Lily Elise – Taken

By starrymag | March 14, 2015

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

A) I describe it as alternative pop R&B. I’ve kind of made my own genre with that one.

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

A) There are so many! Growing up I listened to a lot of all of the divas like Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey and Destiny’s Child. Also, I love lots of other types of music as well. So, I love John Mayer and Stevie Wonder. It’s good for my writing because I get to draw from a lot of places.

Q) What is the feel and vibe for new EP Taken?

A) With Taken I wanted it to tell a story. The EP is a storyline of a past relationship of mine and it was one that was pretty bad. With the songs, they follow the storyline. Right now, we have three singles released and we are kind of releasing them one by one, but the vibe of the whole EP is kind of dark and moody and at the same time I wanted to put it out there for people who are in bad relationships to know that they are not alone.

Q) Your sister designed the artwork for the EP. How does it pair with the message?

A) For me, I’m really particular about art. My sister, her art is one of the most inspiring things. She is my older sister so growing up I was always like, “I want to be you!” So with the EP, I really wanted to incorporate her art with it. She has such a great eye and really sat down with the music and drew what she felt. Everything came out perfectly and I wanted to keep it close to me.

Q) How much of a hand did you have in the production of the EP?

A) I would say quite a bit. A lot of the songs I’ll go in, sit down with the producers and suggest we move things here or there just to make sure it feels like me. The tracks were amazing though so I didn’t have to go in. But I would say I had quite a bit and then especially with vocal production I love to produce my own vocals. And I love when the songs are vocal heavy so I would stack like a bunch of vocals on there. A couple of the songs I produced my own vocals as well.

Q) What is the song writing process like for you? Do you need the music and melody before the lyrics?

A) Usually, I do melody and then lyrics. With most of the songs on the EP actually, I would say that when I was most inspired they come at the same time, which is interesting because I guess I don’t hear people saying that a lot. I kind of like to write the lyrics and the melody together because it feels right. Then, I’ll go back and tweak it. But especially with my own stuff, I like to do it that way.

Q) What are your favorite songs to perform?

A) I just love them all! I feel like I took such a long time to write it so over the course of a year each one was my favorite when I wrote it. As far as performing, I love to perform “Generator.” There is a song coming out that is called “I Don’t Know Why” and that is one of my favorites. I think that’s going to be really good live.

Q) What can fans expect from a live Lily Elise performance?

A) I want the live show to feel just like the EP feels just times ten. I want when people are at the live show to really feel the music and really be there with me. We’re working it out now and it is coming along, but it is going to be vocals, guitar looping and really trying to amp up what is already there and make it amazing for the audience.

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

A) I love social media. I first kind of got on social media when I was doing “The Voice.” The more I did it the more I loved it because you get to talk to people who you would never have a way to connect to otherwise. People are awesome! If you’re having a bad day, you can post on there and the fans are so supportive. For me, I just love talking to my fans and love even hearing little things like what they are doing and how they feel that day. I just love it!

Q) Have you kept in touch with your mentor from “The Voice?”

A) Christina [Aguilera] was my mentor and she is pretty busy now.

Q) What did you learn from your time on the show?

A) Really on the show I learned who I want to be as an artist and not to back down on that. I think when I did “The Voice” I was young and it was my first experience in the real industry. For me, I just kind of let the process define what I was going to do. I was like, “Oh that song? Okay. You want me to sing it this way? Okay.” I left the show and looked back on it thinking I should have stood up for myself and said what I wanted because I’m not just a cover singer, I’m an artist as well as everyone that I met during my time on the show. I kind of wish that I had taken more liberties to be myself. I really learned with my own music to stand up for it.

Q) What can fans do to help promote your music?

A) Just tweet about it and share it with your friends. Honestly, I just want people to have it and listen to it and be able to hear it. I want to be able to get it to people. I guess share it as much as they can.

Q) Is there anything else you want to be sure fans know about your music?

A) There is an upcoming duet on the upcoming Twin Shadow record. That is coming March 17th and it is streaming right now on NPR. I’m really excited about it and I want to be sure people know about it.

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

A) Thank you! I love them! I love my fans. Always say hi to me, on social media or if anyone sees me! I’ve had a couple of people tweet me and say they have seen me, but didn’t come up to me. Come up to me!