From Briefcases to Guitar Cases: How Patricia Bahia Turned Healing Into a Creative Calling

On 11.05’s episode of Compass Backstage, I had the joy of sitting down with songwriter, artist, and cancer survivor Patricia Bahia - a woman whose story radiates resilience, clarity, and the power of saying yes to the life you truly want.

Patricia’s path wasn’t a straight line to being a full-time artist. Before she was writing uplifting pop-soul anthems and winning songwriting awards, she was a successful lawyer and legal tech entrepreneur working eighty-hour weeks. The work was meaningful, but something essential - her creative life - was quietly fading into the background.

Then came the diagnosis that changed everything.

After ovarian cancer in 2003, Patricia realized she had been postponing her true calling. She’d always wanted to write songs but never felt “qualified” enough. Like many of us, she was waiting for someone else to give her permission.

Instead, cancer became her catalyst.

With the support of a piano-playing friend who encouraged her to simply sing what she heard in her head, Patricia began writing music - raw, intuitive, and unshaped by rules. That early commitment eventually grew into a master’s degree in music, countless songwriting credits, and a career rooted in joy, community, and personal truth.

One of my favorite moments from our conversation was when Patricia said:

“Don’t wait for permission. If you feel a deep desire to do something, that is your calling.”

Through the Compass program, she has been reconnecting with herself as an artist - not just a collaborator for others, but a creator with her own message and voice to share. The Compass framework helped her claim new parts of her identity: alchemist, healer, sage, mentor.
Not labels she had ever used for herself, but ones that were always there.

Her music reflects that evolution. Through call-and-response moments, gospel influences, and lyrics crafted with intention, Patricia creates concerts that feel more like community experiences - spaces where people feel permission to be themselves.

This year, she’s stepping even further into that identity. She has a new EP coming, and for the first time, she’ll be leading her own healing music retreat. As she said, the more she honors who she truly is, the more aligned opportunities appear.

Patricia’s journey is a powerful reminder that:

• You are allowed to become who you’ve always been.
  
  

• Mastery requires being brave enough to be a beginner again.
  
  

• Creativity thrives when we stop seeking permission.
  
  

If you’re craving a life aligned with your deepest truth, Patricia’s story is proof:
It’s never too late to choose the life you’re called toward.

Follow Patricia on IG at patriciabahiamusic, and stay tuned for her upcoming EP.
This conversation - and her music - is an invitation.