Catch up with singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Eve Minor and watch the video for her single "Piggy Bank" off her forthcoming album, Shooting Stars.
What first got you interested in songwriting and in production?
Eve: Well I've been playing piano since I was 4 and I really liked classical music and I would play a lot of classical music and, before I knew it, I was making my own melodies. I just got so curious about different instruments and I learned how to play guitar and I got really into Nirvana and a lot of garage rock stuff. I didn't really know how to sing so well, so I couldn't really sing songs that artists I liked sang so I had to make my own [laughs] and that started the path that I was going in and I really enjoyed it. It just kind of happened naturally and before I knew it I was writing songs and people liked them a lot. As far as production goes, it kind of just progressed into that where I was really excited to make a guitar riff and then I was like, well, maybe I can put a bass over it and see what that sounds like and what if the drum could sound like this so it happened naturally.
Do you remember the first song you wrote that you were proud of?
Yes! I was seeing a guy - I was so young, I was 14 and I had this little boyfriend [laughs] - and he totally broke my heart in a million pieces [laughs]. He was into the same music I was into, he played guitar and we got into a fight and I got really upset and I wrote this really, really cool rock sounding song. It kind of sounded like Smashing Pumpkins and I was like, wow this is really good, maybe I should have my heart broken more often [laughs]. But, yeah, it was a cute song. A heartbreaking song, but it was cute, nonetheless.
Which musicians have you been influenced by?
It's changed. I grew up on punk rock and metal so I think that's my interest in being a really good musician, learning how to play scales and that sort of thing. Currently, I'm really into Danny Brown. He's a rapper and I think he's really, really interesting and versatile and different. I also like Phantogram and I do like some modern pop stuff. I like Alabama Shakes and I really loved Prince, I think he was such a genius. But, I also like a lot of RnB stuff like Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu, and Brenda Holloway's really cool. I have such a diverse choice in music.
Is there anyone you've been hooked on in 2016?
Honestly I think in the beginning of 2016 I really liked Aesop Rock; he did The Impossible Kid and I was totally all about it. This guy produced his own stuff and he's incredible live and he's so talented. And then Atrocity Exhibition came out by Danny Brown so I've been listening to a lot of Atrocity Exhibition. It's so different, like, this guy is rapping over industrial beats and I just think he's so incredible. So, right now I'm very about Atrocity Exhibition.
What Christmas song are you most likely to have on repeat this time of year?
Hmm. I feel like a Grinch if I say I don't have any Christmas songs I like [laughs]. I will say that "All I Want For Christmas Is You" is really cute, that Mariah Carey song. Or "Santa Baby", that's super adorable [laughs].
Which words would you use to describe your sound?
I've heard genre-blender, but I'm honestly not sure because there's so many elements of hip hop in my sound but there's also so much rock and lots of pop melody. I don't know, it's so hard to pinpoint and there's so much funk in it. I would generalize and say pop music because it does have a lot of cool hooks and choruses, but that's a tough question. It sounds good I think, I hope you like it [laughs].
What were your inspirations behind your single and video for "Piggy Bank"?
"Piggy Bank" kind of came out of nowhere. I play a lot of instruments and I play piano every day and I kind of just sat down and I had this really cool - I was playing a lot of Scott Joplin who was an original jazz composer from 1920 - and I was playing a lot of rag and this just kind of happened and it ended up being hip hop bars to this really pop-y kind of song. My friend was sitting next to me and I like to play and make my friends laugh so sometimes I make really funny songs, like, my friends will be hanging out and I'll just sit and play guitar and dictate what they're doing and I just like to make my friends smile, so I was playing that song and my friend was like "oh my god, that's so good!" and I was like "what do you mean?". I didn't want to do anything with it because I was using this little girl voice and he was like "no man, that's so good, you should record that one" [laughs] and I was like "okay, but, I mean" 'cause I'm drug dealing and it's not really [laughs] I sound like I'm 5 years old and I'm singing about dealing drugs and he's like "yeah, but it's so awesome!". I ended up putting a couple musicians together because I really believe in live sounding records, I think it gives a certain energy when you're all in the same room and I had some of my friends came over and I gave them their parts and I charted it out for them and then it came to that sort of song. We had a blast recording it and I was like, "why don't we do a video?". [Laughs]
The video was, initially, more ridiculous, believe it or not. Initially, the ideas behind it were so much more ridiculous and we had so much fun filming it. I got burnt to a crisp! It was the hottest day in New York so I was burnt to a crisp, practically crying [laughs] but, at some point when we were on the beach, I climbed a palm tree and hung upside down and the director was like, "you should be making music like Ludacris" [laughs]. I guess it's just a fun song, just a little piece of my life about having fun and that's why it sounds pop-y and fun.
Do you have plans to release an album or EP with "OMG" and "Piggy Bank"?
I do write songs everyday and I do produce and try to work with people that I really like so "OMG" is part of this little mixtape I'm going to be releasing in the next month - as soon as I'm finished mixing it - there were these collections of more electronic songs where, when I laid out what my album's going to be, they didn't fit with it. So "OMG" is part of this collection of self-produced electronic songs, whereas "Piggy Bank" is going to be remixed and put on the full-length record - which is now called Shooting Stars. Yeah, definitely having two albums come out: one by the end of the year and then one in 2017.
Could you tell us more about what people can expect from Shooting Stars?
I will say it's different. I'll definitely say it's different because "Piggy Bank" in and of itself was different and I want to remix it; I have a couple people I think that will be on the remix that I really like and that I think other people will really like. "OMG" is super hip hop-y/trip hop-y produced that way and now Shooting Stars is going to have a lot of live instruments. I would say it's closer to my influences and the music I like. It's a little more personal, it's going to have a huge sound, and I definitely think people will like it [laughs].
What do you hope listeners will be able to take away from your music?
The mixtape has a very personal song. I lost one of my best friends so I did make a song for him. You know, some of the songs I write are fun, some of them are real deep so I think, in general, I want my listeners to not feel alone and to celebrate life. I talk to all my fans; I get so many cool messages on my socials and people championing me and enjoying my stuff and waiting for more so I just want them to know that, at the end of the day, you're not alone. If you vibe with my music and you feel a certain way, I feel that way too. And celebrate life, that's the most important thing. You only get one life, do everything you want to do, no matter what.
Is there anything you want to add?
Right now I'm really trying to raise awareness for Covenant House which is like a homeless shelter for kids and teens so I do talk about that a lot, I do want to mention that you guys should check this out. I will have shows coming up, I am talking to a couple venues in Brooklyn and New York City, it's just a little difficult because I do everything on my own. A little spread thin [laughs]. But definitely stay on my socials, I definitely have stuff, I definitely announce it and update my Instagram and Twitter and Facebook to let people know what's going on. Definitely just check it and see, for anything cool.
