Get yourself acquainted with IVA, the multifaceted artist, songwriter, composer, and mentor making waves across the music industry.
IVA’s love for music began from an extremely young age, heavily influenced by her exceptionally musical family. She gained an impressive educational background over the years, including training as a classical soprano at the Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music as well as graduating from Princeton University's world-class performance program with its music prize.
IVA has demonstrated the impressive ability to transition from pop-style vocals into operatic singing throughout her various releases, blending these styles seamlessly. Now, let’s dive into IVA’s latest single, “Run."
This track is all-encompassing. It’s infused with vintage synths and lush strings, creating a sonically rich and diverse landscape for the listener to immerse themselves in. The instrumentation within the track is vibrant and enchanting, combining light and airy elements with bursts of emotive and soulful moments.
Throughout “Run,” IVA’s vocals absolutely steal the show. She displays prowess and extreme range in her vocal performance as they ring out over the top of the lush soundscape below. Through the combination of dream-pop production elements as well as IVA’s passionate, shimmering vocals, she has managed to pull the listener into a soothing, almost dream-like state.
IVA notes that “Run” is "an antidote to the dead of winter and an allegory for the gloom of the pandemic. It's easy to feel like we're losing our minds. But we can find a way to step out and run, whether it's literally running, or finding that stroke of inspiration that helps us out of a fixed mindset into a more open way of thinking."
Go and check out the wonder that is IVA and listen to her latest single “Run,” available on all streaming platforms.
Welcome to BuzzMusic, IVA. We are captivated by your song, "Run." How do you think a song like "Run" represents you as an artist and helps us get to know you better?
Captivated … I couldn't imagine a better word to hear. Thank you for that description.
"Run" has an ethereal energy about it that came together in a difficult time. Jaron Olevsky, the producer, and I sent each other music from our home studios during the lockdown. Jaron was homeschooling his two toddlers, and I was alone in my house, mourning my mother's passing and feeling terribly lonely. Still, somehow in the writing and the recording of the song, Jaron tapped into something that spoke to the song and the voice perfectly. I did not set out to be a popular singer, but when people heard my voice, they told me it had energy. I still don't quite understand what is coming out of me, but I can feel it in this song. It was there even when I wasn't sure how I was going to get through the day, and the music gave me the feeling that I needed to come back to my true self.
Your love and passion for music and performing are extremely apparent in your music. Do you remember who some of your musical inspirations were while growing up?
The Beatles were my greatest inspiration. When I was five, my father and mother showed me "Hard Day's Night," and I was completely spellbound. My father let me play all of his records from the 60s on his turntable from the same era, and hearing the Beatles as they were originally heard did something to me. The energy is like nothing else. I sang along, memorized all the songs, watched the movie every morning before school, and began to scour his entire record collection, which he shared with us on Saturday mornings. I've lived in a world of music my entire life, and I am so lucky.
We really love the unique production elements infused throughout "Run." What sort of atmosphere did you want the instrumentals and production to give off in the song, and who helped bring these sonics to life?
So, Jaron Olevsky is truly touched - everything he plays is magical. He used a vintage synth called the Wandering Genie that he bought when we were recording our previous EP, "Traitor," and it provides unique drum sounds and key piano colors. I'd told him the song was about a friend of mine who runs in the north of Sweden in the middle of winter when it's dark at noon, and he captured it perfectly. I haven't asked him exactly how, but I think his subconscious is hooked deeply to his listening and music creation. He recorded all the instruments at his home studio, playing the beautiful guitar, piano, bass, and percussion. He even coached my vocals as he had a particular phrasing in mind. Also, Nick Krill, our mixing engineer, worked with me for months to get exactly the fine-tuning of the dream world of "Run." He was massively patient and willing to experiment and take tiny steps until we got it just right. He did an incredible job and truly lives in the moment with music.
Did you have a specific idea in mind of who you hoped this song would resonate with the most? What do you hope listeners will take away from this song when hearing it for the first time?
I hope this song resonates with people who have been through a dark time, like the pandemic, and found some glimmer of hope or faith. Faith, and joy, are what I would like it to magnify for people. And for those who may have lost their faith, I hope it reaches them as well. When they hear it for the first time, I hope they feel invigorated, in touch with their dreams, and deeply at peace.
What's next for you?
I am working on an EP to follow "Run" with my gorgeous band, The New Young, and producer Ross Bellenoit at Turtle Studios in Philadelphia. Many of the songs I wrote in Nashville, and we have had so much fun being back in the studio after gigging them pre-pandemic. It had been a minute, and we were ready to go! Also, I'm composing an opera, which is based on my experience of domestic abuse from a romantic partner. It's been a daunting project, but also one so valuable to my healing, and I hope it will provide healing for others as well.