Jen Majura, a seasoned guitarist who has performed with bands such as Equilibrium, Knorkator and Evanescence, has announced her decision to “step away” from the music industry.
Majura’s plans were shared on her Instagram account on Tuesday (June 10), explaining that she had come to the decision after “careful consideration, observing what‘s going on in the music industry, AI related developments and change in society.”
“Instead of wasting another year of my life constantly hoping for new energy, drive and creativity, I‘ve reached a point in my life where I can confidentially lean back in peace,” she wrote. “While time allowed me, I was able to collect an amazing amount of beautiful experiences, tours, shows, travels and moments! I am grateful for every bit of that, but the world has changed. I can confidently make up my mind to stop.
“I am not saying that I will never create any music again, whether recorded or live – but for now I feel there are healthier and better things to fill my life with good vibes and not deal with the overwhelming amount of ridiculousness that comes with the music industry now days. I just can’t identify with today‘s attitude and values anymore.”
As Majura continued she shared her well wishes to “all the ambitious and remaining ‘creators’, young and old,” before offering four singles to her fans as something of a parting gift.
“As a final musical endeavor I wanna share 4 tracks with you,” she wrote. “Songs that were written over a decade ago together with the great guitarist Dennis Hormes. I found these old demo recordings while cleaning out stuff from my computer and thought they are too good to not be shared.”
A musician from an early age, Majura has performed professionally since 2000, with work as a guitarist and bassist in bands such as Equilibrium, Knorkator and Black Thunder Ladies, and a handful of solo albums to her name.
Majura came to widespread attention in 2015 when she took over from Terry Balsamo as the lead guitarist of Arkansas rockers Evanescence. Performing on the band’s most recent two albums (2017’s Synthesis and 2021’s The Bitter Truth), Majura’s exit from the band was announced in May 2022.
“It has been a very special chapter in the band with our dear friend Jen Majura, but we have decided it’s time to go our separate ways,” the group said at the time. “We will always love her and support her, and can’t wait to see what she does next! We are so grateful for the good times and great music we made all around the world together.”
Following her departure from Evanescence, Majura co-founded “crossover metal band” How We End, and also performed vocals on the track “Deep Inside,” from former Dream Theater drummer Mike Mangini’s Invisible Signs albums.
