Malea Emma – My Hero

By starrymag | May 28, 2020

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

A) I would describe my sound as pop and soul with mezzo-soprano range. Pop and soul are always the genres that I am most comfortable with, but I am also learning other music genres as well like jazz, rock and even opera.

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

A) My biggest influence would be Christina Aguilera. I love her voice so much. I watched many of her videos to learn from them. I also love Etta James, Aretha Franklin, Jennifer Holliday, Whitney Houston and Jennifer Hudson.

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “My Hero.” Why was it important to you to write a song dedicated to the first responders/health workers?

A) Well, we are all impacted with this pandemic but the first responders/health workers are really the true heroes. Most of the time we feel upset because of this pandemic. A lot of our plans got canceled. We have to stay at home all the time and that’s not fun. We can’t go to the beach or play at the park; we feel trapped and frustrated. But when you think of the health workers, our situation is nothing. They sacrifice their lives to save others. They work long hours. They can’t even see their family because they are afraid of bringing the virus home. And at that time (at the beginning of the pandemic), we took them for granted. We should be grateful for these heroes because they are the ones who sacrifice the most for us.

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

A) The video was shot a week before the lock down. The idea is to show that we are never alone when we have troubles. There is always someone who can help us, like friends, family or (again in this situation) the health workers. So, I asked my dancer friends to help me with this video. The video started with me being alone and then my friends came to cheer me up and we danced together. I want this video to be uplifting and entertaining for people who watch it.

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

A) I wrote this song with my dad. First, we brainstormed about what it was about and also the style of the music. So, we knew from the beginning that this song would be about someone’s hero. As for the style, we decided that this song should be an upbeat song because we wanted to cheer up and entertain people. We wanted people to be able to sing along and dance to this song.

Next, we played around on the piano to find the melody. We started with the chorus before the verse and the bridge was the last one added to the song.

The lyrics were always the challenging part but also fun! It was like playing puzzle on how to put the lyrics together, made them rhyme and also fit them to the melody that we already created. In this process, the melody might be changed to make the lyrics fit to the song or vice versa.

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

A) The production took a village! We don’t know anything about music production, but we are very fortunate to be surrounded with friends who always support my music career. A friend helped with the music arrangement, another friend helped with the recording, and another friend helped with the mixing and mastering.

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

A) I really hope so! It’s not planned yet but I am now working on a new song. Stay tuned!

Q) Have you given any consideration to trying out for any competition singing shows like “America’s Got Talent” or “Little Big Shots?”

A) Last year I was invited to perform on “American Idol” in front of the judges Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie even though I was too young to compete and was awarded with the golden ticket to come back when I am old enough to compete.

I haven’t tried “America’s Got Talent” or “Little Big Shots” yet so far. I might be interested when the time is right.

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

A) Christina Aguilera, of course!

I was invited to meet her before her concert in New York and it was so amazing that I got to meet and talk to my biggest idol. I even froze when I saw her, but she was very nice and she knew that I was very nervous meeting her, so she asked me to give her a hug and started the conversation with me. It would be a dream come true if someday I can sing with her.

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

A) Currently, I am listening to a lot of Etta James’ songs because I am learning jazz. I am also listening to the soundtrack of Go! Vive A Tu Manera because I really love this show. I also like singing in different language, so I have been singing Spanish songs as well. In the past I have sung in Mandarin, Indonesian and Latin.

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

A) It is very important to connect with my fans in social media because that’s how I can communicate with them. I am very active on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter (@MaleaEmma). Social media is where all my fans can keep up with my latest project and also my daily life. That’s where I can share my performance videos because not all events are for public and not everyone can attend my show in person. That’s also where I announce my upcoming projects, so my fans will be the first ones to know. I also always try my best to reply to their comments and direct message as long as they are polite.

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

A) Thank you so much for everyone who has been supporting me and my work all the way. It really means a lot to me when people tell me that they get inspired by my performance.