Like summoning a blazing fast locomotive to signify the rush of juvenility, or modeling your Louis Vuitton to confirm your wealth, there's nothing novel in establishing a sad song through intimacy to proclaim that you're submerging in vulnerability. But seldom familiarity is a needed reassurance in this case. In her new single "Loved The Most," Massachusetts-born singer-songwriter Danielle Starz picks piano and vocal-centric directives from what seems like a manual on love laced ballads.
Danielle establishes her keystone style beautifully in the first seconds of this song, supported by luscious harmonies and a solid bass feeling—and repurposes it as a distinctive motif and hook that follows the vocal performance perfectly. With the steady persistence of space and air, she pleads, "How many times can you break a heart? Take it easy on me now." Her directness keeps the theme from feeling cartoonishly obvious and reveals a genuine, convincing emotion. Gentle plucks of the subtly muted bass help emphasize the lilting harmonies are creating an enormous swell of the drive every time they resurface. You can hear the passion behind Danielle's heartbreak as the song centers around her all on the table vocal conquering. You are quickly transported into her perspective and are gifted an intense connection to the subject matter through an outlandishly authentic production. Everything sits perfectly in place, and with a lack of congestion in the mix, the gravitating focus of this song turns to Danielle's ability to implores her voice to do the intimate work.
You can find "Love The Most" here.
Hey there, Danielle! Welcome to BuzzMusic! We're incredibly pleased to be highlighting "Loved The Most"! Is there an artist or performer you channel some influence from when directing your creative energy for this single?
Thank you so much for having me! I really wanted to write this big emotional ballad about overcoming a toxic relationship. I was listening to a lot of Adele at the time and really trying to express a good mix of pain and freedom.
If you were to describe your experience of writing and recording this song in a few emotions, which would you pick and why?
Writing this song was very therapeutic. I created this with the feeling of having a positive message and how strong you can be when you let go of a relationship that’s holding you back. The recording process was an incredible experience. My favorite thing to record was the choir. I worked with very talented engineers and producers that helped me give this song live.
The presence and aura surrounding your vocal performance on "Loved The Most" is absolutely enchanting. Are there any practice rituals you've been able to attribute to your vocal confidence and style?
Thank you so much! I really love singing and I’ve been singing my whole life. I was classically trained and this style of singing I’ve gotten a lot of practice with. I sort of just locked myself with a microphone and got myself in the right headspace and recorded it. It was emotional! The harmonies and background vocals kind of happened over time.
Thanks for being here and charing your song with us! What's the next step for you, Danielle? Are you planning on collaborating with anyone special in the future or releasing any new music?
I have a few more singles - all more upbeat and more classic pop then this one. I’ve been working with producer Prod.AG on two awesome songs that I plan to release within the next few months and I have another song coming that I did with Dealer Made Music as well. Because of all this craziness happening a lot of artists and musicians like myself aren’t able to do live shows and that really affects us. I’ve been trying to stay interactive as much as I can on social media. Hopefully we will be able to do some live shows this year once everything opens back up again.