Welcome to BuzzMusic Mela! You've been receiving great traction on your music since your release of "Young!". How has this prepared you for the release of "Out Of Tune" and did you deal with any pressure when creating this new single?
Thank you! I guess that’s true, yes. “Young!” has opened up some exciting doors, and I’m looking forward to seeing where this musical journey will take me. “Out of Tune” is a very different track, though, and the process was different as well. I definitely put some pressure on myself to get it right, as I always do. But, my producer and I threw all the rules out the window on this one, and just committed to finding the right sounds to convey the emotions we wanted. It was my first time working with producer, Steve Vito, and he made each step of the process fun. (Even when that meant changing a sound 10+ times before we found one we loved!)
Knowing most of your music has a nostalgic element to it. What was the life experience captured in "Out of Tune"? In what ways were you inspired and How were you able to channel in the right emotion for this piece?
There’s a specific memory I have that inspired the song. One night, I was dancing in the living room with my then partner. We had the lights down low, and the music turned up, and we were singing songs loudly together without a care in the world. I remember thinking that it didn’t matter what happened in the future; that this love we have is real right now at this moment. “Out of Tune” captures both the loving experience as well as the feeling of knowing that something wasn’t right. Years later, it’s just a distant thought I have every now and then, but I still look back fondly at the innocence of the memory, and I’m still thankful to have experienced the love that came along with it. I think the song conveys longing, love and certainly some anger/pain as the track builds momentum.
What approach did you take with the arrangement of "Out of Tune," do you feel it best to cultivate its theme and why?
I had the first verse and chorus written for ‘Out of Tune’ for months, but I couldn’t figure out where to go with it next. One night in the middle of a thunderstorm, Steve Vito came over with his mobile studio, and we starting messing around with some sound ideas for the track. Within a day or two, the rest of the words came to me and we had a solid idea we were able to start building on. The arrangement is unique and blends multiple genres together. We were hoping this somewhat surprising new sound would capture the duality of the memory, and I think it does just that.
Knowing you're releasing a new single a month this year, can you hint to us what we may expect from February's release? In what ways do you plan on making all 12 releases differentiate from one another?
I can! Let’s just say, February’s single might be a song you already know…
As for the rest of the songs, each track will tell a different part of the same story. There will be a few fully produced records, a few stripped-down acoustic releases, and a couple of songs in between. I’ve often held onto finished songs for months before letting them out into the world, and I decided that this year I’m done holding back. In some ways, it’ll be nerve-wracking to be so vulnerable, but if the songs find their way to a satisfied listener, it’ll be worth it.
What can we expect to see from Mela throughout 2020?
Lots of new music, probably a music video or two, plenty of cheesy photos and some really killer live shows. Follow on Instagram to stay updated! @itsmelamusic
Listen to "Out of Tune" here