-kind). The tragic and unnecessary loss of life that comes thru war, asinine wars..and all the talent, ideas, adventures not taken because of some man's greed and hunger for power, from the past, well ever since man existed, to unfortunately, some today. (And not to mention the senseless loss of life, pain, suffering war creates.) Well, let the music speak for itself. This was recorded in about 1998, I believe.
4th and 5th releases, April 10th, Hope and Love on my mind. Written shortly after Should've Listened (ninety-one, ninety-two ish) and recorded at the same time. These are ‘rough drafts’, in the sense that, Hope was still evolving…and Love on my mind, mostly complete, but eventually redone, just without the jamming of my brothers. As far as recording, we, my brothers and I, did most likely one take and then said, “Let's do it.” My brother's drums help carry it, as does my oldest brother's guitar rhythms. Did rerecord Hope, will release soon. Chorus: 1st time: ..'Best to ignore what went before but you know hope will help bring a brand new day'…2nd time..'We can't ignore what went before, but you know love's gonna help find a brand new way.' They sound like they're contradicting each other, but our past, our country's past of 246 years of slavery, can't ignore that and the subsequent history following. To build understanding, peace, justice you, we, have to know and reflect upon our country's past honestly in order to move progressively, thoughtfully, and conscientiously forward. And then, sometimes we need to just move ahead forward, after painful relationships and such…and learn from our mistakes. (And thus it's ‘best to ignore, what went before’_ Hope you enjoy both! And thanks for listening!
6th Release -April 24, (this Friday) ‘Because You are Love’…Charles Stanley (dec.) had a great sermon today (4/19/26) on Philippians 4 which relates to finding comfort, rest, peace in God, HIs love, and in His Word and promises. It reminded me of this song that I'm releasing this Friday. I am thankful to all the people God put in my path along the way to help me draw close to HIm and learn of Him. And, too, I'm thankful for my Catholic upbringing. My younger sister is on violin and actually plays on a few songs. A mellow song for time to meditate, rather lengthy, but that's the way it is. I hope you find it inspiring and hopeful as well. ‘Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto our path.’ (Psalm 119) Not mentioned in my song, but that is how I feel. It's a personal relationship. This was written in 1994 -ish. Recorded some time after, and I am also thankful for my friend Arthur Stafford, Pastor Carl Lewis, (Salvation Temple) the Church of Christ people in Boston who invited me to a Bible Study, (River of Dreams-Youth Christian gathering in R.I.) and some very close friends who also opened the Word of God to me. I also am thankful to my parents and Project Rachel in Boston area. Healing from something we regret is a process. Oh and I'm thankful for being part of Peer Ministry at Marsh Chapel and Dean Thornburg (Boston U.). circa Class of ‘93. And mostly, I’m thankful to the Lord for calling me, thru so many, to believe, and walk with Him. LIfe is not perfect, but there is hope. As Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no one goes to the Father except thru Me.” And, “I came so that you may have life”, and ‘Come to Me all you who are weary, and I will give you rest.’ And like John says, the last of the gospels, Chapter one, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…through Him all things were made”…Daily I say, which I once read was Beyonce's mantra as well, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” I am thankful for my faith…I am thankful for the ability to share thru song and I pray in some way it edifies you and brings glory to God as well. Thanks for listening. And God bless.
July 23, 2026
Greetings all! Thank you to every person that has taken the time to listen to my songs. It's been a busy and rather rough spring, but that's okay, because I am here, and I'm very aware that life is never easy (and I'm one of the fortunate ones: I have a car, food, clothing, shelter, God called me to believe and have a love for His Word and to walk with Him, which, if I didn't, if He didn't, if He didn't put people in my path to help me…giving me scriptures, teaching me (Pastors and those I love to listen to on the radio). Well, anyway, thank you for opening this up because I finally have some time to talk about my new release/album of 5 songs. I wanted to call it ‘Growing up Ronnie’. (As in, I'm a Gen-X er and I grew up during the Reagan Era…the ‘Greed is good’ Walter Gecko, Just say No Nancy, and where I learned that the CEO of Merryl Lynch (or something like that) was making $270,000 an hour. I.e. the rich were getting richer and the poor were getting poorer.) I tested that title of the album on a few people any maybe 25% knew what I was talking about. So, after some thought (and looking at other albums called “Coming of Age” , I wanted to say Coming of Age in the 90's, which is true, and accurate, but I decided to call it, “Coming of Age at Boston U.”
First Song (which is actually on the album as the 5th song, but it really is the first). I did release it, hoping Tunecore would say, ‘no’, ‘something’s wrong with the quality', but they didn't, but still, it's ..the first ten seconds or so sound weird and then it's fine. My goal is to rercord it ASAP, because as I'm opting to do (at least right now) is release my compositions Chronologically. So again, I invite you to come along with me on my journey of life and understanding through and expressed by the wonderful God-given tool, element, of music.
“Can't Do it Alone” aka “Ordinary People”
Emoting was I my frustration with all the injustice and murders of innocent people. I was living in Boston and took pretty anti-establishment courses at Boston University. ANd maybe not, maybe they were just honest, like ‘American National Political Institutions’, ‘THe Judicial Branch’, ‘Public Opinion and Propaganda’, an amazing 700 level class called ‘Communication and National Development’, as well as ‘Intellectual European History 19th Centure’ and then ‘20th Century’. I loved those classes, all of them. I'm very fortunate to have had the opportunity to go to college; I know this, and I learned a lot, and sought to, as evidenced by articles I've written (some which probably kept me from being hired,' and shared my education also through songs. Many of these were performed in Harvard Square and in several of the Open-Mic venues here and there. I read Noam Chomsky's “Necessary Illusions” and saw his 'Manufactured Consent" movie twice, once in Sydney, (Glebe) Australia (packed house) and another time in Boston. One of the times (maybe it could have been 3), Mr. Chomsky himself talked to us and answered questions. “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” by Paulo Friere also influenced me and at this time I was attending various lectures in and around campus. One was at Brandeis, others at MIT or Harvard…
To sum up the song, change must be done in conjunction with one another. Many protests I'd joined, and basically I don't see TOO much that is different. The man that didn't take ‘Anita' seriously ended up becoming VP twice and then president. I learned to speak up, out, but we don't always have time. WE know there's corruption and yet we get busy, or are working, or have to watch the game, sing, play at church…but at this time I was just trying to essentially, change the world and open people's eyes, and hope that in doing so, good things could and would happen. ‘I’m so sick of the violence, I'm so sick of the lies, Sick and tired of the taking of innocent lives. Our laws don't protect, they set the crook free, only to commit one more atrocity'''… PLease listen, it will take Ordinary People, to speak (voice) their minds, hearts to make change. Don't let apathy get the best of you, us, we gotta care for the next generations. These messages I believe span generations and if you're Civic minded, you Won't be passive.
“Let the Light In”
Light rock, Reggae…similar to the first song in how it seems we're programmed to believe a certain way. Do we need to fight senseless wars or are these politicians just holding on to thier jobs, starting unnecessary evil wars . Heard it this morning, ‘Wars to end what you t hink are nuclear weapons in the hands of others’, well, you're killing innocent people. So where's the sense and justice in that? 4 people, service men and women, Americans killed this week on top of SO MANY OTHERS. the 176 in Iran, the girls' school, Hey Donald Trump, Can't you let the light in? I could go on, but I won't. Just, ‘There’s a hundred thousand children who wonder where the light is. ANd I'm just askin' ‘cause I"m so tired of living in this world full of darkness.’ So ‘Feel with your heart for once, lay down your shield, ar en’t you tired of playing the same game? Life is not a game that everyone can win ‘til we’re all working together to reach the same thing.' I had a saying, (this unrelated to song, but kind of relatied) The Time is NOW and we're here to RULE. Thie time is now for a New Organized World and we're here to Respect, Unite, Love, and Enjoy. I still believe that. Would you like to join this cause? We don't need all these weapons. We should be talking about and insiting upon the The Declaration of Human Rights, developed by Eleanor Roosevelt after WWII. (Similar sentiments to the song though before I was seeking to really know and believe in the Lord…) Weapons needed so hate's breeded, divided and misguided, deceived and isolated, and children pay the price…' My song, LIve in Peace/THy Kingdom Come, already released. The devestation and sadness that the BBC recorded this morning from the mothers who lost children because of this totally unnecessary war. (the 176 in the school, 130 of them children, young girls). Not too much has changed, though there have been efforts by many TO change, to show respect for the dignity of human life.
“Peace thru Music”
Can music heal the world? Save it? Should we take the time for love, take the time and look around? Do we look around and buy into t he divisions thrust upon us based on gender, race, religion…? The Tutsis and the Hitus, fighting in Rwanda, though maybe that war was AFter this song. Music DOES I believe bring people together, it can heal, ‘Imagine’, ‘Heal the World’, ‘Man in the Mirror’, ‘New York New YOrk’, ‘Despocito’ (okay, love to dance) ‘We are Family’ ‘Celebrate’ ‘September’, and we certainly feel one with other patriotic songs, or songs like ‘Country Roads’ that not only did I have students sing (a second time) in a school concert I organized, but that was what was played for the United States soccer team at the FIFA. Beautiful music, CLassical, so much, can evoke feelings of peace, or joy, like "When the Saints go Marching In"..
“Mutual Dependence”
We are mutually dependent on one another…a smile we give to another can be that which makes t hem say, okay, there is hope, people care. My daughter this morning who helped me get out the ‘hiss’ of these songs, Gabrielle, siad this title sounded like a Life Insurance Company. Well, not too inaccurate in the sense that…The meaning of life (I once heard) is being needed by even one person. (ANd I'll add, at some low points in my life) being needed by one dog.
“Believe in Love”
We have to try to make the world better. In a relationship with someone African-American, or even when had friendships and was stopped, more than once, in my car just because they were black. 246 years of institutionalsized slavery and then the long struggle toward true equality is ongoing. We don't choose our race; so silly and ignorant to think you're better than another because of your color. Geoff from PBS Newshour wrote a book on the Black Comedies of the Ninetees. We have made progress, rap like Tupac and Arrested Development taught me things. Going to NYC as a child to watch a Yankee game in the Bronx and I saw black youth washing our windows and my dad giving them change, never knew that was in exisence, but I do remember my Mom running down from her dressing room in 1977 ish to make sure she was there for the beginning of Alex Haley's Roots. Everyone in America should watch “Roots” . I love John Lewis, Fannie Lou Hamer, Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Maya Angelou and the many other people including William Lloyd Garrison, famous abolitionists who helped make this country more humane, more equal, and the fight, the struggle, the pursuit of justice still continues. ‘Gotta feel it, gott share it, gotta give it, love. Believe in love.’
October 30, 2026
What a beautiful autumn this year. Not too cold, a lot of sun…colors are changing. Hope everyone is doing well and that you've gotten the chance, or taken the time to listen to my songs. My next album is called “For All of Humanity”. I did want to call it, ‘BU, Harvard Square, and Haiti’ since that pretty much encapulates where I was and what I was doing/focused on at the time. Trying to use my education to change the world for the better, communnicating to the masses thru song (and poetry, and conversation) my Mass Comm. and Liberal Arts/travel, activist time in my last year and the year or two following my '93 graduatioin.
Marsh Chapel, Dean Thornburg and the Peer Ministry people influenced these songs, I remember writing or working on the piano melody in Marsh Chapel of ‘Leave it all Behind’. The Church of Christ people who invited me to my first Bible Study, (where I opened the Scriptures myself, searching through them, verses like ..from Hebrews and Timothy. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword. It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Hebrews 4:12, (NIV) and then..2nd Timothy 2:15 in the King James Version states: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Again, I was raised Catholic, did attend Catholic schools for 4th, 5th, and 6th, sang in the Folk Group at Christmas, but had never really sat down and opened the Bible. My mom, again, tried Sunday mornings after church, but..can't say the clan (of 9) and subsequently 8,7,6 when they all started trickling off to college, really paid attention. But at any rate, John 3: 16, and some other John verses I believe basically convicted me that if we're going to get to know this person who went on the cross, was crucified for us, died, rose and sits on the right hand of the Father, that, if He's worth believing, I mean, if He did all that to show us how much He loves us, and wants to walk with us in this world, then perhaps we should read the Word of God and ‘learn of Him.’
I was young, 22, 23. 24 ish, and I had also after my studying abroad (yes, privileged, had wanted to go through the Rotary Senior year as an exchange student, my dad said no, wait, maybe in college) and the opportunity opened up. On this Indigenous People's Day, today October 12, and Columbus's…well maybe it was the Native American commercial with the man and the tear looking at the garbage that I had a desire to learn about the Original people's of a land who survived basically on nature, respect, calling Earth their ‘Mother’ Mother Earth, that I had a desire to go. There I saw this country and the world differently through their News and World News portrayal on Social Media. (Just television at that time, that and the newspapers). And Haiti, the Haitians stuck on Guantanamo Bay, who'd fled their country (had learned the United States was a refuge for its own foreign policy in that we'd trained, as I'd mentioned, Cedras and some others at Fort Benning, GA who had retaliated against the people who voted for Aristide) seeking peace and safety.
That's basically where I was. I went in ‘94 and ’95, about two to three weeks each time, having met a man who ran a mission at a Joe Kennedy meeting in downtown Boston. (I ran there the whole way on my lunch from the docks where I was working at a Boutique called DIFFA). Ron Peron became a good friend and shared this kernel of truth with me. God wants nothing more than for me to know Him, and for Him to know me. That is, walking with Him and having a personal relationship where we learn of Him through HIs Word, and prayer, (listening to the still small voice) being empowered by the Holy Spirit, and so on. (And/or the Holy Spirit, the 3rd person of the trinity, as they say, opens our eyes up to the reality, towards the Spiritual reality of Him, and physical, if you read that book "Heaven is for Real" the only thing that's in both heaven and earth, is the holes in Jesus's hands, where the nails were.' Anyway…that's a nice movie with Greg Kinnear and based on a true story of a boy dying for a few hours, , or fifteen minutes and having an encounter with the heaven and the risen Lord.
The album “For all of Humanity" contains 5 songs refledtive of this time in my life. I'd say it's mostly secular, socially conscious, but as the album progresses (Leave it all Behind and Between 2 Worlds) I definitely am thinking deeply about some of these issues, and growing/learning in my walk with the Lord.
I played in front of the Union on Boston University's campus and played at the Middle East (even though my friend, Jack Kingsley, who went home to be with the Lord a couple years ago, we'd reconnected on FB, and he had some video, but I never found myself) and also in Harvard Square. I once played another Square, Kendall Square, and at Park Street station. (and of course performed at Naked City Coffeehouse, the Revolutionary Bookstore, and therer was another place aroun the corner from the Harvard Bookstore (still trying to track down a friend, Eric Lichtenstein, who wrote great songs and at that place I shared one of his songs.)
The songs on this album was recorded in Providence, RI with a friend, Dennis Sampson. I met him at a Rivers of Dream Church of Christ retreat with a bunch of other young people. We became friends, and he is on every recording except one, BU. Our version which we recorded in a studio with real drums and all, its tempo was way too fast, so I rerecorded it in Bingotown with my brother and sister. Quick synopsis of the songs:
BU
Kind of my experience and education and growing up Generation X in a nutshell. And my need/desire to reach out with others, to others and share/discuss all that was going on. The rich were getting richer, a company CEO was making 29 k an hour, 170 k a day, and there was a lot of Vietnam Veterans who were homeless whom I'd befriended and shared the extra Lebanese food a kind soul gave me to give to them right around BU's campus. MTV came out in my youth, etc., etc.,
For All of Humanity
Probably not the best recording, and I did have it ‘mastered’ by Tunecore, but all of these are ‘unmastered’ but that's cause they seemed kind of loud (enough) as they were. This has some funny lyrics, but also serious. As a twenty - something year old, what do we want? A family, a family to live in peace….we want honesty from the news, (not the triangular ‘Necessary Illusions’, govt., media, business ‘narrative’ of what, according to Noam Chomsky, they want us to know), and we want politicians who..are there to serve the population, not serve themselves. I had told myself in Australia (fall, ‘92) if Bush senior had won, not Clinton, I wasn’t coming back.
Haiti-Universalize our Struggle
I believe I wrote this after my first trip. It was a winter night, walking my then-dog, Christy, midnight, and I believe the lights were off, maybe the electricity had gone out…that's how this song starts, “Christy”. Wow this night reminds me of Haiti. No lights and no electricity…rich people get what they need from the boats and the people, people just keep getting hungrier and hungrier I know." Haiti is a beautiful country, with beautiful people, who have experienced a really harsh reality. I made some good friends in Boston, and again, went and stayed with Ron at his house near a mission which he created after his son was killed in the Lebanon explosioin with 347 servicemen. He took half the money, fifteen k, given to him by the US government and created the mission…'An expression of love to the people of Haiti.' I had friends in Boston who loved Jean-Betrande Aristide and there were many meetings and groups concerned for the people and the country there in Boston. Lavalas was the group which helped nominate Aristide to presidency, he won 67 percent of the vote. He came to the United Nations General Assembly and spoke, “If we stop building and selling weapons for 15 days, we could eradicate world hunger for decades.” Very shortly after, within days, there was a coup' that overthrew him an many. many supporters were killed with internal refugees nearing one hundred (maybe more) thousand. I pray, and please pray, for the people of Haiti, there and here. They sent two thousand here during our revolution to helped fight. They were the first independent black republic in the Western hemisphere (1804) and kicked out France and Napolean. I learned much at the Mugar Library, 4th floor, about the Lost Generation, about Bertold Brecht, Wittgenstein, Kierkegaard (spelling) read a great book, “The Book of Laughter and Forgetting” in either Nineteenth Century Intellectual European History or 20th, and I spent some time reading in the BU bookstore on its 4th floor that in order to really know what happened about an event, etc., you ‘have to follow the money trail.’ You follow the money trail and that leads to the truth. In conclusion, may God bless the people of Haiti, and may He help turn that country around and show mercy and grace to the hard-working and lovely Haitian people who've endured sick racism by some of those elected. Repulsive, appaling, shameless. In the future I will be releasing an album with just Haitian related songs, and will make it an album (or sell it) whose proceeds will only go to the people of Haiti. It is tragic what has happened there, and honestly in so many places in the world. (Including here.)
Leave it All Behind
Pretty self-explanitory, as I'm seeking ‘truth’ in the world, and to trust others after a hard relationship, I guess if we're going to make things better we should focus on looking forward, and work on letting things in the past go. but not forgetting, learning, but not ignoring… This is a pretty Socially Conscious, but also Christian-conscious song..these are written, this album, generally chronologically. And as I'm trying to figure out who I am, what I believe, who and what God wants and is calling me to do, be, I want, and invite you,, the listener, to come with me.
Between Two Worlds (or Between 2 Worlds)
Even just yesterday, there is a scripture which says, ‘We are in the world, but we’re not of the world', and yet we learn, too, from the Word, ‘Be not weary in well-doing’, and as a person just starting my walk with the Lord, but too having a heart that God gave me to care for others' well-being, (didn't want to stay in a ‘nut-shell’ in Boston, so volunteered every year, but different years (St. Francis House, a Suicidal Hotline, taught English to an elderly Russian woman, Clara, taught piano to a young girl, for a short period (hard to get there without a car, at that time, and she canceled, but a few anyway)…that has nothing to do with anything, just sharing my mind-set at the time. This is a lenghthy song, definitely near the end some vocal, lyrical improvising…We'd recorded all these songs in one day, me and Dennis. And while I have tried to find him to split the royalties and give him credit, because I really like what he added to a lot of these songs (you can be the judge) I am pretty sure he passed away which is really sad.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for streaming if you do…Thank you for taking this musical journey with me and I am playing (pretty sure) at the Art Walk at the Arts Council on State Street in Binghamton November 6, the First Friday Art Walk.
Three singles, more Spiritually-minded Christian ones are also going to be released this day…perhaps written within the next year or two after “For All of Humity”, while I am not the perfect Christian, certainly not, my family can attest, and while I may combine the Spiritual walk with looking around and seeing the devastation, wars, Rwanda, all the things going on the early to mid to late ninetees, my faith and hope is in Christ and I am thankful He put people in my life who shared the gospel (the Good News literally) with me and like Gwen, from the Church of Christ said, many years ago. It's like bread, good bread, and you want to share it with others. She encouraged me after that retreat, to read John, the Gospel of John. If you've never read the Bible, I encourage you to do so as well, and of course, listen to my songs!
‘His Ways are not our Ways’. (taken from Isaiah and Romans, though not, and I'm sorry, perfectly correct in the song….remember I was younger)
“Set your affections on things above..” also a scripture passage. continued…'and not on things of this earth'.
Lord help me to pray. or. Lord, help us to pray…. (pretty self-explanatory, but often the enemy will try to somehow get us not to believe, fully trust, tempt us, (well, we'll always be tempted), it's that ‘soil’ passage..good soil, rocks…). ‘Help us to know Your ways’, Lord help us to pray, each and every day.' Kind of a reflective, meditative piece, all three of these songs (singles) here are just me and the piano. Hope you check it out! Hope you can relate and hope they encourage you or speak to you in some way. Thank you. God bless. AND October 30th, a Friday. Peace.
About
Singer-Songwriter
PIANO/KEYS/FLUTE/GUITAR/UKULELE
My goal is to share songs that God has given me. What a gift music is, to be able to learn to play -Classical, Pop, learning theory, the basics, and then to suddenly have a melody pop into your head, and then lyrics ta -boot. Just a wonderful outlet and that which I've shared over the years, but never as often as I would have liked, due to the demands of life and a 'real job' needed to pay the bills...when things don't always work out like we hoped they would. Music is a journey; my composing continues, and I'd like you to take this journey with me, hoping as well that the words, the melodies, resonate and move you in some form or fashion. Thank you for visiting, listening, learning, engaging and for simply taking this journey of a Life lived through Song with me, as a member of Generation X, as a former Harvard Square performer, amongst many other venues-Coffeehouses, 8 Minute-Maxes, Cyber Cafe, the opening school year at Page High School (I'd always wanted to play that Grand Piano)..yes, by the grace of God I am here, who cares, teaches, believes, and has expressed and had the privilege of making music, as a way to heal, to process, and at times, like now, to have a moment and the opportunity to share. Thank you.