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ROCKWiRED iNTERViEWS AMANDA MORRA THiS TiME WiTH FEELiNG The debut album is the album that one has their entire life to prepare for and Toronto-based pop singer AMANDA MORRA is no exception to this rule. Raised on both music and dance since the age of five, MORRA’s future was never in question or doubt and eventually honed her craft as a performer at both the CANADIAN VOCAL ACADEMY OF MUSIC and the prestigious CARDINAL CARTER SCHOOL OF THE ARTS. The glorious results of MORRA’s dedication are boasted on her self-titled debut CD where she shows tremendous versatility as a vocalist and a promising start as a songwriter. She is certainly not shy to point out that half of the album is co-written by her. “I really think that you need to write what you know otherwise, it’s not going to come across as authentic or genuine.” says MORRA “I try to write as much as possible. I co-wrote six of the songs on the album so hopefully I will be doing more of that. It is a great way to put all of your thoughts and feelings onto paper. For me, songwriting is an important aspect that you need to have. It’s not just about singing a great song anymore. It’s about being able to put yourself into the music and being genuine with it.” AMANDA MORRA TALKS TO ROCKWiRED ABOUT HER SELF-TiTLED DEBUT CD STRiPPiNG THE MUSiC DOWN (ON OCCASiON) AND PUTTiNG HERSELF iN THE MUSiC  iNTERViEWED BY BRiAN LUSH ROCKWIRED spoke with a AMANDA MORRA over the phone. Here is how it went. It’s great to finally have you on the phone and have a speaking voice to go with the singing voice. It’s very different from the music. Yes it is! I sound like I’m two. And on the CD, you sound like you’re all woman. Exactly! It’s good because when the telemarketers call, they think I’m a child and hang up. You’ve got a wonderful CD kid! Thank you! And now that it’ out there for everyone to hear, how do you feel about it? It’s amazing to finally be able to show what you’ve been working on and creating over the past year. A lot of hard work and dedication goes into it and when you finally have a finished product in your hand, it’s really neat. It is especially neat to see it all come together from start to finish. It really makes you appreciate the entire process of what goes into making a song and recording a whole album and share it with the rest of the world. It’s amazing and overwhelming and sometimes, I can’t believe that it is actually happening to me. Knowing all of the work that does go into making a CD, how anxious are you to do it again? I’m already getting started. We are already back in the studio recording some new songs for future singles. I’m eager to get it going again. I love it. I’m bored when I’m not doing that stuff. I love the whole songwriting and recording process. Being able to do that again is really exciting. Who all did you work in putting this CD together – in terms of production? There weren’t a lot of big name producers - just a bunch of local Toronto producers. The only big name on the CD is GAVIN RILEY who has won a JUNO AWARD recently for his work with JACKSOUL. He is the only recognizable name. Talk about how music got started for you. Music was always in my life. I started singing at a very young age around the house. When I was five, my parents brought me to IAN GARRET who is a renowned vocal coach who has worked with SHANIA TWAIN. He took me from a very young age. Music was always in my life. I was a competitive dancer as well. Between singing and dancing – I’ve done it all since I was five or as long as I can remember. It is kind of natural for me to need it in my life at this point and be on stage and be performing. At this point in my life, it’s not about other people’s songs now. It’s about doing your own. You reach a maxim – a point at which it is not good enough to be singing other people’s music. You want to be able to put yourself into the music and that is what is so great about being able to record my own album after all of these years. I finally have something that I am able to call my own. Maybe one day a girl – during a singing lesson –will be singing my song so it’s cool. What kind of place do you think you are coming from as a songwriter? As a songwriter, I typically write things that I know about. I’m twenty-one years old and a lot of it has to do with things that I’ve gone through in my life in terms of relationships. There are also some fun tracks on the album as well. I really think that you need to write what you know otherwise, it’s not going to come across as authentic or genuine. I try to write as much as possible. I co-wrote six of the songs on the album so hopefully I will be doing more of that. It is a great way to put all of your thoughts and feelings onto paper. For me, songwriting is an important aspect that you need to have. It’s not just about singing a great song anymore. It’s about being able to put yourself into the music and being genuine with it. What songwriters do you look to? I sing pop music but I listen to everything. I’m a music buff and I’m really into COLBY COLLETE. She writes a lot of her tracks and she is a great vocalist. I really admire her work because lyrically, she is phenomenal. I really respect artists like her. In the pop world, I don’t know who writes all of their songs. I know what you mean. I co-wrote six of the songs on my album and in pop music the songs are usually thrown at you from other songwriters and lyricists that are hired to come in and work on the album. You never know who is writing their stuff but for me, I really admire COLBY COLLETTE’s work and her artistry. I really like her stuff. Explain, if it’s explainable, the songwriting process itself. How does that work? I think with every song, the process is different. Some songs start with a melody and the songs kind of come from there because the melody gives you an idea of what the words should be. Other times, the producer gives you a beat and he just says ‘go’ and the words just come to you based on the rest of the production. Is some cases you are just writing down your thoughts and your feelings – almost like poetry – and in working with the words, a song comes out of it. It all depends on what feels write at that moment. From the album, what songs stand out for you the most and why? One of the songs that resonates for me the most is the song BETTER DAYS. I co-wrote that song and I think that it has a lo of me in it. It comes from a very real place for me. Another song that stands out for me is my duet with GEORGE - ROOM TO BREATHE. It wasn’t a song that I helped co-write but I was very proud of the song and how it turned out and working with GEORGE was just great. He is a great artist as well. MORE AND MORE is one of my favorites as well on the strength of its lyrics alone and it’s got this great acoustic vibe. I do a lot of acoustic shows as well where we have taken the songs and stripped them down. I work with this guy JUSTIN ABEDIN. He has worked with NELLY FURTADO and many other great musicians and he is just a lot of fun. He takes this song and he I s able to break it down from its dance pop sound to this really cool acoustic guitar version. We do a lot of acoustic gigs together – just me and him on the guitar. It’s neat because they are taking these dance tracks and breaking them down into acoustic jams. For me that is important because it shows versatility and puts to rest the question of whether you can sing or not because of all of the technology that they have in the studio. It’s great to strip the song down to this elemental level. That is why enjoy an artist like COLBY COLLETTE. How have people reacted to these acoustic sets of yours? People really, really like them. I actually headlined a show for the GAP as a part of the nationwide celebration for their fifty year anniversary and was chosen to perform at one f their locations. It was neat because people would come up to me and be like ‘Oh, I heard that song on the radio but it doesn’t sound like this! This is cool!’ I had a really positive reaction from the audience from the stripped down versions of the songs. We’re actually thinking about recording some of the acoustic versions. Has there been a tour for this album yet? That is something we are in talks to do. I may be heading out west to Edmonton, Alberta and British Columbia. I would love to get out to the States. I’m also doing pretty well in Australia. We’re trying to figure out the particulars for a tour right now. I did have a chance to perform at the JUNO AWARDS this past March which is huge for me. I performed at the Welcome Reception. It was unreal for me. It was my biggest show to date. I was the only performer there who wasn’t a nominee so for me, it was amazing to have that opportunity. Sounds like a blast! It was. After that we got to go the awards dinner and we got to go to the actual awards show. That was an amazing experience. Have you ever played the States? No, not yet. I feel like I need to be there. I’m going to make my way there soon. I’ve always heard from non-Americans that our audiences are very nice. Well you sound nice! Why thank you! That is very sweet of you to say! Maybe I will have to come and perform in New Mexico. Are you ever in the States? We always go to the States. My mom owns a travel agency so I’ve never spent a New Years here. This year we’re going to Miami and I just got back from New York. I’m always everywhere. Have you been to Australia? You said you were doing well there. No, never. That would be a whole entire trip in itself. I would love to do that. I’d love to also. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve interviewed down there. They are also very wonderful people. I’m currently on forty-six radio stations down there. I had to do all of the radio liners the other day and say ‘Hi, I’m AMANDA MORRA and you’re listening to…” whatever station it is. Those were fun to do. To know that I’m doing well in other countries is rewarding in and of it self. So I’m very happy with everything. What would you like someone to come away with after they’ve heard this CD? After someone hears this CD I would hope that they would walk away with a sense of happiness and to be able to relate to the songs. You make music for the masses. You make it for yourself to get across what it is that you are thinking and feeling but you also make it for people to relate to it. I walk away with a smile on their face would be really great. |
