CZA & Marc Creates Something Unique

What would you be doing today if not for this interview? 

I normally sit for almost 4-6 hours a day working on music. Be it starting something from scratch, or mixing an existing song, I have to spend at least this much time on my music because at the end of the day, it’s the practice and repetitions you do at reaching your goals that will really make you achieve it. 

If you were to introduce your music and genre to someone unaware of your music, how would you? 

Well, my music isn’t really hard to understand. I never stick to a particular genre, it’s always about experimenting new things. So someone unaware of my music would really go through a roller coaster of emotions and genres when they give my songs a listen. I have worked on Lo-fi, Hip-Hop, Indie, Alt Rock, Pop, Electronica, EDM, and now with the release of ‘All I See’, I’ve entered the Contemporary R&B genre!

Tell us something about your latest single.

I’m currently doing my Bachelor’s in Music at The True School Of Music. Studying at a music school, I’ve started to learn what music really is, because all this while the circle I was in, was really small with very little information. ‘All I See’ is a very stylish Contemporary R&B/Pop song that talks about the want of love and lust. I came up with the idea of this song when Jyots(Guitarist) and I were sitting together, just jamming, and we came up with the main guitar riff of the song. From there, there was no going back. The song kept building its structure and I got Jyots to play that insane guitar solo at the end and that was it.

How did you and Marc come about collaborating on this project?

Once I was done with the main structure of the song, I approached my writers to start writing some lyrics for it. In fact this was at the beginning of last year in January. We went over at least 3 different drafts of the song with different singers and completely different lyrics every time. But I just wasn’t satisfied with what I had. That was when I met Marc. Marc has that unique R&B voice that literally fits this song like how bread and butter go together. And from there, there was no going back. We finished the final draft of the song by October and sent it over to David and Hari (Mixing Engineers) to finish the song. 

What challenge did you face in writing and producing this song?

The main challenge I really faced was to find the right voice for this song. As I said before, the song went over 3-4 drafts with different singers, until it finally landed upon Marc. I don’t think I would have found a better singer than him.

One artist you’d like to collaborate with, but you know it’s not the right time now. 

I mean, if it’s my dream artists, it would be someone like Jacob Collier or Finneas, but if it’s someone local within the country, then I’d love to work with producers like Dropped Out and singers like Tanmaya Bhatnagar (Link to Tanmay’s interview with Melody Insider: Read Here).

According to you, what does it take to earn the acclaimed badge of “Established Artist”?

There isn’t any “badge” for it per say, but I feel like you are an artist when you have your art, and when you have the people who would die for that art. 

Your Highlight performance till date and why so?

I’m not really a performer, right now I’m trying to build my music platform and get the content that I need to perform live on stage. And once I get that, I really cannot wait to perform my music live in front of an audience. 

An artist’s Best Friend is? 

An artist’s best friend would be the thing they cannot live without. It can be an instrument or anything. For me, my best “friends” would be my laptop and my keyboard. The two things that I ABSOLUTELY cannot live without.

What was the first ever instrument you played?

The first ever instrument I played was the violin. My father is really into music, and ever since I was a child, he would push me to go for music classes. I studied carnatic singing for almost 8 years, and during this time, I learnt the violin. I don’t think there is any instrument as complex and beautiful as a violin. 

How has your place of Origin been an influence on your music?

I guess around 50-60% of my listeners come from Bangalore. This place has been my home for all my life and the friends I made here really make a big impact on where I stand now. 

How are the psychological rewards in this career you have chosen? 

Making music has been my passion all my life. It brings me immense happiness when I see people relate to my music and understand the perspective of my songs that I try to show.

An artist whose music according to you is attracting international attention which is going to propel the industry’s growth. 

Artists like Anuv Jain, Tanmaya Bhatnagar, 6091 and Hanumankind are really creating a huge impact on the industry internationally, and I think they will be playing a huge role in the future of the music industry.

Well, thank you once again for spending time with us, giving us valuable insight into your career. We wish you all the very best of luck in your endeavors. See you soon at a Concert.

Check out all of Melody Insider’s latest interviews of Artists & Bands by following this link – Independent Artists