Kimaya (Kimy) Lecamwasam, a computational neuroscientist and multi-instrumentalist who plays electric bass and guitar, is pioneering innovative mental health solutions by merging neuroscience, artificial intelligence, and music. From a young age, music was her primary means of self-expression, especially during her years as a shy and anxious teenager. She found that composing and performing music not only helped her communicate but also played a vital role in managing her mental well-being. This deep personal connection to music sparked her interest in neuroscience. While studying at Wellesley College, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience with a focus on systems and computational neuroscience, she took a songwriting course that heightened her awareness of music’s emotional power. She then joined Emery Brown’s lab at MIT’s Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, where she worked on classifying consciousness in anesthetized patients and developing brain-computer interface prosthetics using reinforcement learning. Despite her rigorous scientific work, Lecamwasam remained committed to integrating music into her academic journey. She found the perfect environment at the MIT Media Lab’s Program in Media Arts and Sciences (MAS), particularly within the Opera of the Future group, where she could pursue both artistic creativity and scientific rigor. Her graduate research centers on the therapeutic potential of music, exploring how it affects the body, mind, and emotions. Her master’s thesis introduced the concept of “pharmamusicology,” examining how music can positively influence anxiety through physiological and psychological mechanisms. Now in her third year of a doctoral program, she is investigating how large-scale live music experiences impact the mental health of both audiences and performers. She is also working to clinically validate music-based interventions—such as listening, composing, and performing—when combined with therapy and medication. In collaboration with Professor Anna Huang’s Human-AI Resonance Lab, Lecamwasam is studying how AI-generated music compares to human-composed music in terms of emotional resonance. Her goal is to develop ethical, human-centered applications of AI in music that support mental health without undermining creativity or agency. She has presented her work at major international conferences, including CHI and Audio Mostly, and led wellness workshops at the Wellbeing Summit in Bilbao, Spain. Lecamwasam has partnered with organizations like Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute on Well-Being Concerts and the North Shore Lullaby Project to explore how lullaby writing can support perinatal mental health. She also collaborates with Myndstream on assessing emotional responses to AI-generated music and works with PixMob and Empatica—both MIT Media Lab spinoffs—on interactive lighting and live music experiences in large venues. Professor Tod Machover, her advisor and director of the Opera of the Future group, praises her for embodying the Media Lab’s spirit by blending art and science to create emotionally meaningful, personalized mental health interventions. Lecamwasam is also deeply committed to community-building. She has been involved in the SOS program, helping students from diverse backgrounds apply to MAS, and will become the first peer mentor in a new initiative pairing incoming master’s students with PhD students. She also contributes to Studcom, a student-led group fostering connection across the Media Lab. For Lecamwasam, the support and collaboration within her academic community are central to her motivation. “Everyone is passionate about their work and genuinely supportive,” she says. “That sense of belonging keeps me inspired, even when challenges arise.” Her journey reflects a powerful fusion of personal experience, scientific inquiry, and creative innovation aimed at transforming mental health care through the universal language of music.