BY MADDEN LEVIN
PHOTO BY LAURA CRAFFEY
Who could be more lovely than Marc Ambrosia? At just 18, Marc released his first EP. Now at 22, he has released his new single Let Me Be Your Secret. Be sure to keep Marc Ambrosia on your music radar, he will definitely be on ours as well.
For those who don’t know you, can you tell us a little about yourself?
MARC: "My name is Marc Ambrosia and I’m a songwriter. I've been singing all my life. From a very young age, I realized music held my revolving world of emotions tightly in it’s grasp. I'm a huge Fleetwood Mac fan, a dark chocolate addict, a hopeless romantic, and a stubborn optimist."
When did you realize you wanted to get into music?
MARC: "I always knew I wanted to make music one day. All I ever had to do for fun growing up was turn on a radio and I would just sit there mesmerized. It didn't take long before I was learning all the words to different songs and singing them in my bedroom, loud as can be in an effort to hone my vocal skills. At fifteen years old, I started writing songs and I haven't stopped since. Of course I didn't really write anything decent until I was about eighteen, but the songwriter’s learning curve isn't always the most swift experience. At eighteen, I released my first EP; at twenty, I released my first album, and now at twenty two, I feel as though I've truly stepped into my own as an artist and am releasing the best material I've ever recorded."
Were there any people or things that influenced your interest?
MARC: "There's a wonderful artist out of Portland named Mree. Her music has such an ethereal quality to it and is so soothing yet so powerful all at once. Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls has also had a huge influence on me. There's so many songs of her’s that make me ball my eyes out, most notably, “Love Will Come to You.” Vocally, my biggest influence would have to be k.d. Lang. Nobody sings like her, she never misses the mark. If years from now I can be considered just a fraction of the vocalist she is, then I will have felt like I have conquered the world! Other great influences include Alicia Keys, Stevie Nicks, John Legend, and then of course there's Jamie Myerson, who is my co-producer. Musically, we have so much in common in terms of taste and ideas. He's a trusted sounding board, the best collaborator, and the most magnificent person."
PHOTO BY LAURA CRAFFEY
What do you think makes your music unique in comparison to others?
MARC: "I try very hard not to fit into any particular box musically. I come from a vast musical background and I like to incorporate all of my interests and musical tastes into my songs. When I first started singing, I performed gospel music, from gospel I transitioned into performing in a rock cover band (which was pretty dreadful seeing as I was a budding songwriter who wanted to craft original songs, but none of my band mates were interested!) After I quit the band, I moved onto an all acoustic project with another singer-songwriter. Now, I've finally gotten to a point where I can bring all those experiences into a project all my own. From a writing standpoint, I can write rock songs naturally, but pop songs flow out of me more frequently. Vocally, my bluesy gospel roots always seem to kick in and I wind up delivering a pop song with a soulful delivery as a result. I see my music as an artful melting pot of pop, soul, and R&B."
How would you describe your music in three words?
MARC: "My little world."
Where do you get the majority of the inspiration for your songs from?
MARC: "Inspiration is all around. On my last record, a lot of my inspiration came from stepping into adulthood and holding onto dreams. With this new batch of songs, I'm digging deeper into my love life. As a result, there's plenty of heartache in the new material, but there's also a lot of romance. Generally when I write, I write from my own life experiences. So all of that heartache and all of that romance comes from a very real place. If you really listen to my lyrics, you know me through the songs."
What was it like when you released your first song to the public? Did you have any idea it would lead to a career like this?
MARC: "The first song I ever released to the public was a co-write with a former collaborator, Shane Rojas. The name of the song was “Never That Easy.” It’s not a song I play much anymore, and it's not something I consider to be my best work, but I was only sixteen or so when it came out so of course, it felt like a huge milestone to have an original song out there for the world to hear. I knew that I'd release more music as time went on, so the goal was indeed to have a career like this. My only hope now is that my career continues to stretch out far and wide so that people from all over the world can find room in their hearts for my songs, that's all I've ever wanted."
Can you tell us about your new single Let Me Be Your Secret?
PHOTO BY LAURA CRAFFEY
MARC: "I think 'Let Me Be Your Secret' is one of the catchiest songs I've ever written. It’s one of those songs where I woke up in the middle of a dead sleep, went downstairs, and wrote the song in about ten minutes. I love writing songs like that. It's a song with a lot of longing in it. There's the whole idea of forbidden love and loving someone despite consequences or ridicule. I like to think that if nothing else, people will take away from this song that they are never wrong to love someone. There's also the idea of people cherishing their secrets more than anything else in the world. So if you can find someone who loves you as much as they love their own secrets, you've maybe found something worth exploring? There's been many times where I've met someone and have thought in the back of my mind, 'please, let me be your secret.' When that happens, that's usually how I know I've fallen pretty hard for someone."
Is there anything we can expect from you in the near future?
MARC: "Well, there's lots of new music to come! When I went back in the studio last year, I had intended on making another full length album. After a few sessions though, I had quickly realized that I had a very special pack of songs on my hands and they had to be treated very delicately. When you put out a full length record, that leaves a lot of room for songs to sort of fall through the cracks and never really get heard. So I knew if I wanted every song to get the attention they deserve the best thing to do would be releasing each song individually as singles. “Let Me Be Your Secret” marks the first single release. The next single will most likely come out in the fall and then every three or four months another song will go out. Also, I'll be shooting a music video this summer for “Let Me Be Your Secret.” It'll be my first music video ever and I couldn't be more excited!"