SUNY Buffalo State graduate Raquel De Souza turned her dreams into a reality, with the recent release of her first music video, “Run Towards the Highway.”

“I’ve always been musical,” De Souza said. “I always wrote as a therapeutic thing.”

De Souza graduated in 2013 with her Bachelor’s degree in Theater Arts. During college, she performed in several Buffalo State productions including Dames at Sea, The Children’s Hour, Working, Julius Caesar, and Nine Parts Desire.

After receiving her degree, she was driven to turn “a really passionate hobby” into something more.

 Since graduation, De Souza has performed on both the east and west coast in Los Angeles and New York City. De Souza has also made an appearance in HBO’s The Left Overs and has recently completed a webisode pilot with Hudson Valley Video Productions. It was during that pilot where she became acquainted with cinematographer Monstr in the Dark, the cinematographer of her music video.

“I love his work.” De Souza said. In collaboration with Monstr in the Dark, De Souza created a visual storyline that ties into the message of her song. The message is for anyone struggling to leave an unhealthy relationship. The song is meant to give hope to those conflicted with this problem.

“There are so many better things out there,” De Souza said. “It’s okay to start over.”

What inspired De Souza to write this song?

“All my storytelling comes from truths,” she said.

De Souza has been working on her song since April. “I knew it was going to be a lot of work, but I loved the entire process,” De Souza said.

“To see the product finally out there is like, whoa, this is awesome. So worth it.” De Souza said.

De Souza said her current goals are recording more songs, continuing to build her social media following, booking events, and getting a band together. De Souza’s desire to create a band comes from her love of collaboration with other artists.

“I want people to grow with me,” she said.

“Run for the Highway” is available for stream on Spotify, and Apple Music: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id1285767026, and available for purchase on iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/album/id1285767026?ls=1&app=itunes .