Describe your sound in 3 words
Intimate, honest, raw
Tell us a few things about your new song “I dream Of A World”. What is the main idea behind it?
‘I Dream Of A World’ is the second single of my upcoming debutalbum ‘Why Don’t We Give It A Try?’, which was inspired by conversations I had with changemakers. This song was born after speaking to Zaïre Krieger; a powerhouse of a woman who is a spoken word artist, law graduate, activist for anti-racism, feminism and intersectionality, and the recently announced translator of Amanda Gorman’s speech and book in the Netherlands. We spoke about activism, faith, intersectionality, and perseverance.
The clarinet part was a very interesting surprise. Tell us a few things about your creative process.
My creative process for this album was totally new to me. I started by having conversations with changemakers; people who commit themselves to a societal goal. Later, I would listen back to the conversation and write down every sentence or idea that I thought was essential to their story. From there, I started improvising with melodies and harmonies. After I had a full structure musically (based on the essense of the conversation), I would start writing the lyrics. In the demo process I would make arrangements and record multiple instruments, but in a later stadium I also invited guest musicians. The clarinet you hear is played by Ghaeth Almaghoot, who improvised his whole part! It was such a perfect addition to the song and I am so happy to have him apart of it.
The vocal delivery in this one is very expressive, well done! Which is your favorite vocalist and your main influences in general?
Thanks a lot! That’s actually quite a difficult question to me, because I mostly feel inspired musically/songwriting wise by people. Singers that I really admire are Joni Mitchell, Laura Marling, Linda Perhacs, Victoria Legrand, Fairuz and Thom Yorke. I think I carry a little bit of each one of them with me when singing.
What would you change in the music industry?
Sometimes I feel like all people care about nowadays are numbers, and I do think that is a pity. There are insanely beautiful songs and albums that have not been heard by many people, and that doesn’t say anything about the quality of the music itself. I actually really love Spotify, because it’s such a strong tool to discover new music and also to have your music heard all over the world. But in my opinion the focus on Spotify playlists and streams is not sustainable; I’d rather have a 1000 real fans than a million streams on one of my songs, just because it got into a few huge playlists which people listen to in the background. A combination would be highly appreciated as well of course 🙂
What was the best film you have watched during the quarantine?
I saw my first Wes Anderson movies; Moonrise Kingdom and The Budapest Hotel, which I both really enjoyed. His style is so particular and the cast in both movies is magnificent. Furtermore, I have always felt like I would adore Éric Rohmer movies, and I finally dove into that world. The one that I watches most recently was ‘La Femme de l’aviateur’, which I can really recommend (if you’re into nouvelle vague). To me, it is such a refreshment from modern cinema, where everything needs to be fast and thrilling all the time. Rohmer really focusses on dialogue, and sincere human interaction, which I find very inspiring.
What would you be doing right now, if it wasn’t for your music career?
I’ve always felt really connected to human rights issues, so I would probably be doing something in that area. I love working with people so something social would fit me very well. Writing is something that has also been a big part of me since I can remember, so being a writer would be something I aspire as well.
Thank you!
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