Welcome back one and all to another Beneath the Surface session! Today I am joined by the incredibly talented Daniyal Shah as he prepares for this new single release ‘What Makes You, You’, which is out on the 12th of July and you can pre-save it here first! In the meantime, let’s get into our chat below!
What would you say first sparked your interest in music/who inspired you to make music?
I was around 13 years old and went to this Jazz Festival in Montreal, Canada. Watching so many stages curated with different musicians and genre’s really excited me to the core. I just knew I had to be one of those people on stage. Live sound PA systems and a music performance in action has always been inspiring to me.
How would you describe the music you are currently creating?
Over the years I have evolved and so has my music. From jumping dIfferent genre’s and producing a variety of music as a music producer, I have seemed to find balance in creating indie music, alternative music and electronic/minimal beats.
What does your creative process look like?
Before I was a singer/songwriter, I fell in love with poetry from a very young age. I did not quite want to quit poetic writing so I usually try my best to incorporate such writing techniques within my lyrics. I feel quite safe in my home studio while writing such pieces. In order to truly feel what I write, I imagined all of my experiences and hardships I faced in life and understood why they happened and where they brought me today. With my heart and mind revolving around past experiences or imagining future endeavours I start writing the lyrics first. Followed by choosing an appropriate key and time signature to cultivate the feel of the arrangement I then start composing. I have an organised process for it all. I’d finish the lyrics, understand the theme of the song, shape music and sounds relevant to the vibe I feel is most suitable and then input my vocal recordings. Finally it all leads towards the mixing and mastering phase of the audio production. All of this is done in my bedroom studio. Somehow writing this sort of music in the comfort of my own room brings out the realism and truth I have always admired that happens spontaneously when I start producing.
Who would you most like to collaborate with? (let’s send it out to the universe and make it happen!)
I would definitely want to have a collaboration with my favourite artist, Aurora.
What is the one message you would like to send out to your fans?
Do something today. Today matters.
What’s your top tip to rejuvenate your creativity/get over writer’s block?
If I am composing a track let’s say in the key of A major and somehow I get a creative block. My favourite trick is to start a vocal meditation practice. Where I sing vocally only the scale of the key in an ascending and descending order. Repetitively in a locked tempo pattern until I’m completely lost in this trance. Somehow the melodies start coming to me immediately after a few minutes of this exercise.
What’s next for you, what do we have to look forward to/ what are you currently working on?
Currently I’m working on my first album known as, Star Gate Volume 1. I definitely plan to put out a lot of music this year while releasing them as singles at first.
Pre-Save ‘What Makes You, You’:
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