WILLOW RAYE: INTERVIEW


by mariah estran

photo courtesy of willow raye

photo courtesy of willow raye

“I’ve always wanted to sing, but I didn’t know if I should,” says the up-and-coming alt-pop songstress Willow Raye. The same artist who in, 2019, released her first single. She had a friend play her a track, she wrote over it, and the creative spark never dulled. Now, as she enters 2021, her eyes are set on a debut album, but executing that goal didn’t come before figuring out who she is, and what she wants to say.

Being an independent artist, Raye has a great deal of creative freedom that her venturesome demeanor fits right into. However, musical soul searching is at the forefront. “I had to figure out a lot very quickly on my own,” she explains. “Figuring out the right people to work with, what your sound is — that’s been a huge thing for me, navigating what I want to have my concrete sound to be.” In the last two years, her tracks have acquired more self-identity after experimenting with different genres. “I feel like I have evolved a lot over the last two years,” she says.  Her initial 2019 tracks like “Déjà Vu” and “Turn Me On” exhibit chill-out EDM influences. “Déjà vu” even got a remix EP due to its good bones. But that genre isn’t where the singer wanted to stay. She has now progressed to an era that she confidently feels is her “sweet spot.” “I’ve officially released music — I’m proud of my branding, what I’m doing with my style and music,” Raye affirms. 

Her new style is grungy emotion intertwined with boldface, pop jabs. She knows what is catchy, and she is using that to her advantage. In October, she released “ADHD.” A two and a half-minute anthem that would make a group of friends sing out a car window. “I wrote something funny that makes no sense,” she shares while laughing about the track.  Adding: “It’s just fun, it’s catchy, and it matched the beat.” But don’t let that lightsome answer fool you. The singer has made room to share a side of her that might not be in strategically placed cheeky visuals and hype inducing beats.

Raye recently released "Manic," her vulnerable dark tune that unpacks a past of mental illness. She became inspired by an unpleasant break-up that had her questioning her sanity. “It went into both sides of having mania moments to being depressed,” Raye describes. “It explains the story of what it is like to go through a break-up when you feel crazy already. It is about questioning yourself and still blaming it on the other person. Like a mental dialogue, I would say.”

Listen to Manic on Spotify. Willow Raye · Single · 2020 · 1 songs.

Like any individual, musician or not, she’s still human. We do not stay the same, and that’s okay. “I consider my music multidimensional,” she shares. “I can feel like that ‘hot-girl’ one day, but then the next day I can feel like crap about myself, and confused or lonely — lost in it all.” Aware of a climate where we hide our emotions, Raye has no problem reciting her notable highs and painful lows. A quality she hopes listeners will find comforting. “I want them to feel like bad bitches, feel good about themselves, but also know it’s okay to not feel amazing all the time.”

photo courtesy of willow raye

photo courtesy of willow raye

Becoming aligned with who she is has taken time, but she’s finally found it. Raye adores gloomy vintage aesthetics and film photography. She’s got the creatives on her same wavelength to aid in developing content that defines her. “At the beginning, you’re constantly thinking of a branding scheme, but I’ve realized the best branding scheme is being yourself and figuring out what you like,” the singer recounts. The last two years were about becoming more in touch with herself, even during the chaotic year of 2020. She got time to work heavily on her tracks while also learning about herself, and it shows. “I just started doing things that I like more, not because I thought people would like it. I do what I want, how I want it,” Raye affirms as her courage exudes from every syllable spoken.

Her confidence, her passion for elevating her artistry is refreshing after we've lived through months that could be labeled uninspiring. “I want to skip the EP and go straight to the album,” she replies when asked about her next move. A perfect answer considering where her mindset is. “It is the music I would listen to," she says. "It is music I am very proud of writing, it explains my inner psyche."

Raye is collaborating with people she knows comprehends her vision. That includes her voice coach, who is producing the LP. It will take inspiration from alternative-pop acts like BANKS, and genre innovators like Lil Peep, as Willow Raye brings in her rebellious twist.

If we can predict anything, we know it will be a sincere chronicle of what she’s been waiting to share. “I feel like it resonates more with people than me trying to act like some pop princess that has everything perfect in her life. That’s not me. I like to be vulnerable, raw, and real.” 

 

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BETCHA: INTERVIEW


by danielle holian

photo by joey brodnax

photo by joey brodnax

Nashville-based alt-rock group Betcha have released their brand new single “Déjà Vu,” and are about to release their upcoming sophomore EP, Feels Like We’ve Been Here Before. Having toured alongside and received co-signs from the likes of Matt Maeson, Illiterate Light, Kaleo, Judah & The Lion, Kings Of Leon, and Briston Maroney, the band are on the rise to something great in the music industry. The quartet are Charlie Greene (vocals, guitar), Ben Booth (lead guitar), Taylor Dubray (bass, keys), and Chase Wofford (drums).

Unclear Magazine caught up with Betcha about the band’s musical background, new music, and more below.


For our readers, please tell us a bit about your background in music.

Betcha: “We’ve all been super into music, especially bands, since we can remember. Basically all started diving into instruments around middle school. Luckily we all decided to keep pursuing it in college and met at Belmont University. From there we just really started diving into songwriting and learning how to work as a band.”

 

What inspired the band’s name, Betcha?

B: “BEn, TAylor, CHAse, CHArlie. We used to be under the name Wilder which is Charlie’s middle name, but ended up wanting it to be something that represented the group and so BETCHA was born.”

 

Who or what are your musical influences?

B: “Really love Phoenix, The 1975, and Tame Impala at the moment. We’re just really into bands in general.”

 

What inspired your latest single “Déjà Vu?”

B: “I think I was in a place where I felt like my days were becoming a bit repetitive and almost predictable. I wanted to apply that to a relationship or connection that plays on repeat. ‘It feels like we’ve been here before’ was the first lyric that came to me which kinda inspired the whole song and ended up being the perfect name to sum up the EP.”

 

And what influenced your upcoming sophomore EP, Feels Like We’ve Been Here Before?

B: “So many influences brought this EP together. Most of the songs we started tracking two days before COVID hit, so we ended up doing a lot of the record from our basement and sending stems to our producer to work with. I feel like it gave a super mystique energy to lots of the record that wouldn’t of been there before. But it’s basically a culmination of songs we wrote over the last year. I feel like it’s our first true statement of who Betcha is. It’s definitely got a lot of diversity through the songs, but we strive to be band that can chase whatever sounds come our way.”

 

Can you describe what your songwriting process is like? And how do you divide the creative process between you?

B: “We are a very collaborative group. We like to approach songs from every angle, so they can start with a drum groove, melody, or something written on an acoustic guitar. We all have different strengths that play into the process. Once we have a solid foundation and vibe for a song, Charlie will usually start lyrics and the concept for the song while Doobie, Ben, and Chase keep building up parts in the track. We have also been collaborating with other talented writers and producers that help us push songs to the finish line.”

 

How has your sound, taste, and energy progressed since the band began?

B: “We have come a very long way since our founding! We actually used to be called Wilder, and were inspired more by standard rock bands and we even had some folk influence. In the past few years we have been growing into a sound that represents a lot of the bands that we all loved growing up like The Killers or U2 mixed with more modern artists like The 1975, or even Frank Ocean, that we draw from creatively to try and have a more modern sonic identity.”

 

What would you say was your biggest challenge breaking into the music industry?

B: “Obviously one of the hardest parts is getting noticed, whether that is by labels or managers. But another big challenge we have been facing is just writing and releasing music until a certain song really starts to catch fire. With most artists, just one or a few songs are what really launch careers into the next level, and even though we have a great team around us we are continuously working and writing to try to create music that people really enjoy.”

Listen to Deja Vu on Spotify. Betcha · Single · 2020 · 4 songs.

 

What do you want the listeners to take away from your music?

B: “One big aspect of our music is the honesty of the songs. All of our songs are very reflective of things that we have been through or experienced together or at some point. So much of the music that we listen to is music that is very transparent and feels like you connect with the lyrics and vibe very easily, and that feeling is what we hope to create when we are making music.”

 

And finally, what does 2020 hold in store, thus far, for Betcha?

B: “We have an EP coming out in October called Feels Like We’ve Been Here Before. This is a collection of songs we have been working on for the past year and are super excited to release into the world. We also have been working on a music video for our next single that we are really excited about. This collection of music is a sound that feels very reflective of where we are headed both sonically and aesthetically as a band.”

 

Download/Stream "Closer To The Sun" by Betcha: https://Betcha.lnk.to/CloserToTheSunAY Follow https://www.instagram.com/betchaband/ https://www.facebook.com/b...

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