Photos by Brian Kaminsky
You just released your new empowering single, “Other Side”! Can you tell us what this song means to you?
To me, it’s a song of hope, perseverance, and survival. That when the going gets tough and you are going through your darkness times or darkest hour, that you hold on and find the strength to love yourself no matter what you may be experiencing or what anyone says to you.
How excited were you to get this single out into the world?
Anytime I have released a single, and particularly with “Other Side”, it’s like it’s your baby going out there into the world, and now you see if it has the legs and response you hoped it would. I was very excited to release this song as it personally meant so much to me, but who knew a week later the COVID-19 pandemic would change all of your lives …so now the song is probably even more relatable as a fight song to what we are all as a people experiencing collectively
Do you have any other release plans for 2020?
I have been writing and working on an EP of new songs that I hope will be released in the fall, plus a potential dance remix of “Other Side”.
What do you hope your supporters will think of the new music?
I hope that they … get into the grooves … the vocals … the writing … and the sleek production sounds that I like to put my stamp, or style on.
How do you want your relationship to be like with your supporters?
I hope to have an army of supporters! I so appreciate how artists like Shawn Mendes, Taylor Swift and others cultivate and maintain these awesome relationships with their fans; some who they know very much on a first-name basis, and who as artists are keenly aware that at the end of the day without their supporters or fans, they would not be where they are today in the music biz.
What’s something your fans don’t know about you?
That I am a HUGE sports fanatic. You name it – NBA, NFL, MLB, College Hoops, I know the stats, the standings, team line-ups etc. Unfortunately, we are all waiting for sports to come back, but when it does you might find me as a couch potato watching hours of ESPN.
What do you want your fans to know if they ever see you in public?
That I am always up for a good conversation and hope to hear their thoughts on my music and how it inspires or how it has affected them. It helps you as an artist to know what people are taking from or feeling about your songs and your music. Now, I would not want someone to come up to me in public, if they didn’t like my music and throw a drink in my face that would not be cool.
What do you want your message to be towards your fans? What do you want your fans to take away from your music and shows?
When they listen to my music, or see one of my shows, I want them to come away humming one of my songs, or dancing to it, even as they exit a concert. My message to my fans is that I want them to know that it’s Ok to feel down, lonely, or isolated or troubled, I have been there too, but I promise you there are things to look forward to on the horizon if you hang in there long enough. I hope my songs provide strength and comfort for them.
What’s one word you would use to describe what your fans have allowed you to accomplish?
“Determined” – they have made me more determined and inspired to continue to do what I love to do – sing and make music.
Why do you think social media is so important for artists like yourself?
Without social media, artists like myself might never have been heard, or have cultivated an even bigger audience or listenership. You can’t do it without social media in 2020, and especially now even more, when all of us are connecting through IG and multiple platforms to stay relevant and in each other’s lives; when we are all disconnected in some ways by the coronavirus pandemic,
What would you say is your biggest dream/goal right now?
On a large scale: I would love to have a top 10 pop single, a top 10 R&B/soul single and a top ten dance single, all on the charts around the same time. On a smaller scale: put out some songs that I am proud of for people to hear that I have also challenged myself on as an artist.
Any last things you want to tell your supporters?
Continue to stay safe, and lean into music. It really is a universal language we can all feel and relate to, and thank you for embracing my work and what I am putting out into the world.
