Jan Lemmens (Glints) lives his childhood dream every day
In 'Stream of Consciousness', we give the floor to someone from the UAntwerp community. Our speaker today is Jan Lemmens. He obtained his Master's in English at UAntwerp in 2015, and today conquers Belgian concert halls and festivals with his music project Glints. He also presents the radio program Abattoir Anvers on Studio Brussels, together with Faisal.
What is your motto?
Throughout my childhood, I was taught these wise words by my father: ‘Everything goes, except a worm – they crawl’. Words to live by.
How old do you feel?
I am currently approaching 30, but still don’t feel a day older than 26.
What trait do you admire most in your best friends?
For me, no trait is as important as loyalty, especially in friendship. Being there for each other, but also pointing out difficult things to each other. Honesty, 100%.
What did you Google last?
A hotel in Palermo. Now that my new album THE DARK! has been launched at Ancienne Belgique, I am leaving in a few weeks for my first real holiday in a few years. My girlfriend is also self-employed and we are looking forward to it immensely. Sicily had been on our list for a long time!
What does the perfect Sunday morning look like for you?
Get up relaxed (but on time). Feeding the cat and putting on Chet Baker. Read something on the sofa and then hanging out with friends.
Do you have any advice for prospective students?
A degree is important, but not needed to be happy. Keep pursuing new interests and keep learning. Are you very attracted to a particular field? Jump in. You can’t make mistakes, so try as much as you can. Anything is possible.
What is the most important lesson you learnt at university?
Studying, building a career... is not always easy, but with enough willpower and perseverance, things will work out. I learnt those skills in university, and still apply them in daily life today.
What would you like to study next?
I think it would be great to go back to university someday! Preferably history and a lot of languages, like Russian or Italian. Sometimes I fantasise about going back to university when I retire (laughs). Sometime far, far off in the future.
How did your friends and family react to your career choice?
Obtaining a degree was very important to my family. When I announced after graduating that I would go for a career as a musician after all, it was anything but easy for them. They are proud now, but things are still difficult at times because there is so little security in my sector. My friends, on the other hand, encouraged me from day one to go into music.
How does your job give you satisfaction?
Actually, I live my childhood dream every day. Working on new music in the studio, performing, hosting my own radio show on Studio Brussels... Little Jan would have been very happy (and I have to remind myself of that now and then).
If you could change your profession for a day, what would you want to do?
Something with books and literature. I still really enjoy reading (though not always enough) and it seems awesome to immerse myself in that world for a change.
City or countryside?
As a place to live, I am 100% a city person, but nature and greenery are very important to me. So let’s say: to live the city, for holidays the countryside.
Cycling or going for a walk?
I am a walker and I easily reach the recommended 10,000 steps every day. When I have the time, I try to do as much as possible on foot. That’s when I feel most inspired.
You can listen to Glints’ new album, THE DARK!, on Spotify. You can listen to Abattoir Anvers every Wednesday night between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. on Studio Brussels.