Holly Auna – Water

By starrymag | September 27, 2020

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

A) I have been called so many different genres that I’ve just started saying I’m a genre-bending artist. I’ve noticed that people hear the genre they listen to the most in my music.  I grew up listening to cowboy country music when I was very young, then switched to radio country in the early 2000s. Around 2008, I joined a classic rock cover band and mainly listened to mainly alt-rock and 60s-70s folk during that time period.  When I listen to my music, I can hear pieces of all the music I love.

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

A) Chris LeDoux, early Kenny Chesney, Joy Williams, John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Kimya Dawson, BORNS

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Water.”

A) I wrote “Water” with my friends Lydia Dall and John Townsend. It started as a “vibe write.” John was playing a beautiful chord progression and I started riffing over it.  Between the three of us, we stumbled upon the phrase, “I wait down by the water, taking my time to get a little further with you.” We dove into that emotion and I pulled from my current relationship.  I’d never known what it was like to love someone enough that I would wait for them if they left.  It was an interesting experience to write a love song in the form of a breakup song, but when I sing the song live I feel that deep rush of emotions.

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

A) The thing I find most incredible about music and art is the ability to evoke emotion in someone.  I hope that when people hear “Water” it makes them feel something. It is a very sonically emotional song with obscure lyrics so even if someone doesn’t find an exact meaning in the lyrics I hope that the melody moves them.

 

Q) The song is about losing someone you love and longing for them. How do you heal from a breakup?

A) I’m actually not sure. This song was written about my current boyfriend and how I’d never loved someone enough to wait forever if I lost them. I think this song shows that I don’t think I would handle moving on very well.

 

Q) How does the video for the track play into the message behind it?

A) I actually don’t have a music video for this song yet, but I hope to one day!

 

Q) What is your songwriting process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

A) It is always different. Sometimes it’s a hook, or the melody, or an idea or a feeling. For “Water” it was the vibe and melody first and the lyrics followed.

 

Q) How much of a hand do you have in the production of your music?

A) I co-produced “Water” with my bandmates Dan Kozlowski, John Townsend, Ryan Oetken and Matthew Foss.  We spent many practices arranging this song, then many months playing it around Nashville before going into the studio at The Amber Sound.  I loved co-producing this project with these extremely talented guys who are also some of my very best friends.

 

Q) How did life in Nashville and New York influence you as an artist?

A) I grew up in a small town in a cottage in the woods, it’s actually where I got the name for my record label: Dogwood Cottage Records. When I first moved to Nashville from my small town it felt huge.  Then, when I moved to Manhattan it was an entirely new experience- a new way of life.  I became exposed to so much more in such a short amount of time and it definitely influenced me as an artist.  I’ll always treasure the years I spent in Manhattan learning and growing, but I truly feel like I’ve found a home here in Nashville.

 

Q) Will there be a full album or EP coming in the near future?

A) Yes! I’m working on a full-length album with my band. It will hopefully be out in 2021 but that all depends on the global pandemic.  I’ve stayed completely quarantined during this time period and I won’t be back in the studio for a while.

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

A) I absolutely love house concerts. I love playing to an intimate group of people and getting to share the stories behind the songs.  Each house concert is a unique bonding experience with the audience.

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

A) I would like to write a song with Lin-Manuel Miranda, record a duet with John Mayer and open for Joy Williams.

 

Q) What album/band are you currently listening to and why do you dig them? 

A) I’m currently listening to the Hamilton musical on repeat. I’m reading the book Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow and I recently watched the play for the first time on Disney+ so it’s all I’ve wanted to listen to for the past week.

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

A) As an independent musician, social media is by far the biggest tool I have for promotion.  I love forming personal connections with my fans that go past the music I’m releasing.  I started TikTok in December and I’ve grown my following to 223k followers since then.  TikTok is very integrated with music, I even have a tab on my channel that people can click on to use my music in their videos! Someone might find me from a tie-dying crafting video, but it can easily lead them to my music! The pandemic has made all of us musicians much more heavily reliant on social media from posting content to promoting music to playing shows online- social media is where we live now!

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

A) I’ve been sitting here staring at this question for a longer period of time than it took me to fill out the rest of the interview.  I don’t have words meaningful enough to thank my fans and supporters. Writing and releasing music is terrifying. It’s taking a piece of your soul and exposing it to the world.  And it’s not the parts of your soul that are easy to show.  When you’re a songwriter you’re showing people what you’re like when you’re at your most vulnerable.  I want to say thank you to my fans and supporters for accepting me and letting me be vulnerable with them.  I want them to know what a huge part of my journey they have been and how much I appreciate them.  As a new artist emerges, they slowly gather fans along the way, each person contributes to the career and journey of that artist.  I’m so grateful to the amazing people who have been a part of my journey this far.