Lindsey Stirling's 'Opportunity of Lifetime' — Tours NASA Amid Plans to Send First Woman to Moon
Lindsey Stirling‘s latest musical experience is out of this world.
The star violinist, 33, teamed up with NASA to perform her song “Artemis” during her recent trip to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s headquarters.
Stirling’s rousing instrumental, which is featured on her album also titled Artemis, shares its name with NASA’s new Artemis program. Through the program, NASA plans to land the first woman and the next man on the moon by 2024. The space agency aims to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before. By 2028, NASA hopes to collaborate with its partners and develop sustainable exploration.
Opening up to PEOPLE about her galactic adventure, Stirling revealed the true meaning behind her album’s title.
“I see it as the universe speaking,” she says. “Artemis, as the goddess of the moon, is a very empowering woman in Greek mythology and I thread her message all throughout my album and the visual graphic novel.”
“The same week we announced our title, NASA announced its next mission to put a woman on the moon as [part of] the Artemis program and my team looked at ourselves and said, ‘Wow,'” Stirling recalls. “My manager Adina made contact with NASA and they invited us down for a tour and the opportunity of a lifetime — to play my violin!”
courtesy Lindsey Stirling Lindsey Stirling
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For Stirling, learning that her song and album are both namesakes with NASA’s new mission was just the tip of the iceberg for her excitement.
“It was really the frosting on the cupcake that while we were touring a door opened and out spilled all of these real life heroes,” she tells PEOPLE. “Even the tour guides were in awe. It was so cool to get a chance to meet NASA astronauts and they even let us get a few photos!”
Stirling shared her momentous photos with PEOPLE exclusively. The Dancing with the Stars alum says she feels empowered each time she views her music video in collaboration with NASA.
“Watching this video will always remind me that women can accomplish everything we set our hearts and minds to achieving,” Stirling says. “I’m grateful to be surrounded by so many amazing women and this Artemis Tour is a celebration of all that we’re accomplishing together.”
courtesy Lindsey Stirling Josh Cassada, Nicole Mann, Lindsey Stirling, Sunita Williams and Mike “Spanky” Fincke
courtesy Lindsey Stirling Lindsey Stirling and Artemis dancers
Stirling will embark on a two-month long, international tour this Spring. The Artemis Tour kicks off on Thursday in Bogotá, Colombia and wraps on May 18 in Perth, Australia. The complete list of tour dates is available on the official CID Entertainment website.
The violinist has a message for the future female leaders of the world.
“In this same way, I hope it’s also aspirational to any little girl who needs to see the actual manifestation of our dreams,” she tells PEOPLE. “These female astronauts are the embodiment of dreaming big, working hard and pushing boundaries to make a better world for all of us.”
courtesy Lindsey Stirling Lindsey Stirling
Currently, NASA has 16 female astronauts who may be assigned to participate in Artemis missions. Astronaut Mae Carol Jemison became the first African American woman to visit space in 1992 — a historic move that broke barriers for women and the black community. In a new breakthrough move, Charlie Blackwell-Thompson — the space administration’s first female launch director — will give the green light to launch for Artemis I.
Today, astronaut Christina Koch holds the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman.
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In addition to touring NASA ahead of her own musical tour, Stirling has collaborated with the Calm App to create her soothing tune “Lunar Lullaby” available only on the app.
“In a way, I feel like it shares a little different side of me,” Stirling said during an interview discussing the relaxing track. “This song is almost like the side of me that I work on, that I sit there and I think, ‘This is the kind of person that I am striving to be. This is the kind of state I’m striving to live in.'”
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