Marco Giovanni – Straight Face

By starrymag | March 17, 2023

By: Lisa Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

A) I would say that I have always been rooted in R&B and pop music. I think that my sound is a fusion between pop-soul and R&B on records with heavy 808’s, but also sometimes open and acoustic.

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

A) My biggest musical influences are Justin Bieber, Poo Bear, Post Malone, The Kid Laroi, Ty Dolla $ign, Chris Brown, Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway and Frank Sinatra. Not necessarily all in order, but definitely Justin, Poo and Post are my Top 3.

 

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

A) Man, the first time I heard the beat to “Straight Face” was in LA at Poo Bear’s studio. All of the melodies and frequencies in it went crazy and I fell in love with the sound. After laying down the vocals and hearing all of the melodies finalized I knew I had to release it first. I just felt that it perfectly embodied the energy and feeling that I want to enter the industry with.

 

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

A) I think that everyone can relate, or at least want to relate, and get the feeling from the song. Cruising around bumping music with your girl, having a good time. All while staying grounded and keeping a “straight face.”

 

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

A) The video captures all of the sporadic and chaotic times of a relationship, any type of relationship, whether it is your significant other, family or friend. And I think that my role in the music video was to just have a good time during all of the chaos and stay dedicated to continue a strong bond in the relationship, hence “letting loose,” as that is needed every once in a while.

 

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

A) My creative process is pretty free formed. It’s not like a set of rules that I follow every time I’m in the studio. It is really just me, Poo Bear and the A&R engineer when I am cutting a song. Other times I’m at my home studio bouncing sounds, making beats, and cutting vocal ideas. I usually create the beat or sound first and then melodies and lyrics come to me and I go from there. When I’m with Poo Bear – or when I’m alone – I don’t write anything down. We kind of just record it in bits and go off of the in the moment ideas. It is such a fun process; Poo Bear has taught me so much – he truly is a master at this craft.

 

Q) Poo Bear lent a hand with the production on “Straight Face,” but how much of a say do you have in the production of your music?

A) I pretty much work hand in hand with Poo Bear and my team to come up with creative production ideas. I really get to play with drafts and edits of everything that I release because I think it is more authentic that way. I personally want a lot of it to be on me for the creation, but I am always down and encourage collaborating on the production, creatives, visuals and sound of my music.

 

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

A) So, for right now, I am going to do a one track at a time kind of thing. I’m currently in the decision-making process on what I want to do and have been talking to my team about it a lot because I want to make it perfect for my fans. There will definitely be an announcement whether I am releasing my debut EP or my first full studio album very soon!

 

Q) How do you tend to shake off a long day of recording in the studio?

A) I definitely shake off a long day by refueling and recharging by getting some food and drinking lots of water. I also like to work out before I go in the studio so that I am able to relax after long studio sessions.

 

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

A) The person I would most like to collaborate with in the future is Justin Bieber. It has always been a dream of mine and I think that we would make a really dope song together.

 

Q) What advice would you give to up-and-coming musicians?

A) The advice that I would give to up-and-coming musicians is to never stop your individual grind. There are going to be a lot of roadblocks and bumps, but they are necessary to sort out what you are doing right and wrong. It is all a part of the process, your process, which is different than everybody else’s. Just never give up – that is what I have learned most so far. Persistence is key and testing out new ideas and crazy things you never think would work because they just might and eventually will. I’ve really learned that what you give is what you get back and what you put out definitely gets sent back in some sort of way. I would have never been in the situation with meeting and establishing a relationship with Poo Bear if my mom didn’t randomly reach out to him on Instagram. It is the little things like that, that you’d never think would work and it does.

 

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

A) I think it is really a key feature and necessary tool to have these days. It is so cool to be able to post something and have all of these people that support you and your dream to be able to interact with. I think that it is really important in gaining chemistry with my fans and learning about each other. Kind of becoming friends in a way.

 

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

A) I would really like to thank them for all of their support and love. None of it goes unnoticed and it truly means the world to have people backing you while you continue doing what you love to do. It is just an amazing feeling and I want them to be able to connect and feel heard with my music.