Fall — 2005

Yunuen Beristain

Music

“You’ve got to be prepared, when you come to SMC, to work a lot and be fast and efficient in classes. There’s no time to be lazy if you really want to make it.”

In her first semester at SMC, Yunuen Beristain reported finding a bit of relative calm working at the College’s International Student Center. “I like working there because I meet a lot of interesting people, plus I get to put money in the bank.” But ‘money in the bank’ for Yunuen, who came here from Mexico City, is the career she hopes to forge in the music industry.

“I came to this country because you have a lot more opportunity here, and if you work hard, then you will get results,” she says in perfect English. “In my country you can work hard all your life—breaking your back—and have nothing to show for it. But the results in life I want for myself will be in music,” she continues. “Let’s just say I have a real passion for singing. I mean, I have classical training, but that’s not what I want. I do like Bach, Vivaldi, and Beethoven, but my favorite bands are Guns N’ Roses, Metallica, and Linkin Park.” When told she has a pretty broad and eclectic interest in music, Yunuen quickly says, “Well, that’s all relative. To some people, I’m completely ignorant! But I’m determined to become a writer and performer, and perhaps do some producing.”

Yunuen reported feeling “a lot of stress now that I’m at SMC, because it’s a lot of homework and work in general. I’m taking political science, two music classes, English—of course!—and Counseling 11. It’s just a lot more intense than I thought it would be.” But in some ways, she’s found LA a lot less stressful than her home town. “Mexico City has over 20 million people, and it’s not just a little dangerous; it’s dangerous a lot. So I’m glad to be here, and if things work out for me, I’ll make it in music. And then LA will be my new home.”

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