Q&A: alayna

Rotorua-born alayna has had quite the impressive musical journey, having worked in the studio with world-renowned songwriters and producers including Grammy Award-winning FINNEAS and the legendary Josh Fountain to name a few. She’s also had millions of plays on several of her songs, including almost an insane 10M plays on her gorgeous track “Falling Autumn”!

We delve deep with this sweet soul as she breaks down her latest EP “Tender” for us, discusses the biggest lessons she’s learnt in her career so far and more.

We’d love to know a little bit about your musical journey from when you first started to where you are now!

Singing has been a part of me for so long that it doesn’t feel like it ever really ‘started’ as such, whereas my songwriting journey took awhile to set in, I think I was about 15 when I wrote my first song. Finishing high school and going to study music was when I dove headfirst into writing and trying to understand myself as an artist, which has been an ongoing exploration ever since. It’s been a ride so far, and even though I’ve been writing for a decade and singing for two, I still feel like I’ve only just started.

We’re absolutely loving your new EP “Tender”, taking us through a story of falling in love, heartbreak and in the end needing to let go. Can you tell us a bit more in your own words about the overall theme of the EP?

The EP came together over a course of about a year, starting with “Tender”. It was the first song since my last EP that I felt really good about, and it was about mourning my tenderness that I felt I had lost due to some emotional and mental struggles. I took a trip to the USA last year with no intentions other than to just write and see what came out, and the EP came together. Some of the songs just seemed to “fall out” of me and before I knew it, it all made sense as a cohesive body of work. I see the EP has a journey of love - diving in and taking a risk (“How to Swim”), being completely enamoured by someone (“Glowing”), feeling triumphant but dependent (“Sugar”), realising the complete loss of self and identity (“Tender”), understanding how entwined your life has become with someone (“Muscle Memory”), and finally accepting the inevitable end (“I’ll Be Seeing You”). The whole thing was my heart on my sleeve, and felt pretty tender and vulnerable the entire process, especially releasing it. 

Did you have a clear vision about how you wanted the EP to sound when you first started working on it, and did it end up changing throughout the writing process?

The vision came together with each song I wrote, and it really wasn’t until I’d finished the final song “I’ll Be Seeing You” that I realised I’d written an EP. I love that about it though, I just kind of wrote to see what would come out and the music kind of showed me what I had to do.

“Glowing”, one of the singles off the EP, is such a dreamy track full of glittery synths and smooth, stunningly layered vocals. Can you tell us about the creative process of writing this track, and what it was like filming the gorgeous music video?

This song was so fun to create. I was writing this song with an incredible writer, Chelsea Lena, who told me “let’s not write about something sad! Let’s write about the best feeling you have felt with this person!”. My default is usually tinged with melancholy but this day we just decided to throw that out the window. The song was written and recorded that afternoon. For the video I worked with director Cam Neate and an awesome team, which we filmed over a couple days in West Auckland and a studio space in the city. I get super nervous for anything video-related but I got to have pizza and wine which helped the process a bit.

We think the line “my softness is my superpower” in your song “Tender” is such a powerful statement. Can you tell us a bit more about what this means to you?

I’ve always been a gentle and soft-spoken person who feels everything deeply. I used to think that was a weakness of mine and wished I was a bit tougher, especially to try and survive in this industry. I’ve had a rough time with my mental health which left me feeling pretty numb to everything, and I soon realised that I’d lost my tenderness which broke my heart. The second line of the chorus is “What do I do when the night is over?” relating to the whole “superheroes only use their powers at night” because I felt like, who on earth am I without my softness? It was kind of a love song and an apology to myself. It really helped me reconnect with my emotions and open up to being vulnerable again.

What were some of your highlights and most memorable moments working on this EP?

When I wrote “I’ll Be Seeing You”, I was visiting a friend Mike Ceglio, in New York, and I was showing him a chorus idea that I was writing the night before so he got his guitar and that song was written in a couple hours. We poured a glass of whiskey each, and I sang into a microphone in his closet. What you hear in the song is literally what we made that night. I listened to the song on repeat all the way home that night and it’s still my favourite song I’ve ever written. 

“Tender” on the other hand was a song that took weeks, carefully sculpting it with my friend Noema Te Hau until it was perfect. However I’m just as proud because I worked hard on it to make it what it needed to be. Both songs are on each end of the spectrum of how I write, either painstakingly refining until it’s finished or seeming to drop out of the sky and into my lap.

Having your last EP released in 2018, how do you think you’ve grown as a songwriter since then?

I feel as though I’ve uncovered a lot more of myself and grown in my understanding of who I am as an artist. I have a clearer picture now of where I want to go and what feels right or wrong. I know it’s a journey and I hope I never stop growing with my music as it goes hand-in-hand with me growing.

You’ve had amazing opportunities to work with some world-class producers throughout your career, including Beewirks (Kanye West, Chris Brown, Rick Ross) for this album! What are the main takeaways you’ve learnt working with them?

Bobby (Beewirks) is one of my closest friends in the industry who I’ve known for about 3 years and met when I was living in New York. He is not only a talented musician but works hard, too - everything he’s achieved is testament to how he’s put his all into his music. I can’t even imagine how many hours he’s put in so far, but still finds joy in creating and I find that really inspiring.

Who are your biggest inspirations in music?

I’ve grown up through so many different seasons in life and subsequent favourite inspirations over the years that I can’t really pick! I was in awe of Hayley Williams and a huge Paramore fan. I found Lorde really inspiring and I think it was because I saw a NZ artist not only explode onto the scene but deeply influence it, too. It made the dream so much more tangible in a way. I’m someone who will find an album and listen to only that for at least half a year.. Frank Ocean, Daniel Caesar, Sabrina Claudio have made some of my favourite projects in the last few years. 

Who are some of your favourite NZ artists right now and are there any songs in particular that you love or connect with?

Teeks’ “Without You” is the best song I’ve heard in awhile, and he has one of my favourite voices in the world. One of my favourite bands is Strangely Arousing, who I think should be playing every NZ festival there is, they’re an incredible live band to experience.

What do you love most about living in New Zealand? Do you have any favourite places to travel to or local spots to visit?

After living overseas and coming back, I appreciate home so much more. I grew up in Rotorua and loved going to all the lakes over summer as well as going to the Mount or Papamoa Beach. Hamurana Springs is close to where I live, which feels like my healing place. I have a lot of special places around that tie into memories or periods of my life that I feel really connected with.

What advice do you have for new artists out there?

Hitting obstacles and walls is inevitable and an integral part of the journey - you just have to find ways to keep pushing through them. They can be tough and disheartening but they will ultimately refine and sculpt you into the artist that you’re meant to be. It will never be easy - I feel as though 90% of my journey so far has been completely uphill and exhausting. But I just have to keep reminding myself that this is what creates the deepest, genuine and most fulfilling art in the end.

So incredibly inspiring! Make sure you keep up with alayna on Instagram (alaynamusic__), Facebook, Spotify and Apple Music.