Q&A: MASAYA

Brother & sister duo from Raglan, Masaya are here to deliver big vibes to you this winter with their debut album ‘Chronicles of Youth’! Recently opening for L.A.B and touring their album nationwide shortly, they are all about bringing the groove, while paying respect to classic roots and soul.

Hey team! Thanks so much for taking the time to answer some of our questions - we've been huge fans of your music for a long time! First off, when did you start making music together?

Kaea: Thanks for having us! Reiki and I started playing live music together with our parents when we were young teenagers and as we got older started creating music together through Masaya when we started back in 2019 for Reiki's university project.

Massive congrats on your new album 'Chronicles of Youth'! The vocals, the musicality, the groove, the songwriting - SO unreal. What was the process like creating this album from start to finish? I can imagine you find it easy to connect creatively as siblings?

Kaea: Yeah it’s always fun and also challenging because we know each other so well and there’s no filter between us - we can be super open and supportive of each other’s creative writings. Because we went into lockdown in summer, we saw it as an opportunity to write music. So back in March we headed to our hometown Raglan, locked ourselves in a place surrounded by nature and wrote the album in a week! We had our 2 band members Nat & Jules collaborating with the songwriting as well which was awesome. We recorded the album at Parachute Studios in 4 days. Reiki and I produced the album together afterwards and we then sent it off to be mix and mastered. It’s always exciting and a pleasure to create with your whānau and friends.

Wow, that is an impressive turnaround time! What are the main themes that you delve into lyrically in the album?

Kaea: Each song in the album is a certain theme we have experienced ourselves. In this album, we are talking about running away from your past/demons, COVID, dealing with stink mates, love, waiting for change, mental health issues, substances and partying, and a few messages to live by as well. This album represents youth and is for them because we are still young ourselves learning and navigating life.

Amazing! 'Attention' is of course one of our favourites on the album! Can you tell us about the inspiration behind this song?

Reiki: ‘Attention’ is a song about a young dude trying to make some moves on a lady who he finds beautiful. Catching her eye and smiling at each other. Then puts his hand out and they have a boogie on the dance floor. The song was inspired by I guess previous encounters like this and/or attempting this hahaha. The guitar style riff is inspired from guitarists like Nile Rodgers or the rhythm gat from Vulfpeck.

Love it! And the album is fully self-produced which is incredible! What were some of your main highlights working on the album?

Kaea: I really enjoyed the creative process of writing the album and the certain themes that were brought up during the writing session. Also the ideas that we were bouncing around with the title and cover art and what it meant to us, and just pushing each other musically and creatively throughout the whole journey of this album.

Reiki: We just tried to find out what things touched our emotions the strongest. Whether it was in a happy way, angry, sad, or surprised.

Who would you say are your biggest inspirations in music?

Kaea: I love all types of music from reggae to metal, 70s to hiphop and so on. So every style of music and musicianship of all the type of genres shape me as a drummer and a writer.

Reiki: Heaps of artist but main ones Freddy's, Bob Marley and Anderson Paak.

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

Kaea: Love all the Freddy's albums, Maisey Rika - especially her Matariki album, Kora, oh the list goes on.

Reiki: Fat Freddy’s Drop my favourite band and the song ‘Midnight Marauders’.

Yes, some awesome picks! What do you love most about New Zealand? Do you have any favourite places to travel to or local spots that you like to visit?

Kaea: Top of the list would be Raglan because we grew up there and it has all the elements you need - it’s a special place. I always travel up Northland, beautiful whenua up there and actually just NZ itself is amazing.

Absolutely! And you recently opened for L.A.B at Hamilton's Globox Arena which is insane! What was that experience like?

Kaea: It was the second time we did it so I wasn’t as nervous because I knew what to expect in terms of sound and how to have the band’s back, but it was an amazing opportunity and was really awesome to be a part of.

What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learnt in your career so far, and what advice do you have for other artists out there?

Kaea: Take every opportunity that comes your way and get out of your comfort zone. Put yourself out there and not worry what other people think. Work hard, plan and execute the plan. Get your 10,000 hours of practice so you can master your craft!

Reiki: Biggest advice is be nice to everyone. You never know who you might come across or bump into whilst your out and about.

Great advice! Lastly, we end every interview with this question - if you could say one thing to every person in the world, what would it be?

Kaea: Be yourself, push yourself, and everything is going to be ok :)

Reiki: Pick up your rubbish.

THANKS SO MUCH TEAM! MAKE SURE TO KEEP UP WITH MASAYA ON INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK, SPOTIFY & APPLE MUSIC. AND PICK UP YOUR RUBBISH PEOPLE!