Habibi credits her original interest in music and art to her older brother, who would show her his artwork and songs.

“He was always the artist,” Habibi said. “I always just wanted to be as good as him, and that’s really what drove me to get into it and really start writing my own music and making my own art.”

Habibi’s inspiration for music and art comes to her at different times. When inspiration strikes, Habibi writes down her ideas in a notebook that she takes out later when she has a guitar or paintbrush in hand.

“Funny enough, it’s always [during] the few moments before I fall asleep or in the shower in the morning when a random thought will go through my head,” Habibi said. “Half of the time I’ll never finish it; I’ll scrap it and start again or pick something else to write about. But every now and then, there’s something that reaches fruition, and it’s always very rewarding.”

As her passion developed, Habibi began to publicize her talent. Habibi performed at Winter Week last year and this year.

“Last year, I performed with this awesome guitarist, Matt Cooper, and we had maybe 15 people in the lecture hall,” Habibi said. “It was a great warm-up. This year, [the lecture hall] was completely packed. There were kids sitting along the door, and I remember walking in there and seeing everyone and going ‘oh, this is a change.’”

When performing at school, Habibi acknowledges that not everyone has the same taste in music.

“You have to just white-knuckle through it and understand that you’re going to put out what you came here to put out, and what people think is what they may [think].”

Although Habibi may “white-knuckle” through her performances, performing can still be a nerve-wracking experience for Habibi.

“Whenever you know you’re messing up or don’t sound good, there’s always a wave of panic,” Habibi said.

Even if she messes up, however, Habibi says the audience is always very gracious, reminding her of why she chose to perform in the first place.

Because she loves creating and performing, Habibi hopes to pursue these interests in the future.

“Ideally my dream is to be playing at real venues and putting out albums and whatnot,” Habibi said.

If not professionally, Habibi is sure that she will continue making art and music at least recreationally in the future.

“I’m going to be making art for the rest of my life whether it’s in the form of drawing, painting or singing. It’s just the idea of creation and what you’re thinking and expressing it in some other form [other] than raw thoughts.”