JP SAXE: INTERVIEW

June 25, 2021

by danielle holian

Grammy award-nominated singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist JP Saxe has just released his debut album Dangerous Levels of Introspection today. He released his new single “Like That” ahead of the album release via Arista Records. People may recognize his voice from “If The World Was Ending” featuring Julia Michaels, which was produced by FINNEAS, becoming an impactful song during the global pandemic of COVID-19 that resulted in over one billion streams across platforms. Unclear Magazine caught up with the multi-talented musical genius to discuss his latest track, new album, and much more below.

For our readers, please tell us a bit about your background in music.

JP: “I am a Canadian jazz dork who moved to Los Angeles at 19. I was brainwashed by pop music and now make emotionally indulgent songs.”

Who or what are your musical influences?

JP: “Megan Rapinoe. I am always inspired by Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder and Joni Mitchell.”

What inspired your lead single “Like That?”

JP: “Being surprised by the kind of love that can get to you in places that you used to be afraid to let it.”

What can we expect from your debut album Dangerous Levels of Introspection?

JP: “Relentless sincerity.”

And how was the songwriting process for this particular project?

JP: “I feel like I have been writing this project for my entire life. There is more of me in it than I’ve ever been able to get into any other piece of art that I've released.”

You previously worked with FINNEAS on “If The World Was Ending,” did you ever expect the impact this particular track would expose you to?

JP: “Julia [Michaels] and I wrote it the day we met. It was recorded by Benjamin Rice, and we sent a demo to Finneas. He was moved by the song, and sent us back his inspiration on production, and we fell in love with it.”

What do you want the listeners to take away from your music?

JP: “A bit more access to the parts of their emotional self that they don’t hang out with very often.”

How has the pandemic helped your creative juices?

JP: “Introspection in abundance — I am not sure the album would be titled the way it is if there hadn’t been a pandemic.”

What drives you forward as an artist?

JP: “Soul-crushing ambition.”

And finally, what’s one fun fact about yourself for our readers?

JP: “I will crush you with Bananagrams.”

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JANALYNN CASTELINO: INTERVIEW

June 23, 2021

by krystal fernandez

Multilingual singer-songwriter and doctor, Janalynn Castelino is an artist who’s never been afraid to speak her mind. After amassing a massive 22 million viewership on one of her music videos released on YouTube with her emotional yet solid refreshing vocals, she’s been in the limelight for quite a long period. Her music style encompasses a blend of R&B, pop and Sufi genres. Janalynn’s increased level of skill and command on her vocals essentially turned her into a solo artist, but this wasn’t something she had dreamt of. She’s been writing songs and chord progressions throughout the quarantine period.

Janalynn’s has big plans for the year ahead, so we caught up with her to get her latest intel. Read on to hear all she has to say about the music scene during the pandemic, challenges faced by the industry, and her upcoming EP.

“I always wanted to express myself beyond my vocals. Songwriting and composing music offered me the opportunity to have this expression more pronounced," Janalynn said. She’s been harnessing creativity through songwriting throughout the lockdown. She started uploading songs to YouTube during her second year of medical college when she realized that “the response to one of my music videos was so overwhelming from people all over the world that I felt this shouldn’t be limited to merely a hobby any longer. I should essentially be doing more of this.” Soon after which she had a couple of more music releases, some of which featured on YouTube’s Global Trending Charts. With the rising popularity and enthusiasm from millions of listeners, Janalynn was all set to make her next big move with the release of her first ever EP. But the pandemic had its own plans with the lockdown setting in.

Janalynn had to reconstruct her production schedule since the shoot was obliterated by international travel restrictions. “It was an overall tense situation for me and my entire team that involved members belonging to different territories around the world. We had to abruptly pack up and reschedule the project activity, all of which had been pre-decided for the year. I believe it was a similar situation for artists who were touring across countries. Not just business commitments but also health associated obstacles came into play. The conditions were terrific!”

In terms of the scenario faced by the music industry, Janalynn admitted that there were alternatives that could be adopted to carry on with the production but she however refused to deliver a subordinate product and opted to stay creative behind the scene. “There were so many virtual alternatives which eventually got in — virtual songwriting, virtual photography, virtual direction, etc. but I somehow felt it wouldn’t serve to meet the requirement that my project demanded. I preferred waiting patiently at least for some time till the conditions around improved, most importantly for international traveling restrictions to be lifted. Honestly speaking the pandemic impacted all of us in several ways, not limiting its effects to the music industry alone.”

Along with being compared to others, Janalynn established an identity not just as a singer who gained popularity owing to her viral music videos, but she’s also struggled with completing her doctoral degree and has faced challenges more than any other medical student would have gone through. She believes being unique has been an advantage for her. The multilingual vocalist, who started singing at the age of five, claims that she wouldn’t be able to cope up with any of it, if it hadn’t been for the support from her parents, her enthusiastic friends and authentic followers. Singing was her first love but her excellence in sports like swimming and lawn tennis and achievements in academics compelled her to consider the latter as mainstream up to a point wherein she had to quit her career as a professional lawn tennis player to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor.

Janalynn regards the quarantine period to be a constant process of preparation. She spent the lockdown writing, composing and aiming better at production. “Every track on the EP has a story associated with it. I think you will get to see a new shade of me with this EP,” she responded upon being asked what was within the bag. Having confirmed that the EP is set to release in October this year, she’ll be releasing a classic rendition prior to showcasing new music in order to bridge the gap for her followers. “October will be full of high notes,” she further asserted.

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VALERIE BROUSSARD: INTERVIEW

June 22, 2021

by danielle holian

With over a half a billion total streams, powerhouse vocalist Valerie Broussard's music has been featured in hundreds of film, television, and video games, including “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Riverdale,” “Lucifer,” “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina,” and “Pretty Little Liars,” to name a few. In 2019, she opened for the League of Legends Opening Ceremony, which is viewed by hundreds of millions of people yearly.

Her incredible music catalog finds the established sync artist's names on released songs with world-renowned DJs Kygo, Glanti, and ILLENIUM, and a debut in the Top 10 on the Billboard Hot Dance / Electronic Songs Chart. Most recently, she has spent the past year working on her debut EP Voyager — the debut single “Iris” dropped this month, being a cover of the Goo Goo Dolls classic and showcases her dynamic vocals.

For our readers, please tell us a bit about your background in music.

Valerie: “Music has always been in my life, but I didn’t start writing and performing my own stuff until my early 20’s. Before that time, I was mostly focusing on musical theater and opera.”

Tell us why you chose the Goo Goo Dolls classic hit “Iris” as your new single.

V: “I’ve always absolutely loved that song, and back in 2019 I actually got to sing on the Goo Goo Dolls’ single ‘Money, Fame & Fortune’ so they were on my mind going into the pandemic. I listened to a lot of their music over those long lockdown months, and after months of singing ‘Iris’ in the shower I figured I should cover it!”

Tell us about the inspiration behind the music video.

V: “The video that the Goo Goo Dolls made for ‘Iris’ is one of the first I remember seeing as a kid and I fell in love with it. Johnny is sort of locked away in this tower with all these telescopes and he's looking down on the city below him. I wanted my video to pay homage to that, while still maintaining the space theme that runs through all of the EP visuals. So in my ‘Iris’ video I’m sitting alone in a space station, looking down on the world.”

What can listeners expect from your debut EP, Voyager?

V: “A return to my singer-songwriter roots, with some surprises along the way.”

You've worked with some big names like Kygo, Galantis, and ILLENIUM — how has this experience inspired you?

V: “It’s been amazing to work with all of them, I’ve especially loved watching them take the stripped back songs I write and turn them into dance hits. It’s always so exciting to get a song back and see where someone else’s imagination took them.”

You've had your music featured in hundreds of film, television, and video games including “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Riverdale,” “Lucifer,” “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina,” and “Pretty Little Liars,” to name a few. What does this mean to you knowing your music is reaching huge audiences?

V: “It still wows me every time! There is nothing cooler than seeing something you wrote set to picture. I love being a part of the world of these iconic shows.”

And what's the difference, for you, songwriting for others to pursuing a career as a solo artist?

V: “I think for me it’s the fact that the music I write for myself tends to be autobiographical, which is both a good and bad thing! I live in fear of certain exes recognizing themselves in my songs.”

What do you want the listeners to take away from your music?

V: “For me songwriting is about telling a story and hopefully a story that people will recognize as being similar to something from their own lives. So I hope that listeners can enjoy that moment of connection with my music.”

How has the pandemic helped get your creative juices flowing?

V: “It isn’t always easy, but I have found that learning new skills (like recording my own vocals) and finally having a home studio help me be creative in new ways that I have never experienced before.”

What drives you forward as an artist?

V: “At the end of the day I just really enjoy making music. I’ve never found anything that gives me the same high as writing a good song with talented people.”

And finally, what’s one fun fact about yourself for our readers?

V: “My high school had the best wood shop program in the country, and in my freshman year I ended up making an electric guitar for my brother’s graduation gift. The weird thing was I didn't play guitar at the time, so I knew more about making them than playing them!”

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CARLY GIBERT: INTERVIEW

June 18, 2021

intro by madden levin

interview by cami liberty

Let’s dive right in… Carly Gibert is an amazing young musical artist with power! Her ability to flex through genres amazes us and we can’t wait to see how her new music express that unique quality. Speaking of new music, we were super excited to chat with her about her newest single, “Interstellar,” which is out now! Carly’s already dedicated following is eating this song alive, so what are you waiting for? Check out our exclusive interview with Carly Gibert below before you go to make it your new most played song.

You just released your new single “Interstellar!” Can you tell us a little bit about the song and how it came about?

Carly: “Yes! I'm so excited for the release. ‘Interstellar’ is about distancing myself from someone who was making it really hard for me to grow as a person. I always put them first without thinking about what was best for me. Moving from Spain to LA felt like starting a new life, and that's when I realized that I wasn't taking care of myself. Living in LA to me felt like living in another universe, or as ‘interstellar’ itself means, ‘in between stars,’ and that's how the space theme came about. It also references the movie Interstellar (one of my favorites of all time) since I basically left everything behind to start over in a completely different setting, just like the characters in the movie.”

How does “Interstellar” differ from your previous releases “Lavish” and “LSD?”

C: “I think that ‘Interstellar’ has a darker sound and a disco-ish vibe to it. It's also more high energy than ‘Lavish’ and ‘LSD’ and definitely easier to dance to.”

How has it been for you personally creating music during the pandemic?

C: “It has honestly been a blessing and a curse. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of Zoom sessions, I really really love recording my own vocals and doing vocal production. It’s probably my favorite part of making music. I have recorded all my vocals since the pandemic started, including ‘LSD,’ in my closet or in my friend's bathroom. I definitely miss going to the studio and being able to create with other people in the room, but I would like to continue vocal producing myself. I think it makes my music more special and specific to my ear.”

What inspires you to create?

C: “My own life experiences and the ability to put my thoughts into words and share them with the world. This is the only way I know how to express myself. I'm awful at talking about my feelings. Ultimately, I want to share my story with other people who might be in a similar situation and hopefully help them feel a bit more understood. I just want to make music that means something to people and that they can connect with.

Other artists also inspire me to keep creating. Knowing that I could be doing what they're doing someday motivates me so much.”

How has being so young affected the way you approach the music scene?

C: “I got signed when I was 16, so I was very very young. I moved to LA at the same time, and I've been living by myself ever since. At first it was pretty intimidating, and I honestly had no idea of what I was doing. My A&R actually had to come to the studio sessions with me until I turned 18. I was obviously very young and inexperienced, but I've never felt like I wasn't taken seriously. I think that my age hasn't really defined how people treat me. I have to say, my team has been very careful of who they put me in sessions with, so it's always been good people around me to begin with. I've met some of my best friends in studio sessions. Having a genuine connection with the people you work with really changes everything.”

Is there anything else we can expect from you in the near future?

C: “More music!! I have two more songs coming out in the next few months, which I'm super excited about. For now, this is all I can say, but there's definitely a lot more to come. I'm not going anywhere!!”

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CORBU: INTERVIEW

June 17, 2021

by tiffany arunarsirakul

Corbu is a Brooklyn-based electronic-psych duo consisting of Jonathan Graves and Amanda Scott. Impacted by the works of Le Corbusier, Corbu uses the influences of nature and architecture into their music. This duo was originally a solo project of Graves’, focusing on graphic design, photography, and writing, later becoming the full-life art project known as Corbu. For their latest single “Lost & Found,” they had the chance to collaborate with singer, songwriter, and bassist Jimi Goodwin of Manchester, UK electronic rock band Doves. The Lost & Found EP was released June 4th.

How did Corbu start? What was the inspiration for the name? How did Jonathan Graves and Amanda Scott meet?

Jonathan: “Corbu started as my solo project when I was experimenting with samplers, and moving away from my need to be in a ‘band.’ I was really into architecture at the time, and I’m from Western Pennsylvania, so I’ve grown up around Frank Lloyd Wright’s work. The stuff I was reading about him and Le Corbusier was changing the way I saw the world. I was also obsessed with the music of Boards of Canada, and there was a common idea between them and the architects about stealing ideas from nature. I wanted to try that — to take concepts from nature, from architecture and from other unrelated places and apply them to music.

Amanda is also from Pittsburgh, but we met in Brooklyn through mutual friends. She had never played an instrument before, but every idea she had about the songs was great and made them better. Eventually I talked her into hitting some buttons on-stage, and now she’s playing keys and drums, as well as co-writing and producing every song with me.”

Was the creative field and entertainment field somewhere you envisioned yourself in as a child?

J: “Yeah, almost by necessity. I wasn’t diagnosed with ADHD until college, so most of school was a brutal experience for me. But I sang in a boy choir when I was a kid and toured the world, so being a failure in school was contrasted by the success I had doing anything musically. Eventually all the creative things I enjoyed doing (graphic design, photography, writing) folded into this full-life art project called Corbu.”

How would you describe your music making process?

J: “Amanda and I collect a million sketches over time, and eventually a handful of them get turned into finished songs. They grow up over time. Amanda gets frustrated sometimes with how many times a Corbu song morphs before it’s finally released, but she’s almost as likely as I am to throw an idea into a blender and turn it into something new. A lot of times, I’ll be the engineer and doing technical things forever, and Amanda will hear it with fresh ears, bring perspective to it and tell me what needs to change. Sometimes she’ll take over the writing at that point, or we’ll pass the song back and forth until it settles. It’s a lot of pride-swallowing and a lot of doubt along the way, but we’re almost always happy when the song is done.”

Your "Lost & Found" music video is creatively directed, while also having a psychedelic aspect, as well as other music videos. You are known for psychedelic pop underground music, and the video is filmed in Western Pennsylvania where you are both from. How did it feel to return to somewhere so nostalgic?

J: “In a way, we’ve never left. Both of our families still live in Pittsburgh, so we go back a few times every year. There’s something about the places you experienced as a child that makes you more child-like when you’re there, and that can be nice. The video was filmed in a superficially normal, Middle-American place, but Amanda and I see it through different eyes than most of the people that live there. So this video was a chance to be kids and be weird, and show something meaningful to us the way we see it.”

How was your experience with one of your inspirations: singer, songwriter, and bassist Jimi Goodwin of Manchester, UK electronic rock band Doves?

J: “Working with Jimi has been a dream for us. I’ve been a huge Doves fan my whole life, and Amanda’s been into them for years. I used to be evangelical about their song ‘Pounding,’ and would make everyone I know listen to it. I sent Jimi a fan letter early on, and he came and hung out and even jammed with us when he was in New York. It’s one of those things where you feel immediately comfortable around someone, but it happens to be one of your heroes. We’d love to do more with him in the future.”

With the Lost & Found EP having released on June 4th, what is your number one favorite song that you would recommend from the EP?

J: “Definitely the title track with Jimi. Everything else on the EP is in support of that, though I do love JKriv’s remix, and our Seaside Instrumental version is really fun. It borders on ridiculous in the ending, and a little of that is always good.”

Now with rising Brooklyn indie label Trash Casual, do you have any upcoming plans with your music?

J: “Yes! Trash Casual are good friends of ours, and the whole label is a little family. It’s been great to feel like a part of something.

We have a video podcast coming out this summer called Bad Trip Reports, which is something we’ve talked about doing forever. We’re releasing a full soundtrack of all the new music we’re using for it — it’s our first ambient record, in a way. Every episode has us reading someone's experience with various substances, with Amanda doing color commentary. People can submit their experiences to us, so it has a communal aspect, and it lives in that Hunter S. Thompson kind of headspace. It’s funny and super emotional and raw from moment to moment, like most of the things we’re drawn to.”

What is a struggle you encountered as a duo that has made you who you are today? How did you overcome the struggle?

J: “We had a difficult time with our first label, even though we love them as people. They didn’t believe in digital marketing, and insisted that ‘word of mouth,’ a few radio plays and PR would be enough to break us, while demanding that we become as big as Arcade Fire or Tame Impala... instantly. That all may have been fine in the 90s, but it’s suicidal now. It’s very hard when you’ve worked your whole life to make your debut album, put years and every penny you have into it, and you know it’s being set on fire.

It was heartbreaking, and we almost stopped making music. But it forced us to confront everything about ourselves that wasn’t working, and heal a lot of things that made us flawed as individuals and in our relationship.”

What is a piece of advice you would tell your younger selves if you were given the opportunity to?

J: “Make the music you want to make, but beyond the recordings, embrace your limitations. No one cares that you don’t have a 5-piece live band like some of your favorite artists, and it’s not worth passing up huge opportunities because you couldn’t present the ultimate, perfect version of yourself. Never pass up an opportunity because you’re clinging to your idea of perfection. You never know when that opportunity will come again, and if the music’s great, sometimes it’s enough to just make sure people hear it.”

Is there anything else that you would like to share with us?

J: “We want our music to feel like you’re dreaming, or like it pulls you into some corner of your brain you’ve forgotten about. I think the best way to get into that zone is to dig into our YouTube channel, and watch all of our videos.”

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