Interview w/Jessie Munro- a singer-songwriter with smarts and funk
At just 23 years of age LA-based musician Jessie Munro is causing a stir on the music scene. With a Berklee College of Music education and plenty of soul as her foundation she uses all the tools in her arsenal to create a personal and engaging style. With the release of her 6 track EP- On My Own- on the horizon, lead single 'Under Fire' gives a glimpse as to what we have to forward to.
Interview:
Can you remember the first bit of music or artist that really got you hooked on music?
I
grew up listening to a lot of Carole King, through her music I fell in
love with songwriting and storytelling. When I was growing up my dad
played a lot of music around the house, and always a wide range of
genres. I learned so much from him and his love of music and the older I
get, the more I hear and discover, I get hooked on music all the time.
One of the themes that runs through your music is this insane pressure modern society puts on the individual to perform. Do you think we're starting to realise how unhealthy super-ambition can be?
I
don't necessarily think that super ambition is unhealthy. I would say
that life is a balancing act and being ambitious and driven within your
career is important, however it's important for me to keep my feet on
the ground. To me Under Fire is more about societal and social
expectations. People are always going to want something from you, or
want you to do things there way. With Under Fire I was so tired of
listening to everyone else and ignoring myself that I just kind of
snapped. I feel so lucky to be living in a time where their are so many
people fighting for progressive movements and so many voices that are
finally being heard. Under Fire to me is about recognizing what makes
you happy and not sacrificing that for anyone else.
The EP seems very personal to you, did you have any anxiety about opening yourself up so much?
Definitely
though I wish the answer to that was no. I'm very lucky to have worked
on this project with people that I am very comfortable with and so
opening up during the actual writing process was not as difficult as I
thought. I think that the part of the project that makes me a little
more anxious is the release aspect. Feels a little bit like plastering
my diary all over the street haha. But if one person hears one song and
they feel a little better about there day, or they can relate and
realize they aren't alone then I did my job.
Do you have any funny or crazy stories from performing or the road?
I
was on a tour in the fall with my band in China and South Korea and at
the beginning of the show I asked the audience if they like to dance
(because I was going to ask them all to get up on there feet later in
the set). This one section of the audience all started pointing at this
kid and he looked mortified. I was like "let's not pressure anyone let's
all just have a good time". We were on our last song (Under Fire) and I
was jumping around and the audience were up on there feet and out of
nowhere this kid runs onto the stage and starts break dancing (he was
incredible) and the audience went insane. 10 seconds later another kid
runs on and starts break dancing and they start a battle! We ended up
doing the last chorus 4 or 5 times so they could keep going back and
forth. It was a perfect end to our tour.
Who are you listening to right now? Recommend our readers some bangers!
Cosha - RIP Bonzai (listen to Bladerunnin)
Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour (great summer jams)
Jorja Smith - Lost and Found
Maggie Rogers new song Falling Water
What's in the future for you now? Any releases or tours we should be keeping an eye out for?
The EP will be released this summer which I'm really excited about and more new music to come after that.
I will be playing in Toronto at the Revival on October 4th! More dates to come!
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