Kendra Erika – Avalanche

By starrymag | December 31, 2020

By: Ashlee Dell’Arciprete

 

 

Q) First off, congratulations on the huge success of your previous single, “So Fly,” which surpassed over 1.5 million views on YouTube. Tell us the story behind your newest single “Avalanche.”

A) “Avalanche” is a byproduct of Mark Mangold and I collaborating and joining forces. We wrote it in his Manhattan studio and the melodic and lyrical ideas just flowed and came to such fruition.

 

Q) Your video for “So Fly” achieved great success from the music video that accompanied it. Your new single “Avalanche” also had an amazing video which featured an ice piano! How was the process of making this new music video? 

A) The ice piano was one for the video making books for sure. Being that I had mother nature working against (or for) me in that it was the record hottest day of the year in Vegas, filming a very wintery concept was so paradoxical and so cool in retrospect. The crew and team (directed by Tolga Katas) I worked with to make “Avalanche” was wonderful and we all grew together to create something incredible.

 

Q) How do you work in your choreography with your music and lyrics? How do you usually start the process and which usually comes first?

A) When it comes to choreography lately, I haven’t contrived it in my videos.  Any movements or dancing has been free-flowing and not staged. I have done shows and videos where I have had staged choreography and it worked for those scenarios in particular, but now the name of the game is au natural and moving in the moment.

 

Q) You’ve had singles on the Billboard Dance Chart, Billboard Top 100 and more. How do you keep your sound fresh and new?

A) It’s a matter of seeing which horizon and which land I haven’t gone to yet. Every project is going to offer me a new experience and it’s my job as the artist to relay that sense of freshness and originality through that new experience.

 

Your brand new single “Avalanche” began its collaboration with infamous producers, like Mark Mangold before the pandemic shut down the industry. What was the process of producing “Avalanche” during these tragic times? 

 

A) I wrote “Avalanche” with Mark Mangold, who has worked with the likes of Cher, Michael Bolton, Jordan Sparks and many more. Originally, he presented me with the chorus idea already mapped out. We built upon the chorus when he brought me into the process. He brought out his vintage, which I appreciated especially for a song like this one and he began playing the chord progressions that you now hear in the beginning of the song. Upon what I heard, I started singing a melody, which is the one that is now the first verse. It was quite surreal that my first vocal pass at the verse melody both Mark and I latched onto and then we used the same melody for the second verse, with a tad stylistic change to make the song more dynamic.

Being that both Mark and I love eccentric lyrics — ones that really paint a picture and are visually felt — we then embarked down the lyrical aspect of “Avalanche.” Making sure all the way that every word crystalized the visual we wanted to paint for the listeners.

 

Q) Outside of music, what do you usually do in your free time when not recording? 

A) I love working out, taking long reflective walks and enjoying a good golf game is how I exhale when not working and making my musical moves.

 

Q) How do you shake off a long day in the studio?

A) I’m usually still wound up from being mentally and emotionally stimulated in the studio, so I pour myself a glass of wine and take a nice hot shower to relax.

 

Q) Which artists do you look up to the most when it comes to songwriters? 

A) When they say things in a different and offbeat way. Generic lyrics don’t turn me on or stimulate me. I gravitate towards songwriters that don’t cater to the machine; they cater to the music. I respect and admire artists like Lana Del Rey, Solange and Ellie Goulding

 

Q) How do you stay strong as a woman in this industry?

A) I stick to my roots and I don’t do anything that would put me in a situation of selling out. Also, I don’t victimize myself and I utilize my mind over my body to get what I want.

 

Q) What do you love the most about performing?

A) The energy above anything. The winning combination of the people and the vibrations from the speakers just makes me happy.

 

Q) How do you maintain your authenticity with your acquired success?

A) I don’t believe the hype of the machine and I stay rooted. When you uproot a tree, its leaves will lose their color and die out. When a tree is rooted, its leaves stay colorful and full of life.

 

Q) What would you like to say to your fans and supporters?

A) Focus on what’s important in your life and live your life with great quality and integrity.