Eiza Murphy
Interview conducted on March 22, 2021
By Dan Locke
Eiza Murphy is an independent singer/songwriter/producer from Ireland, living in London. The artist achieved two iTunes #1’s in Ireland and hit over a quarter of a million streams on her debut singles, ‘Black Hole’ and ‘Taxi’, at the end of 2020.
What is your upbringing?
I had a really nice upbringing – I grew up in Ireland with my brother and sister and there’s only a two-year age gap between each of us. My mom and dad are both really close with their families so, we spent nearly every weekend with our cousins and relatives.
How did you discover music?
My mom made me go to violin classes when I was four and I hated them but that opened the door to music for me. I started writing when I was about seven but I’ve only been taking it seriously since the end of last year when I began my artist project
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How did you start to write music?
I can’t really pinpoint how it started; I just remember spending two months writing my first song. My sister was also writing at that time and it became something we did together. We had a little book of songs that we wrote and then we would perform them at family events.
Describe your music.
I would say that my music is left of pop. It’s like a mixture of singer/songwriter and pop. Most of the time, the songs begin with something I’ve experienced and then they grow into their own. I normally start with a concept or lyric idea when I write and then build the melodies around the story.
What was your first performance like?
It was an intimate show at Battersea Evolution and the first time I had performed my own songs publicly. I was more relaxed than I thought I would be.
Do you belong to any to songwriters’ organizations like the International singer-songwriter? Or association, SESAC, BMI or ASCAP?
I’m registered with PPL which works with ASCAP and IMRO for publishing.
What makes a good songwriter?
I think it’s just about being believable. I personally focus on the lyrics of a song but a lot of genres are more melody-driven so I don’t think there’s any right answer.
What was the title of your first original song? Did you record it?
I remember writing it so well but I can’t remember what it was called. I have some sort of recording of it somewhere but I’d have to dig deep. It was the worst song in the world but I was seven so I guess that was expected.
How was it to perform at the M&IT Awards in 2019?
It was so fun. Battersea Evolution is an amazing venue and one of my best friends from Ireland, Aisling Donnelly, performed with me on the piano so it was one of my favourite performances.
What is the process of writing your music?
It changes all the time. Usually, I start with a concept or lyric idea and then write melodies that fit with that. Sometimes I write both together and see what comes out.
Tell me about your two songs “Black Hole” and “Taxi”?
With ‘Black Hole’, I wanted to write a song about the world ending and then it grew from there. I wrote it during the Australian wildfires and at the beginning of Covid so it has an apocalyptic-like feel to it. Taxi is about leaving a toxic relationship or scene so they’re very different songs. They were both produced by my sister, Lenii, and released at the end of 2020.
Where did you record the video for “Black Hole”?
There’s an abandoned bus graveyard near where I live in Ireland. I think there’s about 250 buses there. We just walked through a field and found it. It was perfect for the theme of Black Hole because it literally looks like an apocalypse.
How was it to work with Ashley Singh on guitar?
Great, he’s really talented. Ashley recorded the guitar for ‘Taxi’ and he also played a few shows with me before Covid.
What is your favorite track on your album?
I think my next single is my favourite. It’s called ‘Bat and Ball’ and it comes out on April 16th. I wrote it at the end of last year and it was produced by Jay Nebula and my sister, Lenii.
You are always raising money for a cause. Two of the ones I see you work with was UCC Cork Penny Dinner and Keep Waiting. Are you planning to work with others in the future?
I’ve nothing planned right now but I’m not against doing more work with charities in the future.
What are your feelings about streaming music?
I think streaming has made it so much easier for independent artists to get started and release music. It definitely made it really easy for me to release my first two songs. Musicians are not making as much money as they used to though, so I have mixed feelings.
The symbol # is known as the number sign, hash, pound sign and sharp sign in music. 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 don’t think so. I mean if you make or play music you have to use it as a sharp sign all the time but if you’re not involved in music, I don’t think you’d know that anyway, even if it is a hashtag sign now.
Digital vs. vinyl?
I love how vinyl sounds but I can’t carry it around with me on the tube so I’m gonna say digital because I use it more.
What song from the past is in your mind right now? Moreover, what is the meaning that song means to you?
I used to listen to Johnny Cash all the time growing up. My favorites were ‘Highwayman’ and ‘Ring of Fire’. I think they just remind me of when I was small.
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 hope not. I think people will always want to go to shows because it’s an experience that you can’t get with anything else. I definitely think the live industry will have been badly affected this year but I hope it’ll bounce back.
What have you been doing with your self-quarantine?
I started releasing at the end of last year and I’m planning my next release now. I’ve also been writing and working on production.
Have you discovered or rediscovered any new hobbies?
I started painting for a bit at the start but then I got busy with music again.
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?
I guess venues have to have a license when artists perform live so it makes sense that artist’s social media pages are going to be treated like online venues. It probably makes it fairer. That way if your song gets covered by a singer and it gets loads of views, you’ll probably be paid for that like you would if it was in a live venue.
How was it to perform on Instagram?
It was weird at first but then I got used to it. It’s definitely not the same as performing live though.
How can bands keep their fans if they cannot play live in front of the fans and sell merchandise to them at the show?
I think out of all artists, bands have probably suffered the most because they depend on live the most. I’ve seen a lot of artists selling their merch online and also doing online gigs so I guess that’s the only way bands can keep going right now.
What about Holographic concerts in our living room?
That sounds brilliant. We’ll probably be doing that in 2050 when the next pandemic hits.
Governments around the world are hearing the call of thousands of music creators and included protections for the music community in the omnibus bill. In addition to extended and improved unemployment benefits and small business loans for freelance creators, the package includes several bills which the Recording Academy, its members, and the larger music community advocated for. From the Save Our Stages Act, provided a lifeline to performance venues and promoters, to the CASE Act, which creates an avenue for smaller creators to defend their copyrighted works, Congress has ensured that both music creators and those who act behind the scenes to bring music to life are given the support they need during this difficult time.” Do you think this will save music venues?
I hope so. They still probably won’t be as financially stable as they were before covid hit but hopefully it will keep a lot of them alive.
Did you know that the Grammys MusicCares can help artist? The MusiCares COVID-19 Relief has helped thousands of music industry artists and professionals during these difficult days.
This is the most recipients helped, for any single event, in MusiCares’ history. The need remains great, and these unique times remain critical for music people. It has taken a community uplifting one another to get through this pandemic, and MusiCares has pulled together a list of additional organizations and resources to further support you.
https://www.grammy.com/musicares/get-help/relief-resources. Have you applied for it yet?
No, I haven’t but that sounds great.
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 something in film. I used to love script writing so I’d probably jump into that.
What is your happy place?
I don’t really have a specific happy place but I’m definitely happy on any beach over 25°C.
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 then the mechanical royalties paid to artist 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 80’s 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 sale your back catalog if someone like Universal is will to buy everything, such as all the rights to all your songs?
I don’t think I’d like it but I can’t really tell how I’d feel in the situation.
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?
It’s hard for independent artists to break through the crowd so I think that puts extra pressure on artists to get more streams and essentially secure their place on Spotify which is crazy.
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 think Tiktok’s great for new artists so I’ve already started using it a bit more.
The British government, buoyed by early good news on a brisk roll-out of vaccinations in the UK, set out a roadmap that, as things stand, would see the re-opening of large music events in the UK, with no audience limit, on June 21. Live Nation and its subsidiary, Festival Republic, didn’t hang about after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson made this announcement on Monday (February 22).
The companies quickly announced that their Reading & Leeds festival – an annual fest taking place across two locations in the UK with a combined capacity of around 180,000 – would be going ahead between August 27 and 29 this year, and that tickets were on sale.
With this announcement Live Nation; USA wants to following the lead of Live Nation: UK. If this happen and live concert start happening this summer would you be up to playing live shows again, and under want precautions would you like to have in place?
I’m definitely excited to get back to doing live shows, especially now that I’ve started releasing. I’d love to play again by the summer and it would be great to be vaccinated by then
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What is a Xavier Rudd kind of day?
I think a Xavier Rudd kind of day is just a good day. __
