From Folk To Electronic Music: Inside Amava’s Big Transformation

Amava opens up about her bold transition from Folk to electronic dance music in this exclusive interview. She also shares insights into her new single “Bitter End,” which blends striking lyrics with pulsing beats.

1 — Looking back, how did you first get into music?

I feel like I was always exposed to music growing up. My dad used to be in a garage jam band of sorts and he’d set me up on the drums just to mess around. I got way more into music when I started middle school through a program at my school that taught kids how to become musicians and artists.

We learned guitar, and how to write songs, were given themes each week then had to perform it at the end of the week for critique. It was a pretty amazing program to go through and fully fostered my interest in music. I never wanted to do anything else.

2 — Do you remember the first song you wrote or performed? What inspired you?

My first song was called “Jailbreak.” I was 11 or 12 writing about some intense heartbreak that I convinced myself I was feeling when really I think I was just interpreting how I would feel based on what I read in books and movies.

It definitely was not a good song but what the first song ever is. My sisters still sing some of the lyrics to me as an inside joke between us.

3 — Did you have a mentor or guide in your early years as an artist?

My parents really created an environment at home for my sisters and me to find our creative interests and follow them. They’d always say “Don’t let school and work get in the way of your life” and I’m very lucky they had that mindset. They really pushed me to follow what I wanted to do.

4 — Was there any artist that influenced your early steps in music?

The town I grew up in had this amazing Folk festival that I always went to as a kid which turned into me playing and working for it when I was a teenager. In high school, we’d share the stage with these incredible artists.

Even though I’ve moved away from the genre as an artist, I’m still massively inspired by it and all the artists I worked with. I have an insane amount of nostalgia for that genre and it feels like a childhood home. Someday I wanna do some one-off folk project.

5 — Does it feel like a big transformation going from Folk music to electronic music?

Weirdly it felt very natural. I think as I got to be 17-18 I really was discovering my own interests and the stuff I liked and I just felt myself being more and more drawn to that electronic sound. I was on Tumblr a lot back in the heyday and that showed me a completely different genre of music and I kind of just said “Yeah that’s the one that feels like me.” I think the community of both artists and fans in the hyperpop, electronic spaces is where I feel the most at home and “me.”

6 — What do you enjoy most about making music right now?

Honestly, I feel like I’m in a big stage of unlearning right now. I’ve always been super hard on myself and a perfectionist and thinking everything I wrote and put out had to be my best work ever and went through multiple stages of edits when it really just ended up stifling my creativity and my ability to have fun in my creative process. I feel like right now I’m realizing that stuff can be fun for the sake of it being fun.

7 — What was the creative process behind the visuals for “Bitter End”?

I’m a huge visual and fashion girl at heart and I really take a lot of care and pride when picking the kind of visual vibe for a song. I love a mood board and I really just want to look like a popstar and have that extension of myself.

To me, my visual identity is as important as my music. For this one, I just wanted something that was fun and simple. Black leather, red lights, flashy visuals.

8 — Can you explain what gives “Bitter End” its unique edge over your previous work?

This one was just fun to write and also kind of serves as the bridge between my previous stuff and what’s to come next. It’s also the song of mine that I’ve heard most at parties and in DJ sets and things like that.

9 — What kind of reaction would you like to see from your fans with this new release?

I feel like this is the song where I’ve started to notice a community growing. The DMs and messages I get are so, so sweet and nice and I really want to be able to continue bringing people into my world.

10 — After this single, are you planning to release an EP? Can you reveal what we can expect from it?

Stuff is happening. I’m taking my time with it instead of putting pressure to rush something out but things are happening and nearing that near final stage. The stuff I’m working on is also super recently written which is uncommon for me. It’s all very fresh feelings and ideas.

I’m also having the most fun with visuals that I’ve ever had. It’s gonna be some good stuff.

CONNECT WITH AMAVA!

YouTube
Facebook
Instagram