Blending vibey synths and silky vocals with uniquely candid lyrics, Seattle born and raised ALITA is bringing the honesty back to today’s pop music scene. Taking influence from artists ranging from India.Arie to LEON and Julia Michaels, ALITA’s songs share personal stories of navigating young adulthood, feminism, love, and loss through her own unique lens. Growing up in a musical family, ALITA has been writing and performing from an early age, and that experience has both made her a confident songstress and a writer who is constantly evolving her sound and helping redefine what it means to be a pop star in today’s world.
Seattle-based alt-pop artist ALITA is back with new single “Bodies” that is equal parts passion and power. The sultry track laced with 80’s synths offers a personal look at sensuality and the strength of being a woman.
What was your upbringing like?
That feels like a loaded question for some reason! Overall, my childhood was good. I have a loving mother, an exceptional godfather/father figure, a wonderful family. All the encouragement in the world to go after my dreams. Things took a bit of a turn when I was 11. My mom got sick and remained so until my early twenties. She still struggles with chronic illness, but thankfully has it better managed now. Seeing a sick parent as a young child was so formational, so impactful on my worldview. It required me to grow up really quickly, as I was often the one taking care of her. We have a really special relationship, but I do see hints of resentment pop up for me here and there, a subconscious reaction to feeling like some of my innocence was taken away too early. Obviously, that was not my mom’s fault at all. It’s just interesting noticing some of the habits and patterns of thinking we carry into adulthood with our own parents. But really – my childhood was one filled with love.
You’re a dog person. What type of dogs do you have?
I definitely am! I have three dogs. Ziggy’s a 3-year-old Double Doodle (Labradoodle/Golden Doodle mix), Piper’s a 9-year-old Great Pyrenees, and Rue is a 13-year-old Cattle Dog mix. I’m fostering a 3-year-old Pit Bull named Tammi right now, too. It’as a full house!
How did you discover music and how did you start to write music?
I don’t have a memory of my own personal discovery; I think it was always a part of my world. My mom played music through headphones on her stomach when she was pregnant with me and I grew up in a family of musicians and performers. I started songwriting more intentionally when I picked up a guitar in middle school, but I was writing long before that. I loved musical theatre growing up, so I was always wandering around like I was in one – breaking out in song at the most inappropriate times. I also remember sitting in my childhood home in 5th grade, resenting my math homework, so I would sing the equations just to get through it and to make it half fun for myself.
How did you get your first instrument and do you still have it?
My godfather, David, bought one for me in middle school. I remember asking for one, him taking me down to our small, local music store and getting fit with this smaller children’s guitar. I still have it, but I’ve graduated onto something a little more fitting for adult hands 🙂
What was the title of your first original song? Did you record it?
Gosh, I don’t remember the very first one, but I do remember one of the first ones I sang on an open mic night in school. I wrote a song called ‘I’m Not Missing You’, inspired by my childhood best friend, Meghan, and her breakup. It’s actually pretty decent – full of Taylor Swift references and angry, preteen lyrics. I actually posted myself singing it in college on my YouTube for nostalgia’s sake!
What was your first performance like?
I think my first larger stage performance was when I was about 6 and was one of the children in a production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”. I caught the bug after that.
Do you write better if you take a long time to write a song?
Not really. I think time gives me more space to reflect on what I really want to say in a song, so that’s helpful. But most of my music I write really quickly, and then tweak and refine once I’ve had some distance from it. I honestly write most of my favorite lines while I’m driving in my car. That’s one of my best places to just freestyle, and see what comes up.
One of the first songs I saw you do online was “I’m Not Missing You”. How did you decide to debut your original music on YouTube?
Ha! I didn’t see this question before answering the other one above. I was in college then. I had decided not to go to school for music and paused a lot of my dreams at the time. I was not at all happy about that decision. I needed a creative outlet, but felt like I didn’t’ really have anything to write about at the time, so I shared an older song that I wrote as a kid. It was nice receiving such a kind response during a time I was feeling so conflicted about what I wanted.
Tell me about the making of your homemade video for “Watermelon Sugar”?
I love that song so much. When I decided I wanted to cover and recreate it, I didn’t want to do one of my typical sit-downs with a mic covers. I wanted to use this extra time in quarantine to make something homemade and fun. I actually shot and edited the whole thing on my phone, just like I did with my new single, “Bodies.” I just wandered around outside, took a drive into the city, and shot a bunch of random footage over a couple of days! My manager was in town at the time and helped a lot with filming certain things that I couldn’t do on my own. Working on “Watermelon Sugar” was kind of an experimental project so that I could figure out how to make something I liked for “Bodies.” It’s really amazing what you can do these days!
Tell me about your upcoming single “Bodies” which comes out on July 10th?
“Bodies,” at its surface level, is a song about sex. However, the process of writing and prepping this song for release was so much more than that. Last year, I was listening to a lot of male R&B and hip-hop artists that I felt had unimaginative ways of writing about something most of us experience and enjoy. Taking about sex as a woman is still so taboo. Talking about pleasure and body confidence is still seen to some as a perverted, slut-shamed activity. When I’m writing music, I’m almost always the only woman in the room. I value my collaborators but for a long time, I didn’t want to tackle a song like this because I was afraid of how I would be perceived. I was afraid the heart of what I wanted to say would be lost in the unconscious biases in the room. Eventually, I was like… ‘ya know what? Screw that!’ So, I wrote the initial demo of “Bodies” on my own and then brought it into the studio. 6 months after I wrote it, I flew down to Arizona to work for a few days & we pulled up “Bodies” again. We refined the lyrics, melodies, and production a bit. I sent the new version over to my manager and she was really the one who pushed me to release it. She’s always loved it. Having that close creative partnership with her is beyond special for me.
What are your thoughts about music streaming? Do you have a preference for digital or vinyl?
One of my goals is to have an album printed on vinyl. I can’t wait to hold that in my hands! But in terms of streaming at large, I think it’s completely changed the game and with that revolution has come to a lot of problems. Streaming services don’t pay artists an equitable amount per stream. Artists and their work are the entire product being sold on Spotify, but we’re really not seeing that in our paychecks. Streaming services are also heavily dominated by labels, so navigating the digital age of music as an independent artist can be tricky. At the same time, streaming has given so many people a platform that wouldn’t have it otherwise, and it has challenged the way artists find success. There are now so many avenues for people to release their work and get seen. I love that. I see streaming as an essential piece of my own growth and success, so I’m also really grateful for the service. It’s complicated.
What are your feelings about the social uprising going on in the United States?
I am all for it. It’s long overdue. We’re doing some deep shadow work right now. Human beings are being tasked with facing a lot this year. Now is the opportunity to face the discomfort head on, embrace it, and use it as a vehicle for lasting, meaningful change. Nothing evolves without pain. We’re evolving. We have some dead skin we need to shed in our own country in order to do that. Black Lives Matter is an incredible movement, and it’s requiring us all to look at ourselves deeply, at what we’ve been willing to accept and ignore. Black, Indigenous, and People of Color are not asking for anything but respect, decency, and peace to move about the world. I want to be a part of any solution.
Did you do anything for International Women’s Day?
Nothing out of the ordinary. Just woke up and did my woman thing 🙂
How has the ‘Me Too’ Movement helped to empower women and female performers?
The “Me Too” movement has been an essential part of highlighting sexual abuse & sexism both in and out of the entertainment industry. When you have celebrities coming forward, it often gives people courage in their everyday lives to tell their own stories. The entertainment industry can be a real slimy place, because there are always struggling performers who are easy for predators to prey on. The “Me Too” movement really shows how many women are victim to harassment and abuse in their lifetimes, and horrifically, the numbers show how normalized it has become.
What song from the past is on your mind right now? And what does that song mean to you?
I’ve been listening a lot to Sara Bareilles earlier albums, especially the song “Gravity”. It’s just such a perfect ballad all around. Very different from “Bodies”, but I’ve definitely been in a contemplative ballad mood these days.
What have you been doing with your self-quarantine? Have you discovered or rediscovered any new hobbies?
Right now, as I answer these questions I’m sitting in my backyard with my dogs, enjoying the sun. It’s looked a lot like this. I’m filling my time with remote sessions, prepping for new releases and doing as much as I can from the comfort of my own home. I started gardening, somewhat successfully. That’s new. This is also the first summer I own my home, so I have a ton of learning and consistent yard work to do. I stay busy, but I do miss having some sense of a routine.
How do you feel the Covid-19 virus is going to affect the music business?
It’s hugely impacted the music industry already. Especially for touring musicians, their crews, venues and their staff. It’s heartbreaking. Music is all about community and gathering, and this virus is making that unsafe right now. People still need music. No matter what’s going on in the world, people rely on music. Streaming is growing, I know that. Personally, I’m really focusing on building that online streaming presence, so I’m fortunate in that I’m not directly impacted right at this moment. But some of my all-time favorite venues are at risk of shutting down, and people are struggling.
Lots of people are doing nightly concerts over either YouTube, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. How have you adjusted to performing during COVID?
I’ve been doing a lot more sit down, relaxed covers. I have an online performance coming up at the end of July. I’m not super used to digital performances, so I really need to get my act together to keep up with the times!
This week Live Nation announced their first ever U.S. drive-in concert series — “Live From The Drive In”— This will bring fans a live music tailgating experience unlike any other, kicking off July 10-12 in Indianapolis, IN, Nashville, TN, and St. Louis, MO. Brad Paisley will headline performances in all three cities, marking the start of a much anticipated return to in person live events. Is this a type of performance you’d be willing to do?
I think this is so special. If people respect the rules of social distancing, then it has the potential to be an incredibly creative response to the hurt going on right now. I love it, and would love to do it.
With social distance being the norm. Do you feel that it may be the end of music festivals for the next couple of years?
I’m hopeful that it’s not going to affect summer 2021 like it is right now, but who really knows? I don’t think we’ll see a sustained resume to normal activities until we have a vaccine.
What about Holographic concerts in our living room?
That’s news to me! Sounds crazy cool. Is that a thing?
Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
I just want to be happy, consistently growing with my music and creativity. I’m so early in my career that every goal I have right now is pretty predictable – I’d like to sign a deal with a label I really believe in, I’d love to tour both nationally and globally, I’d love to release a couple albums in the next 5 years.
Anything you would like to say in closing?
Thanks so much for having me! It’s a privilege to get to chase this dream, and it’s outlets like UnRated that help me along the way. So, thank you!
