Melany Turner; 23 years old from French
Interview conducted on March 23, 2021
By Dan Locke
What is your upbringing?
My upbringing is pop soul music
How did you discover music?
I discovered music with my dad. He is a musician and my mom was singing to me a lot of songs when I was younger.
How did you start to write music?
I started to write music when I was 12 years old with some friends with the same hobbies. It was love songs. You know, when you feel your first love feelings and don’t know how to explain them!
How did you get your first guitar, and do you still have it?
My dad bought himself a guitar. I was playing piano, then he would teach me guitar. I loved seeing him playing, so I decided to try it by myself and that became my favorite instrument. I was around 13 years old but I’ve never changed it. I still use the same one so many years after.
What is your guitar of choice now? Year, make and model?
Well, mine is an Elypse. But if I have to change my guitar, I would love to have a LÂG TSE – 701DCE TRAMONTANE SNAKEWOOK DCE. I love this one so much!
Describe your music.
I choose the songs I sing by heart stroke. Songs let me think or feel as I do at the moment. Like, Head Above Water. I choose that song because it let me feel and think about the journey I had when I knew I am Borderline. I think it’s important to let swear emotions when you sing and that’s what I need to do.
What was your first performance at like?
I did my first performance when I was 7 years old. I was feeling so weird, I cried and all of my body was shaking. But when I started to sing on stage, everything disappeared and that’s at this moment I knew I would do it for the rest of my life!
Back in 2015, you lost all of your videos from YouTube. What happened?
Weird story. I had 2 cellphones in 2015. A personal, and one for business. I was on a little travel with 2 friends, at the beach for 1 week. One of them was also doing music… But I think she was jealous… She was not doing anything and at the same time, Fun Radio (French famous radio), was diffusing me. Then she has stolen my business phone and deleted every video I had on YouTube. Except for the one with my little sister…
How did Jan Jansen find you?
I know Jan Jansen for so many years! We knew each other before we started to work together. I knew him in 2013 then I still was singing with Alexandru Grindvoll. He knows Alex and he was following me on my journey with him. Same as well about Jadyn Rylee. I feel lucky I met him and work with him. He’s an amazing producer and he is doing his best for the artists to feel free, safe and he’s a lot on my back to push me to give my best even when I feel I cannot do anything.
Royalties never appear like magic. Royalties are only sent to you through work undertaken by a PRO to ensure that their members are getting paid. If you’re not yet signed up to a Performing Right Organization like ASCAP, BMI or SESAC, you may not be receiving all the royalties you deserve.
Do you belong to any to songwriters’ organizations like the International singer-songwriter association, SESAC, BMI or ASCAP?
I don’t. To be honest, Jan is doing this for me, I record, write, compose, work on music and my voice, he is doing every administration thing.
What makes a good songwriter?
For me, a good songwriter is someone’s find right words, giving emotions behind words
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What was the title of your first original song? Did you record it?
My first original song was Love In Silence. I recorded it some years after I wrote it. It was talking about my first love. I couldn’t tell him I loved him, we were in love for so many years with the distance between us, it was complicated for us so we broke up and decided to stay friends and then to never talk about it again. What a stupid idea haha. But that experience inspired me… I wrote this song for him, hoping he will notice it. He didn’t. So, I changed some sentences in my song and called it Love In Silence because that’s what happened. I loved him, in silence.
What is the process of writing your music?
When I write music’s, I need a silent room. I take my guitar and I choose the melody of the song I’m gonna do. I choose a theme. I write every idea I can have, sentences, etc… At first, my paper is a mess haha. When I have so many things write, close enough no place to write anything else on my paper, then I try to sing it, and then it drives me to delete some things or put more… Generally, it’s like this I process.
Why did you decide to do a cover of Bailarina?
I’ve got a heart stroke, so bad on that song! Maldita Nerea is one of my favorite band in Spain. Anyway, they shared and really liked my cover of their song! I sent a message to Jan, explaining my idea to sing that song and to do a video with Childs. Kids on the video are little girls from where i grew up, from where I took my first dance lessons! That was incredible to can do that there with them. It will forever be one of my bestest memories.
What do you feel is your most popular song?
I think my most popular song is Bailarina, that’s a great song with very powerful lyrics.
Any new music coming out?
For sure! We’re working with Jan on 2 news songs! In the same time, I am working on my first album… So excited to share it with you!
What are you’re feeling about streaming music?
I think streaming music is important. It let people know how many people are listening to you, it’s important to know what people like or dislike.
The symbol # is known as the number sign, hash, pound sign and a sharp sign in music. The symbol has historically been used for a wide range of purposes Since 2007, widespread usage of the symbol to introduce metadata tags on social media platforms has led to such tags being known as “hashtags”, and from that, the symbol itself is sometimes called a hashtag.
Are people forgetting that the # is a part of music?
I think so, yes. But that’s so much important for being someone in music, we need it to get more supporters, more views, more us on google!
Digital vs. vinyl?
Haha, I’m from old school; then I will say Vinyl.
What song from the past is in your mind right now? Moreover, what is the meaning that song means to you?
The song from the past is in my mind forever, is Love Life, in duet with Alexandru. That’s our first really duet we made and also my first travel to Norway. The first crazy thing I’ve ever done!!! It feels magical to me. And this friendship incredible I have with him and his family! Love Life was complicated at first because I had to teach Alexandru how to sing in French. We needed 2 entire days to get it. But the result is amazing. So much fun during the video recording with OttoD… Loved this song and this experience.
What did you mean “things get dark but my aura just starts glowing”?
This sentence is so powerful to me. I knew in 2018 I have a mental illness called Borderline Personality Disorder… I can touch the highest peaks and the lowest funds. I feel so different since my disease appeared. Things are different in my mind, in my life, my vision of everything. This is why I’ve said « Things get dark » but I feel like my aura just starts glowing as my disease is the worst and the most beautiful thing happened to me!
If “Video Killed the Radio Star” do you think that the Covid-19 virus has killed live music? Do you feel the Covid-19 virus going to affect the music business in the future?
I think, indeed. But I hope, as an artist, we will do live music again soon. It is! But we can find some different ways to do music without any troubles.
What have you been doing with your self-quarantine?
I have made a lot of things!! Sport, singing, playing guitar, writing, reading, playing video games, watching tv, walking, cooking, … I’ve spent a lot of time taking care of myself and taking care of people around me with I lived with.
How do you stay healthy during the lockdown?
For staying healthy during the lockdown, I made a lot of things for myself and only myself. I bought stuff for making sport at hope, bought books to keep cultivating myself, cooking a lot of vegetables, not hanging out except for buying food and sometimes to walk, not sleeping too late and not waking up too late, … It’s important to keep rhythm.
Have you discovered or rediscovered any new hobbies?
Yeah! I rediscovered the love of philosophy and gardening!
Many artists are doing nightly concerts over either YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. In October that is going to change at least on Facebook. Facebook is cracking down on livestreamed shows that include recorded music with new terms of service, preventing artists from using the platform for “commercial or non-personal” purposes, unless they have obtained the relevant licenses.
The updated music guidelines state that users “may not use videos on our products [which include Instagram] to create a music listening experience […] This will includes [Facebook] Live,” and stipulates that such content should be posted for the enjoyment of friends and family only.
How do you think this will change the landscape of Facebook?
Well, to be honest, I am not too much on Facebook… I’m using Snapchat, Instagram, and sometimes Twitter. But I guess that yes, it will change the landscape of Facebook indeed.
How can bands keep their fans if they cannot play live in front of the fans and sell merchandise to them at the show?
With staying close with their fans. I don’t really like the term « fans ». I prefer to call people « supporters »… Fans are such a word put us on a hilltop and for me, we’re on the same level… But yeah, they have to work hard to give their best to their supporters. They, in that way, supporters will keep in touch and keep buying, sharing, looking, etc… Even with what is happening now.
Is pay to play still a thing? Now pay to play also means thinks like playlist on the internet and opening slots for a major band on tour.
I am agreeing with you, play to play is now meaning playlists on the internet and opening slots for a major band on tour. But for me, play to play is definitely still a thing.
What about Holographic concerts in our living room?
I am for! I don’t have time to make it… I work a lot on music’s but also next music… I really would love to make it one day…!
In the past if a musician stop doing music, they find a new career. For example, David Lee Roth from Van Halen became a licensed EMT in NY for 6 years, San Spitz (guitarist for Anthrax) became a master watchmaker, Dee Snider (Twister Sister) voice over work for SpongeBob SquarePants. If you can’t do music what would you like to be doing?
I think that yes. If I can’t do music, I really would like to do it!
What is your happy place?
I have 3 happy places. I have my apartment where I live with my cousin Thomas, where I can receive my friends, my family and be with my cats haha. Also, my parent’s house, where I grew up, where I can do music with my dad or by myself with the love of my family and where I feel safe, and finally, in Norway in the house of my heart family, where I learned so much about myself, where I found myself, where I learned the most important things of life.
A lot of musicians such as Stevie Nicks, Bob Dylan, Taylor Swift, Journey, Def Leppard, and Shakira have sold their catalog rights within the last year. Bob Dylan sold his entire catalog for a reported $300 million. Once you get to the age of about 70. Publishing is far more lucrative than the mechanical royalties paid to artists based on sales, airplay, and streams. A good example of this is Michael Jackson brought the rights to the Beatles catalog in 1985. And in the late ’80s the Beatles Revolution appeared in a Nike commercial.
The lump sums being offered by publishing firms are more tax-friendly concerning estate planning.
Do you think you would be willing to sell your back catalog if someone like Universal is willing to buy everything, such as all the rights to all your songs?
It would depend on the conditions imposed for the sale. I don’t go headlong for money at the expense of my creations.
Spotify’s ‘Stream On’ event on Monday (February 22), the company confirmed that more than 60,000 new tracks are now being ingested by its platform every single day. This means people are added new tracks uploaded to its platform every 1.4 seconds.
The figure, announced by Spotify’s co-Head of Music, Jeremy Erlich, means that across the course of this year, approximately 22 million tracks will be added to Spotify’s catalog. Spotify confirmed in November last year that its platform now played host to around 70 million tracks.
Therefore it’s reasonable to assume that, by the end of 2021, SPOT will be home to over 90 million tracks. And that in the early part of next year, it will surpass a catalog of 100 million for the first time.
But still back at the beginning of the year Spotify deleted 750,00 songs, mostly from independent artists. What do you think what that could mean to independent artist?
I am quite mixed about this. Surely this complicates things for an independent artist that given the number of songs posted on Spotify per second, many go (unnoticed)…
Sony Music in November and Warner Music Group in December, The ByteDance-owned video app revealed on (February 8) that it has struck an “expanded” global licensing agreement with Universal Music Group. Now that TikTok is now fully licensed by all three major record companies, will you start using TikTok more?
I tried TikTok and post sometimes haha, but not so much. I am not on TikTok a lot. Watching some videos sometimes only… I will think about posting more on it!
Anything you would like to say in closing.
As first, I want to thank you for this interview. I want to wish people hope and luck at this really complicated time, and for sure send you and all of your readers, then also my supporters, a lot of love. Wish you all to realize your dreams and wishes!
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