142: Layla Minoui on Music, Healing and the Journey Back to Yourself
What if music could help you feel what you haven't been able to put into words β and bring you back to parts of yourself you've lost touch with?
In this episode, I'm joined by Layla Minoui, an award-nominated film and television composer whose work spans DreamWorks, Disney, Netflix and beyond. After nearly two decades composing music to tell other people's stories, Layla began creating music that told her own β a deeply personal journey shaped by her experience with cancer and her relationship with sound, creativity and healing.
Layla shares how improvising at the piano helped her move through feelings she had struggled to express, including grief, anger and the experience of being in survival mode. Rather than trying to fix her circumstances, music gave her a space to feel what was there and change her relationship with what she was experiencing.
We explore the moment that shifted her perspective on life, when a difficult medical appointment led her to recognise the choice she still had in how she met the unknown. Spending time with her young son reminded her of the wonder, curiosity, play and presence that can so easily become buried beneath the pursuit of the next achievement.
We also explore intuition and embodied wisdom, the difference between understanding something intellectually and truly embodying it, and the importance of meeting ourselves with curiosity rather than judgement. Layla reflects on her project *Journey to Rebirth*, the meaning of rebirth as a return to our authentic selves, and her desire to create immersive musical spaces where people can slow down and reconnect with themselves.
This is a conversation about music, resilience, self-trust and the ongoing journey of coming home to who we are.
**In this episode, we explore:**
* How music can express what words cannot
* Growing up between cultures and finding a sense of belonging through music
* Moving from composing other people's stories to telling her own
* Using improvisation to make space for difficult emotions
* Navigating cancer, uncertainty and the power of choice
* Why healing is a continuous unfolding rather than a destination
* Learning to trust your intuition while remaining open to professional support
* The difference between intellectual understanding and embodied change
* Rebirth as remembrance and a return to the authentic self
* Meeting ourselves and others with greater curiosity, compassion and presence
If this conversation resonates with you, take a moment to notice: **What helps you come home to yourself?**
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 β Meet Layla Minoui
01:02 β Growing Up Between Two Cultures
04:12 β How Music Shaped Her Identity
05:38 β From Film Composer to Personal Storytelling
07:35 β Creating Music Through Her Cancer Journey
09:28 β Rediscovering the Heart of Music
12:32 β Trusting Your Own Creative Voice
15:05 β Improvisation as a Pathway to Healing
17:17 β Making Space for Difficult Emotions
20:45 β The Moment That Changed Her Perspective
22:17 β Rediscovering Wonder, Play & Presence
25:51 β Why Healing Is a Continuous Unfolding
30:07 β Intuition, the Body & Inner Knowing
33:43 β Creating Space for Curiosity and Compassion
35:27 β What Rebirth Really Means
40:00 β Coming Home to Yourself
55:51 β Meeting Yourself With Compassion
58:15 β Journey to Rebirth & Its Wider Mission
ABOUT LAYLA MINOUI
Layla Minoui, is an award-nominated film and television composer whose work spans DreamWorks, Disney, Netflix, and beyond. Following her own healing journey, she's now combining her lifelong passion for music with personal transformation, using sound as a powerful pathway for healing, resilience, and hope."
Connect With LAYLA MINOUI:
Website: https://laylaminoui.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/layla_composer/
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π Website: https://www.simoneniles.com/
π Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simonenilesofficial/
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Disclaimer
The views shared by guests on the podcast are their own and are shared for discussion and insight.
