Keith Cullen

Catch up with singer-songwriter Keith Cullen, listen to his latest single "Say Something" and look for his album Dear Future Me to be released Spring 2017.

What first got you interested in music and in songwriting?

Keith: Since a very young age, my first reoccurring thought was that I should be a singer and I tried to ignore it for as long as I could, just because the whole industry - fame, singing on stage and vulnerable - terrified me. I ignored the call for quite a long time but then, after that, it just wouldn't go away so I decided it would have to be looked at and addressed and so, for me, it was kind of like my purpose; that's what I was supposed to do. I've always been really interested in music and in song and how it can resonate so well with a person and change a person's state - like when you listen to a great song you can be moved to tears or to joy or to smile, whatever the case may be - so I was really fascinated by how music still is the universal language.

Do you remember the first concert you went to?

My dad was such a big fan of music, so we were always at live shows everywhere. I remember him bringing me to see U2 when they were only literally performing in a car park and it was like, I think, a pound in or something and there was not even 20 people there, so that was one of my first memories. And it's funny, now I work with a gentleman who launched U2 in America, so I think that was, universally, a little bit epic, just because I only had that conversation with him recently about their first shows and the live aspect of when a new artist is only coming out and having to perform to 20 people and do your best with that and, now look at them, selling out world tours worldwide. That was my first memory.

Which musicians would you say you've been influenced by?

I think growing up our house was always very musical, so it was everybody. When we were driving through Vegas right now, my mum was very ecstatic because she saw Frank Sinatra Drive and we listened to him growing up. My dad was big into Sting & The Police, America, Bread, and Chicago. My mum loved Motown. Mum loved all the divas, so I grew up being able to hit some of the big diva notes, so I [laughs] I thought that was normal for a male voice to be able to sing those big notes, but I learned when I grew up it wasn't quite as normal as I thought it was. My influences are far and wide. I don't think there's been more an individual person that's influenced me, I kind of draw inspiration from everything around me: life, people, friends, the stuff I listen to, the stuff I watch, art, traveling, that type of thing.

Is there someone that you're hooked on now or planning to see while you're in Vegas?

The last time I was in Vegas, I did have the opportunity to see Celine Dion and she was absolutely incredible, like it was a 40-odd piece orchestra and she was incredible. I'm hooked right now, in terms of male voices, I'm hooked on OneRepublic's new album, just 'cause it's so up my street and him as a singer-songwriter and having a career of his own is incredible. From a female voice, I've been listening to Rebecca Ferguson; she is an English artist, she was on one of the talent shows and didn't make it, but she's actually come out with an incredible new album which I have had on repeat [laughs] called Superwoman. And obviously there's been a couple of really good albums just released: Emeli Sandé just released Long Live The Angels and Alicia Keys just released Here. I'm into new music and I listen to a lot of the new stuff that gets released just to stay current. There's albums that resonate with me and then albums I'm like, "oh, why did they waste their time?" [laughs].

How would you describe your sound to someone who had never heard your music?

I think, being Irish, we get a pass, because we're known as storytellers and lyricists and people who really draw from inspiration. I think my music can be described as honest pop and I like that term just because it signifies depth and being authentic as well. I wanted to write an album that was really reflective of who I am and the journey that I've had. I think honest pop best describes the sound, because I think people have a preconceived notion [about pop]. Like, even in Vegas right now, I'm literally sitting in the Mandarin Oriental and I'm looking out and I can see Britney's billboard; my music's - as much as it's pop - it's very different to a Britney pop or the Rihanna pop or the Lady Gaga pop. I really wanted to just write an album that I was immensely proud of but also that could resonate with people worldwide, to connect with them.

What were your inspirations behind your single "Say Something"?

"Say Something" specifically was one of the first songs that I did when I arrived to America. I think, given everything that's been happening in America and given current day politics and all of that stuff, in "Say Something", the real message was, 'say something that's real and give me something to feel' is one of the lyrics. I think in such a big, vast country where there's so much communication, from we're always on Facebook or Snapchat or Twitter or Instagram and I'm sitting here and we're bombarded with advertisements and shiny, flashy things everywhere, I think sometimes we forget to really connect on a human level with people and that was one of the first songs I did when I arrived to America. It was just reflective of a mood; I've been placed in the music industry, I've been traveling a lot, and I arrived to a big city - the first time I've ever been based in such a huge city, I'm from a small town - and I think, for me, I always take people at face value and look for the best in humanity. So, I wanted that song to resonate with people in terms of communication and your best words are your honest ones and your most authentic.

Could you tell us more about your upcoming album Dear Future Me and if "Say Something" is indicative of what we can expect to hear?

The single was part of a movie, so it was featured in High Strung. The album has been something I've worked on for 3 years and really, with Dear Future Me, the concept was really to make sure that my past, my present, and my future all aligned and the big premise of the album is, I've always been a fan of the future, regardless of the past or your current circumstances. I think people are going to be really surprised by the album, because it has everything from up-tempo to a big ballad like "The Walls" and then you have almost a dark electronic feel to some of the bigger songs like "D.O.A." and "Believe" is very anthemic. So, I think people will be surprised and I really want people to listen to that album as an actual concept album, because it takes you on a journey. I deliberated for such a long time [laughs] trying to get the track listing right to make sure that, when people actually do sit and listen or if they're driving their cars to Vegas and they stick the album on, it makes sense to people. Each song obviously has a life of its own and we'll do singles from it - which people can buy into or they can say I like it or I don't like it - but I think Dear Future Me, as an album, I believe is quite a powerful message. I'm just excited for people to hear it.

Is there a track off that album that you would call your favorite?

That's a good question. "The Walls" has a special place in my heart, just because it was the one song that, when we started to play it live for people and when record executives or publishing houses heard it, that was the one song that everyone spoke about. It's a ballad and it will come out next year and, yeah, I think "The Walls". It holds a lot of nostalgia with me and also I've been living with that for the longest time; it's one of the first songs we wrote and it's been re-worked and remixed hundreds of times, because everyone loved it and everybody wanted their say and we just always ended up going back to the original song and just giving them what it was. I'm excited for people to hear that and there will be a couple of versions, just because it's been the one that most people have been impressed by.

How would you sum up Dear Future Me in one sentence?

A powerful mix of emotions.

I just wanted to be as truthful and honest with the album, and with myself, as I physically could have been. It was almost like therapy sessions [laughs]. I didn't, like a lot of people in America, hire a therapist; I didn't need to after doing that album, because I just wanted to be really honest with the listener.

What do you hope listeners are able to take away from your music?

Definitely hope and positivity and it really is, for me, a concept album. We have a blog called The Kove and it's really where we want people who are fans of the music or fans of me or whatever the case may be to engage there as a safe haven for people to communicate; it just started with blog writing and we're definitely looking for people to interact with us there on The Kove. For me, music does incredible things, so if I could do that for one other person, I think I've done my job properly.

Is there anything you want to add?

The link to the actual Kove, because that's where people can really get to know me and what I'm writing about on a weekly basis.

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Queen Liz

Catch up with singer-songwriter Queen Liz, listen to her latest single "Freak Show" and look for much more to come soon.

What first got you interested in songwriting and music?

Liz: Well, I got my first keyboard when I was five actually and I was in my room for hours at a time just trying to learn notes and trying to figure it out and once I actually did, once I found the notes that went together and started realizing that I could potentially have an ear for it, I just started writing and writing constantly. Then, when I was 15, I just decided that this is what I want, I really want to make this a career, and so I talked to my mom and we went from there. I was interested in it since the time I turned on that keyboard, to be honest; music's been a part of my life since I was very young.

Do you remember the first song you wrote that you were happy with?

Yeah, actually. It sounds kind of silly but I was 10 years old and I wrote a song that was called "Me And My Skinny Jeans" [laughs] and I was extremely proud of it and it was the first song that was completely finished and had music thoughout the whole entire song along with lyrics. But when it comes to big kid time I would say that the first [laughs] besides that one, the first one that I would say I was 100% happy with was probably "Into The Jungle", which I released before "Freak Show". I think that's, so far, the one that I am the most confident in and that gives me goosebumps, still, when I listen to it just because I'm so pleased with how it turned out.

Which musicians have you been influenced by?

I have grown up listening to Etta James and Christina Aguilera and, listening to their music, I've always been inspired by them. Miley Cyrus is actually another one as well. She is a huge role model and influence in my life and I feel that I relate to those artists the most and, I don't know, I've always really, really liked them and they made me gain confidence before.

Is there a current artist you can't stop listening to right now?

Oh my goodness. Anne-Marie. She is so incredibly talented and her style kind of reminds me of mine in a way and I love singing along to her songs. She has a beautiful voice and I cannot stop listening to the song that she just released called "Alarm". I am obsessed with that song [laughs].

How would you describe your own sound?

I would describe my sound as a mixture between synth pop and tropical pop sounding. I like to use a lot of steel drums and heavy synthesizers, just because I love dance and lots of bass lines and synthesizers and I've always been attracted to that kind of sound and so I seem to always go back - every time I write a new song - I seem to go back to the same sounds. Tropical synth-pop is the best way I could describe my music.

What were your inspirations behind your single "Freak Show"?

It's actually kind of an interesting story. I went to a party with a few of my friends and the whole time I felt like I was being judged and stared at; I had just recently shaved my head, I got out of a bad relationship and I was just really everywhere at the moment, and I decided to go out with my friends and, the whole time, I was being judged and stared. After I left, I just thought, I would hate for someone else to feel these things, I hope no one else is feeling or has felt the same way that I am currently feeling. And I just got really inspired to write kind of a weird song that is really unusual that could maybe allow other people to be themselves and, regardless of who is judging you - especially being at an event with all those people - you can be whoever you want to be. So, that experience really inspired me to write that, to allow people to feel confident with themselves.

Do you have plans to release an album or EP with "Freak Show" and "Into The Jungle"?

I do, I definitely have plans. releasing an album and an EP. I'm currently working with my publicist to start a plan on what we can do to kind of build something that is huge and something that we can release together. So, we have a few ideas and I'm actually going to release a new single here in the next 2 weeks and so maybe we can build off that to start something. But, as of right now, I'm only releasing singles, but I definitely do have plans to release an album or an EP.

What do you hope listeners are able to take away from your music?

My goal is to have people, like I said about "Freak Show", I want people to be confident with themselves, I want people to know what, when I am singing and when I am writing songs and I'm explaining a story, it's not something that I'm just making up, it's something that I've experienced. I want my fans - I guess you could say later on in life - I want my fans to take bits and pieces away from my story and let it inspire them to become better people and become more confident; because I know that I have gone off other people's experiences and been like, "wow, yeah, I've been through the same thing and how you're dealing with it is really interesting". So I hope that I can give people a way to escape from bad things in their life and turn it into something good.

Is there anything you want to add?

I would just say to, like what I always say - which I wrote a song about called "This Is Me" - is keep your crown high regardless of the situation and always stay positive and confident. I think it's important for everybody to feel those things in their lives.

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Jack Vandervelde

Catch up with singer-songwriter Jack Vandervelde and listen to his latest single "Pick It Up Sometimes" off his upcoming EP.

What got you interested in music and in songwriting?

Jack Vandervelde: Since I was a kid, I've always played music; I started playing drums when my mom kicked me out of the kitchen because I was banging all the pots and pans. So, I've always been playing music, but it was in early high school when I realized that, if I wanted to take it to the next level, I just assumed, in order to make original music I had to write it myself. Just by chance, I got into The Beatles - and of course people mention that all the time - but that was when I really saw songwriting as what it was; and especially that combined with Ed Sheeran. I realized if I wanted to do this, I'm better off trying to write my own songs, so that's where the whole songwriting thing began. But music in general has just always been a part of my life and it was really early high school and late middle school that I realized that that's really what I liked doing, so I started practicing every day for hours until I went to bed.

Do you remember the first song that you wrote?

I used to always mess around, writing funny songs on the spot with my friends or my brother, and that's kind of where the songwriting started. My first serious song was probably about a girl I think I had a crush on my junior or sophomore year. And then I remember, I even tried writing a song about The Beatles, that's how into them I got, so I would say one of those two was the first song I wrote, but none of them have been released and [laughs] I don't know if they ever will be.

Which musicians would you say you've been influenced by?

In terms of influence, I grew up on The Backstreet Boys and Green Day - which is a strange combination - but that's where the whole pop and rock came into play for me. But, I went to an Ed Sheeran concert just by chance; I was visiting colleges in 2013 in LA and my parents wanted to go out to dinner so they were like, "here's a concert, go to this, take your sister," and it was an Ed Sheeran concert. So I went there excited but not knowing much of his stuff and, after it, I was so blown away and it was so life-changing that I was like, this is what I want to try to do. And I became, for lack of a better term, obsessed with him and I started just trying to hone my craft like he did. Then, I love Zac Brown Band and their harmonies and The Eagles and it all inspires me, but it was Ed Sheeran who really sent me over the edge, in terms of taking this even more seriously.

Is there an artist you think everyone should take a listen to?

The Chainsmokers recently, with where they've taken pop, but I imagine there's a lot of people listening to them. I like pop music and I really like Daya who they collaborated with. Obviously, if you're not listening to The Chainsmokers stuff, I would tell people to get out and listen to them because it combines the EDM scene with pop music, which I think has been the way of music for awhile, but recently it's getting even bigger. That's what I've been for sure hooked on recently.

Which words would you use to describe your sound to someone who had never heard your music?

I would say an acoustic pop. That's something I've always really liked, again, just with my influences and life and music. I really like a lot of pop music. And then rock and acoustic, so it's an acoustic pop rock, that's how I'd have to describe it.

What were your inspirations behind your single "Pick It Up Sometimes"?

That song, the hook came first and then Eren and I - Eren Cannatta, a guy I wrote with - came up with it. The song took place around - I found myself traveling and I left school to pursue music - just being away from home. What I see in my friends, and a lot of people my age, is that time and life and jobs and school takes you away from something and perhaps it's not the relationship or the experience that ends itself, it's just having to be somewhere else; but when you're back in town for the holidays or Summer break, there's no reason you can't rekindle that and share experiences like you used to but knowing that there will come a time where you have to go and life will take you your different ways again. So, it's kind of just about bringing something back that you know that you had, knowing it's not going to last again, but you might as well try.

Could you tell us more about your upcoming EP?

It's going to be a lot of fun. There's some songs that Eren and I wrote when we met in New York; and then there's some songs that go back to my years in high school that I wrote then; and then some of the songs that I've done in between that time period. It's going to be a blend of stuff that was near and dear to me in high school - some of the songs that I felt came out well - mixed with some stuff that we wrote in the past few months. It spans years of my life, which is exciting, and it's going to be that acoustic pop rock with the simple pop songs mixed with some storytelling and stuff that means a lot to me. And there's also - which I've never done before - there's a ballad on this one too called "The Suburban Superhero"; it's ballad-like so it's the first time I've ever really slowed down with a piano, so that will be fun.

Is there one song off this EP you'd say you're most excited to share?

I think it would be "The Suburban Superhero". For various reasons, but for one because obviously I'm still early on in my career so a lot of the people who listen to my music are people from my hometown, friends and family, and I released a small, little acoustic version of that in my basement 3/4 years ago that I've since took down; they know the fast pace of that acoustic version and now they're going to hear a studio ballad of it, so it'll be fun to show people who have been watching the video since then. And then the other songs too. There's a song called "Save The King" that I re-did - I did that in my dorm room in my first and only year at college in Tennessee at Belmont - but we re-did that one more professionally, of course, so it'll be exciting to show people the evolution of that.

In one sentence how would you sum up this EP?

I would say it's easy to listen to, nothing too crazy, and a fastball down the middle - in terms of hoping people will like it and just listen to it - in a sense of music, songwriting and storytelling.

What do you hope listeners are able to take away from your music?

In terms of the songs that have more in-depth stories with backgrounds that are more personal to me, that they can match it with personal experiences or times in their lives. In terms of the songs that are just acoustic pop - I like writing the kind of tongue-in-cheek relationship songs - that they just enjoy those and listen to them.

Is there anything you want to add?

Just find me on my Facebook page or Instagram and that's where a lot of the new stuff is going to be coming from.

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Nathan Leigh

Catch up with folk-punk singer Nathan Leigh and watch the video for his latest single "Never Be Normal" off his upcoming album, Ordinary Eternal Machinery, to be released January 2017.

What got you interested in music and songwriting?

Nathan Leigh: I grew up in a very musical household and in a household where folk music and protest music was kind of part of daily life. I didn't have kids' records growing up, I had Utah Phillips and Arlo Guthrie and Pete Seeger, so it was never a question for me, growing up, whether or not I was going to grow up and be a singer-songwriter, I think the question was whether I'm going to do something else and do that on the side. But, being a musician has always been the goal and the thing that I knew that I was going to do.

Do you remember the first album you had?

Okay, so this is embarrassing. The first CD that I ever owned was New Kids On The Block; the first tape I owned was the single for Bryan Adams' "Everything I Do, I Do It For You"'; the second was Prince's "Most Beautiful Girl In The World", so I feel like that kind of balances it out a little bit [laughs]. And the first CD that I ever bought with my own money was Nirvana's Nevermind - I at least feel good about that one [laughs]. It takes a minute to develop taste, I guess [laughs].

Which musicians would you say that you've been influenced by?

I've already kind of mentioned my folky people... Definitely David Bowie was a pretty seminal influence for me. Growing up as a kid who definitely did not conform to gender norms, and bi, it took a long time to articulate who I was; because I knew that I was into girls but also, sometimes I wasn't and most of my friends were girls and so David Bowie just existing was, like, when people would ask me to define myself, I would be like, "oh, David Bowie," and people would get it. The fact that he also happened to be a brilliant musician certainly made that easier, but he was definitely, for most of my life, one of the guiding light inspirations. And then, as I got older, I got more and more into punk rock and got really into Fugazi and the whole mid-80s DC scene became a big deal for me. Now I'm trying to put all those pieces together. I like the energy and the thought and the intelligence behind a lot of the Dischord scene and that kind of punk rock as well as the stripped-down immediacy of folk music, and those are the two push and pulls for me as a musician. I like to tell people that I either play loud music very quietly or quiet music very loudly.

Which words would you use to describe your own sound?

I guess folk punk is as good a description as any. I think I definitely have songs - and certainly when I play live - it's more folk punk than it is anything else, but I think, weirdly, we've gotten to this place right now where we're super specific about the genre labels and I don't really know that that's helpful. I'm not one of those people that's like, "alright, you called me this but I'm actually this," but it's loud music with acoustic guitars. If you feel like defining that more specifically then cool, I won't contest any label that people put on me, but I'm like folk music, I guess.

What were your inspirations behind your music video for "Never Be Normal"?

I made it with my friend, John Regan, who I've known since college and the two of us sort of bonded in college over just a love for stop motion and animation in general. We'd been talking about making a video for years and we would get together and we'd plot stuff out and I think our ambition escaped our abilities and then we'd feel overwhelmed and just sort of stop and not do it. When I recorded that song, I called him up and I was like, "I think I've got an idea, I think it's simple, I think we can do it in a couple days". This idea of basically being two kids playing war and sort of showing how ludicrous and overblown conflicts become through this medium of being two kids playing war. So, my parents had just sold their house that I grew up in and I had boxed up all of my childhood toys, so I brought that box over to John's, we dumped it out on the floor of his apartment, and just kind of went to town. It was actually a really fun process because we were just, at that point, two kids playing war. We learned a lot about stop motion, about animation, about direction, and lighting and all these things that we'd both been like, "yeah, we'll just wing it," and then we started doing it and realized that it was a lot harder [laughs] and that there are reasons that there are specific jobs of lighting stop motion, that there are people who that's their whole job is lighting stop motion, because we definitely learned that that was more complicated [laughs] than either of us thought it would be going into it. We wanted to make sure that there was a sense of exuberance and joy to the video to contrast the bleak message of it.

Is that single indicative of what we can expect to hear on your upcoming album, Ordinary Eternal Machinery?

The single is one of the more stripped-down songs on the album, actually. A lot of the album, I played with a collective of 30 musicians that come in and out of live shows and record with me in various capacities and, when I started working on this record, my previous full-length had a lot of synthy sounds in it and I thought it would be really interesting to try and record an album that had some of the same textures and tones and possibilities that electronica gives you, but using only organic instruments. So, some of the songs are actually pretty heavily orchestrated on the record: there's a full brass section on a couple songs, there's big sweeping strings on a bunch of songs, 3 of the songs have multiple drummers - actually, "Never Be Normal" has 2 drum tracks. So there's a lot of big, orchestral stuff contrasting against stripped-down acoustic stuff and a couple loudish moments.

Is there a song off this album that you'd call your favorite?

Oh, that varies day to day. There's 18 tracks on the album and I spent 2 years working on it, so there are days when [laughs] there's days when I will love a song and then there's days when I'll listen back to the record and be like, "Oh, this line's terrible! I'm so embarrassed, I can't believe I'm going to show this to the world!". I think, right now, there's a song that I wrote that I've been thinking about all morning that's called "The Slumlord's Kids". It's the second track on the album that actually segues out of "Never Be Normal" and I wrote it about a conversation that I had about Donald Trump and the way that real estate is handled in New York and the cycles of gentrification and that we put wealthy people in positions of power in order to make life better for those of us on the lower end of the economic spectrum and they kind of never do.

In one sentence, how would you sum up Ordinary Eternal Machinery?

It's a big album about trying to find the joy and hope in the everyday and looking at the big issues that feel really oppressive and unfixable to a lot of people and saying, "we're going to get through this".

Could you tell our readers more about The People's Puppets of Occupy Wall Street?

My friend Joe Therrien and I, five years ago he called me up and said, "hey, I got $200 from the General Assembly about to buy Wall Street to build this puppet, what are you doing tonight?" and I had never really done anything on that scale before and came over and we built this 12 foot Statue of Liberty puppet and brought it out to a bunch of demonstrations and, gradually, we'd take it out on the street and people would come up to us and say, "hey, that's really cool, are you a group, do you have meetings?" and we were like, "I guess we should be, I guess we should". And so that group formed over the Fall of 2011 and continues to meet twice a week every week and has made art for large-scale demonstrations; everything from a bunch of art for Black Lives Matter, a lot of the art for the Fight for $15 campaign, we're currently in the middle of a big build for NoDAPL and Standing Rock - presumably, we're going to have some art to make this week, although we haven't totally clarified what that's going to be. But, it's a revolving group that has an open door policy, open membership, and all decisions are made through consensus and collective decision making processes; anything that we make is something that all members of the group have approved of or vetted in some way. If people want to get involved, our doors are open and we meet every Monday and Thursday and any scale is welcome.

What do you hope listeners are able to take away from your music?

I hope what people take away from my music is a sense of catharsis. A lot of my songs, I will start out with telling a story from my life of something that's sort of fucked up [laughs] and use that to build and illustrate a larger point or draw a connection, and I hope that people will listen to my music and have the feeling of, "oh, I have experienced that, too," and realize that they're not alone and that there is a way forward through stuff. I would love to give people the same feeling that I had as a kid, listening to David Bowie and being like, "oh, that guy's like me, I'm not alone". There's hope.

Is there anything you want to say to your fans after these election results?

The important thing is that we all stick together and take care of each other. I think there's definitely a question about how hard the next four years are going to be, I think it's a scary time for a lot of people, and I think we're all about to realize how important our communities and networks are and that the most important thing that we can do is stick together and support each other and listen to each other.

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