Layke - "I want to try to advocate for change in any way possible..."
According to Picasso art is not a truth. It's a lie that makes us realize the truth. If we assume that music is one of the most important forms of artistic expression, what did you learn about yourself searching between its beats and sounds?
I’ve learned that you have to let yourself express what you feel and not take yourself too seriously so that you can allow yourself to expand and grow through the process. If you are too rigid in your expectations, you can really limit yourself artistically and in turn limit what you’re capable of. It’s best to let things flow naturally and see where it takes you and where it lands. Trust the process. It sounds cliche but there’s a lot of truth to that statement.
He also said that the artist is like a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place: from the sky, earth and even a scrap of paper. Looking from this perspective, where does your musical inspirations come from?
Most of my musical inspirations come from experiences I’ve had throughout my life. I tend to write about relationships with people I’ve had on all levels whether it be friends or more than friends or just experiences I’ve had with different people throughout life. Different experiences intertwine into different musical stories and I let those play out in my music. Music is very cathartic and therapeutic for me.
You have started your adventure with music at a very young age. You were dancing and singing at various musical events just before you even realized the real meaning of your actions. Have you ever seriously dreamed about being a professional musician? Someone who can do what he really loves and just live from it?
I always felt like a round peg trying to fit in a square hole where I was from and I always felt different, like there was something else and different out there for me from where I was. That ended up being art and music. I pursued that throughout my life but after moving to LA I realized that I could somehow make it a reality. I had no clue how I was going to do it and I never really thought about it along the way. I just continued to work on music along with everything else I was doing. I think I was honestly about 19 years old or 20 years old when I decided that this was the only thing for me. It was the only thing that made sense and the only thing that I knew that I could really do and put my whole heart into. I’ve just been trying to figure out how to make that work since then. I think that is all any of us are trying to do, all of us artists, just trying to put our art out there and hope that someone receives it.
What was the reaction of your family when you told them you would like to link your life with music? It seems that by that time you were the only musically talented person among your relatives.
My three sisters and I have all been in the arts in one way or another since we were very little. We all studied various types of dance pretty intensely from a very young age and one of my sisters actually danced professionally and is still involved with a contemporary ballet company. Although no one else was involved in music, I was involved in musical theater growing up and was also involved in various musical projects myself so I don’t think it was shocking. I think it was a little shocking when I said I wanted to do it as a career but it was my choice because it is my life.
Your debut single "Beautiful War" was released in October followed by the music video directed by Timothy Saccenti. If you had to do it by using just three adjectives how would you describe this song?
Intense, melodic, dark.
Tell me about its creating process, about the way this song was made. I heard you have been working with Adrian Gurvitz - the producer known by his collaboration with singer Andra Day. Whose idea was that?
Adrian and I crossed paths through a friend and we hit it off instantly, creatively and also as people. He had just finished working with Andra and being the creative genius that he is, he always likes to challenge himself with his next project. So he decided he wanted to do something very different in the realm of using electronic sounds and when we met it all fit together just perfectly. Being in the studio with him was amazing, it was such a great experience and I grew astronomically as a musician and a human being. I feel very humbled and lucky to be working with him.
You are also working on your solo album which soon should hit the shelves. I know you don't like to categorize music in general but I will ask about it anyway. What are we going to hear on that record? Any similarities to a certain music genre?
I have my first EP ‘Layke Part One’ coming out on December 14th worldwide. ‘Beautiful War’ was the first single off of the EP with a buzz track called ‘Body Parts’ releasing on Nov 23rd and another buzz track releasing on Nov 30th called ‘All Cut Up’. There will be some fun things coming along with those releases as well as a video for upcoming single ‘Strangers in the Dark’ on December 14th with the EP. I’ll also be releasing another EP in the spring that we are currently working on and I’m very excited about that! All of my music is electronically based with live sweeteners over it and it lends itself to crunchy beats with melodic vocals. I like that is being categorized as dream pop I’m really into it and I think it fits nicely there!
Now, when asked about the meaning of music in their lives many artists say that music means everything to them. It's the air they breathe, it's the way they think. I have a feeling that in your case there's something in between. It's like the therapy. You expose your soul and the emotions you have inside of you from a long time. If it wasn't for the music where would you be today? Can you imagine your existence without it?
This is a hard question because I know how I am and I know I would be somewhere and I would be doing something to the best of my ability because that’s the kind of person I am. I work very hard and no matter what I’m doing I always put myself fully into it. But do I think I would be the person I am or able to access parts of myself that I am or able to reach the potential that I am without music, absolutely not. Having this vehicle of expression has completely changed who I am and how I look at the world. And now the further I go as an artist, the more I realize my purpose is so much more than just putting art into the world. I want to use this platform in any way possible to try to stand next to those fighting for marginalized communities and try to make any little difference I can to help make this world a better place. It’s a terrible place right now and I feel like if you're putting out art at this point, and you’re not trying to do something to make this world a better place, there is no point to it at all. Especially those who are coming from a place of privilege, which I know I am. And I want to try to advocate for change in any way possible.
Tell me, what object represents your personality?
Twilight Sparkle from My Little Pony. She is just awesome. And that’s like an object and a cartoon character in one (smile).
What color describes you best?
Well that’s easy, PURPLE. Lavender if you want to get really specific. I love iridescent too! If I could dye my hair iridescent I would.
How do you deal with criticism?
I used to let it get to me growing up, I cared about what people thought and I was the youngest of four and sometimes sisters can be a little bit tough love. But I’ve come a long way, I’m confident in who I am, and I know what I can do, so I just ignore it. Everyone is always going to have an opinion and if you spend time paying attention to and catering to everyone else’s opinion, you will lose every semblance of yourself. You just have to stay true to you. You have to do you and tune out the rest. At the end of the day it’s my life and I have to live it for myself, not anyone else.
Who is your musical role model?
I’m hugely influenced by Freddie Mercury. Not only by his vocal ability, also by his performance ability, and also by his life, as a bisexual/pansexual/queer individual, I relate a lot. I’m also hugely influenced by Blondie because she has never cared about what anyone thought and she’s an incredible performer and her fashion aesthetic is beyond. Another big influence for me is Shirley Manson from Garbage. She really and truly has just always been the epitome of everything cool. For someone like me growing up in Dallas, TX, seeing someone like Shirley Manson was life changing. She’s just iconic.
Whose voice would you like to have?
It would be amazing to collaborate with Shirley Manson! I think our styles and sensibilities would really meld well together and I would just love to be a fly on the wall in the room with her seeing her process because I’m sure it’s just amazing and she’s just amazing and I have all the nice things to say!
So let’s close it this way – how do you think, what is he most difficult question you could be asked today?
I’m not going to lie, the first question you gave me is probably the most difficult question I’ve ever been asked because it threw me a little because it’s very different than the typical questions you are usually asked as a musician.
Thank you for your time.
Journalist: Kamil Mroziński
I’ve learned that you have to let yourself express what you feel and not take yourself too seriously so that you can allow yourself to expand and grow through the process. If you are too rigid in your expectations, you can really limit yourself artistically and in turn limit what you’re capable of. It’s best to let things flow naturally and see where it takes you and where it lands. Trust the process. It sounds cliche but there’s a lot of truth to that statement.
He also said that the artist is like a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place: from the sky, earth and even a scrap of paper. Looking from this perspective, where does your musical inspirations come from?
Most of my musical inspirations come from experiences I’ve had throughout my life. I tend to write about relationships with people I’ve had on all levels whether it be friends or more than friends or just experiences I’ve had with different people throughout life. Different experiences intertwine into different musical stories and I let those play out in my music. Music is very cathartic and therapeutic for me.
You have started your adventure with music at a very young age. You were dancing and singing at various musical events just before you even realized the real meaning of your actions. Have you ever seriously dreamed about being a professional musician? Someone who can do what he really loves and just live from it?
I always felt like a round peg trying to fit in a square hole where I was from and I always felt different, like there was something else and different out there for me from where I was. That ended up being art and music. I pursued that throughout my life but after moving to LA I realized that I could somehow make it a reality. I had no clue how I was going to do it and I never really thought about it along the way. I just continued to work on music along with everything else I was doing. I think I was honestly about 19 years old or 20 years old when I decided that this was the only thing for me. It was the only thing that made sense and the only thing that I knew that I could really do and put my whole heart into. I’ve just been trying to figure out how to make that work since then. I think that is all any of us are trying to do, all of us artists, just trying to put our art out there and hope that someone receives it.
What was the reaction of your family when you told them you would like to link your life with music? It seems that by that time you were the only musically talented person among your relatives.
My three sisters and I have all been in the arts in one way or another since we were very little. We all studied various types of dance pretty intensely from a very young age and one of my sisters actually danced professionally and is still involved with a contemporary ballet company. Although no one else was involved in music, I was involved in musical theater growing up and was also involved in various musical projects myself so I don’t think it was shocking. I think it was a little shocking when I said I wanted to do it as a career but it was my choice because it is my life.
Your debut single "Beautiful War" was released in October followed by the music video directed by Timothy Saccenti. If you had to do it by using just three adjectives how would you describe this song?
Intense, melodic, dark.
Tell me about its creating process, about the way this song was made. I heard you have been working with Adrian Gurvitz - the producer known by his collaboration with singer Andra Day. Whose idea was that?
Adrian and I crossed paths through a friend and we hit it off instantly, creatively and also as people. He had just finished working with Andra and being the creative genius that he is, he always likes to challenge himself with his next project. So he decided he wanted to do something very different in the realm of using electronic sounds and when we met it all fit together just perfectly. Being in the studio with him was amazing, it was such a great experience and I grew astronomically as a musician and a human being. I feel very humbled and lucky to be working with him.
You are also working on your solo album which soon should hit the shelves. I know you don't like to categorize music in general but I will ask about it anyway. What are we going to hear on that record? Any similarities to a certain music genre?
I have my first EP ‘Layke Part One’ coming out on December 14th worldwide. ‘Beautiful War’ was the first single off of the EP with a buzz track called ‘Body Parts’ releasing on Nov 23rd and another buzz track releasing on Nov 30th called ‘All Cut Up’. There will be some fun things coming along with those releases as well as a video for upcoming single ‘Strangers in the Dark’ on December 14th with the EP. I’ll also be releasing another EP in the spring that we are currently working on and I’m very excited about that! All of my music is electronically based with live sweeteners over it and it lends itself to crunchy beats with melodic vocals. I like that is being categorized as dream pop I’m really into it and I think it fits nicely there!
Now, when asked about the meaning of music in their lives many artists say that music means everything to them. It's the air they breathe, it's the way they think. I have a feeling that in your case there's something in between. It's like the therapy. You expose your soul and the emotions you have inside of you from a long time. If it wasn't for the music where would you be today? Can you imagine your existence without it?
This is a hard question because I know how I am and I know I would be somewhere and I would be doing something to the best of my ability because that’s the kind of person I am. I work very hard and no matter what I’m doing I always put myself fully into it. But do I think I would be the person I am or able to access parts of myself that I am or able to reach the potential that I am without music, absolutely not. Having this vehicle of expression has completely changed who I am and how I look at the world. And now the further I go as an artist, the more I realize my purpose is so much more than just putting art into the world. I want to use this platform in any way possible to try to stand next to those fighting for marginalized communities and try to make any little difference I can to help make this world a better place. It’s a terrible place right now and I feel like if you're putting out art at this point, and you’re not trying to do something to make this world a better place, there is no point to it at all. Especially those who are coming from a place of privilege, which I know I am. And I want to try to advocate for change in any way possible.
Tell me, what object represents your personality?
Twilight Sparkle from My Little Pony. She is just awesome. And that’s like an object and a cartoon character in one (smile).
What color describes you best?
Well that’s easy, PURPLE. Lavender if you want to get really specific. I love iridescent too! If I could dye my hair iridescent I would.
How do you deal with criticism?
I used to let it get to me growing up, I cared about what people thought and I was the youngest of four and sometimes sisters can be a little bit tough love. But I’ve come a long way, I’m confident in who I am, and I know what I can do, so I just ignore it. Everyone is always going to have an opinion and if you spend time paying attention to and catering to everyone else’s opinion, you will lose every semblance of yourself. You just have to stay true to you. You have to do you and tune out the rest. At the end of the day it’s my life and I have to live it for myself, not anyone else.
Who is your musical role model?
I’m hugely influenced by Freddie Mercury. Not only by his vocal ability, also by his performance ability, and also by his life, as a bisexual/pansexual/queer individual, I relate a lot. I’m also hugely influenced by Blondie because she has never cared about what anyone thought and she’s an incredible performer and her fashion aesthetic is beyond. Another big influence for me is Shirley Manson from Garbage. She really and truly has just always been the epitome of everything cool. For someone like me growing up in Dallas, TX, seeing someone like Shirley Manson was life changing. She’s just iconic.
Whose voice would you like to have?
It would be amazing to collaborate with Shirley Manson! I think our styles and sensibilities would really meld well together and I would just love to be a fly on the wall in the room with her seeing her process because I’m sure it’s just amazing and she’s just amazing and I have all the nice things to say!
So let’s close it this way – how do you think, what is he most difficult question you could be asked today?
I’m not going to lie, the first question you gave me is probably the most difficult question I’ve ever been asked because it threw me a little because it’s very different than the typical questions you are usually asked as a musician.
Thank you for your time.
Journalist: Kamil Mroziński
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