Mozart – Push You Harder

By starrymag | November 8, 2018

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q)We’ve recently seen you on the show “Brats” and the movie Rose. What are the other projects you have been working on?  

 

A) Thanks! I loved being on the Brats series “The Talent Show” and got to sing some of my original songs like “Paper Tiger” and got a standing ovation! It was a lot of fun working with Sofie Dossi, Jordyn Jones, Casey Simpson and the whole cast! I was thrilled to get a Best Actress Award for my dramatic leading role in the movie Rose. Recently, I worked on Halsey’s and Lindsey Stirling documentaries and last Friday I shot a commercial for Toyota. I have been focused on creating new music, so that I have enough great songs for two albums. I’m so looking forward to releasing lots of great music soon and performing more live concerts.

 

 

Q) With your music, how would you describe your sound?

 

A) People repeatedly compare my music to Lorde, Billie Eilish, Halsey and Rihanna, which is an interesting combo and many say I have a unique tone and fresh lyrics. It’s edgy pop with a bit of an urban feel to it and empowered female vibe. I am really strong on lyrics and love telling a song story in a little different way with surprises in the melody and production, too.

 

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

A) So many influences because I grew up traveling the world non-stop for a decade as a global nomad kid and I am fluent in Spanish and Mandarin Chinese, (write/sing songs in all three of my languages) so I experienced the music and culture from so many countries around the world that have just seeped into me. I was dancing and performing Flamenco in Andalusia, Spain when I was five years old so that is in my Latin soul and I started songwriting at age four. Plus, my dad is into Jazz and my mom into old school R&B, so that had impact. I love Ella Fitzgerald, Simon & Garfunkel, Leonard Cohen, the Beatles, Sam Cooke, James Brown and more currently Ed Sheeran, Rex Orange County and H.E.R. are influences.

 

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Push You Harder.”

 

A) I wrote this a few days after I turned seventeen years old last Fall and there was a lot going on then with the beginning of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements so that was on my mind, but I have always wanted to find ways to help people as I think music can change consciousness.  I care a lot about these issues and want to do my part to make our world a better place for everyone so I wanted to write a girl power song that had an important message but was also fun, edgy and uplifting. This song was not about my personal story, but more a metaphor for all women and I think it can resonate with everyone.

 

 

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

 

A) It is a bop with a powerful message. I think we are all aware that there is a power that has been awakened among women. Many like me participated with family and friends in the Women’s Marches and felt that oneness. I think we need a fun girl-power anthem that also has a strong message to heal ourselves and to embrace our inner Queen and Goddess. My fans send me videos of them singing, lip syncing or dancing to the song and I just love seeing them!

 

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

 

A) I wanted to tell the story and capture a lot of the symbolism of the metaphor of moving from the pain of the patriarchy system to healing our wounds, empowered by powerful female role models and images to take our power back and rejoice in the blossoming of the Queen and Goddess that lives in each of us. I wanted the video to show the shocking feeling of assault, violating and choking – hands and bloody bullet wound, (“Don’t shoot me in my chest, and tell me to stop bleeding”) but transcend those images into something positive, including removing the bullet myself.  I was very inspired by Hannah Gadsby’s quote, “There is nothing stronger than a broken woman who has rebuilt herself.” and I tried to express that by taking the gunshot wound and turning it into a heart-shaped flower and finding the throne again at the end.  I think now is the time to heal ourselves and let go of any “monsters” and false conditioning that no longer serves us. I wrote/directed/styled/edited/produced the video and even though I have won awards for other videos, this was my most ambitious one so far. I did a Behind The Scenes video to share more of this process soon.

 

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

 

A) I am obsessed with lyrics, so I am always writing them or ideas down, but sometimes it starts with a melody or sometimes the melody and lyrics just come out together. I like to just be open to let it flow on however it wants to. Sometimes I do top lining. I think because I am a trilingual and have grown up in such a diverse way, it helps me think and write a little differently. I’ve been obsessed with music since babyhood.

 

 

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

 

A) A lot. I know how to do production and have been doing it for a while and I’ve been blessed to work with some amazing producers and songwriters, so I learn from every one of them. I know what I want and just have a sense of what is right for my songs, so I’ve been so lucky to work with producers that understand my vision, trust my gut and just help me produce the sound that I think fits best to my inner reality of the song. If I hear “strings” or “a harp” in my head, we work together until we create the right sound on the track.

 

Q) What can fans expect from a live Mozart performance?

 

A) Magic! I love to connect to my audience and share myself and songs in a deep way with them. Sometimes that might be a raw, artistic, acoustic version of my songs. Sometimes that might be more performance with backup dancers and/or a band. Sometimes a different combination. I love to have time for meet and greets so I can hear their feedback and I just love the oneness and connectedness of performing live.

 

 

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

 

A) Yes, absolutely! I’ve been working hard in the studio with Grammy-winner Mikal Blue and his team, so have enough great songs for two albums and I am continually creating. I think I will be putting out more singles first, but an EP and album are in the works.

 

 

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

 

A) I really enjoy performing everywhere. I’ve performed at iconic places like the Avalon, Royce Hall and Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles and love them, but have also performed at Carnegie Hall in NYC which was a thrill. I did a ten city solo tour of Europe recently and that was very significant for me as I know all those cities well and it was especially fun to perform in Spanish (and English) in Spain. I have many places around the world that I consider home, so it is always significant when I play in one of my homes, be it Barcelona or Beijing.

 

 

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

 

A) Ed Sheeran

 

 

Q) What did it mean to you to be featured in Ariana Grande’s song “God is a Woman?”

 

A) That was so, so amazing and so fun! The very first concert I ever saw was an Ariana Grande concert, so it was really surreal to get that job out of thousands and be singing and laughing right next to her. I was the only one under eighteen years old in the whole video and I had already written “Push You Harder,” so it also seemed significant that I was featured in her strongest female empowerment song. Mind-blowing! Interesting that I played a goddess in Ariana’s video and that theme returns in mine.

 

 

Q) Talk about working with Bebe Rexha on “MTV songwriting.”

 

A) That was also a lot of fun and an honor to be a part of it as she is a queen and I have such a passion for songwriting. So, again, I felt so blessed to have the chance to work so closely with her. We really connected.

 

 

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 being able to talk with my fans and supporters via social media. I think it is so important because it keeps us close and connected and they can give me feedback and share their creativity like edits and videos they send. It is so fun when I get to know someone on social media and then we meet when they come to a concert!

 

 

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

 

A) I want to say just how much I appreciate all the love and support that I get. I really do have the best fans in the world and some of them have been following me since I was a little kid traveling. In a way I have always lived a public life and am grateful that I grew up being connected to so many wonderful people and fantastic supporters. When I toured in Europe, I had some fans come all the way to Spain from Germany and Scandinavia just for the chance to meet. Mozartists are the best! I want them to know a lot more music is coming, and I will always cherish them!

 

 

Watch The Official Video:

 

Watch The Acoustic Video: