Arden Alexa
Interview conducted on Jan. 29, 2023
By Dan Locke
Taking inspiration from Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, and the pop princesses who soundtracked her childhood and teen years, Arden Alexa’s unique sound has been developed by infusing her own quirky and youthful indie style into the upbeat anthems she knows and loves.
Born and raised in San Francisco, Arden spent the after school hours of her high school years cutting her teeth in the Bay Area music scene. Her debut single, 2021’s “The Coast” was the world’s first glimpse of her artistic ability. This was followed by 2022’s “Day Dreams”, Arden’s first full length project: A six song EP that truly welcomes you into her universe of raw vocals and deeply personal lyricism.
You are from San Francisco. What is your upbringing?
Be Brave and Be Kind. Those were our family values. These values applied to everything in my life: making friends, going to school, travelling, etc. Part of being brave meant experiencing and trying lots of new things, so I had a childhood full of diversity. We travelled to experience other cultures and lifestyles, I tried different sports and activities to see what I enjoyed, we visited our own city often to see what other kinds of people lived near us. Among all of those things, music was definitely one of the most prominent. I always tell people that I started singing the day I was born, which is obviously an exaggeration, but not by much. My dad sings Opera and progressive rock, my older brother does musical theater, so even the music in my household was diverse. Although I wasn’t the most musically gifted child, my parents always encouraged me, putting me in plays and music camps at a young age.
Tell me about “Music Together”?
Music together was definitely one of the things that instilled my deep passion for music. My mom would take me when I was still in a car seat with my older brother to the music together classes where we would essentially just bang sticks and listen to songs and try playing various instruments. These classes continued until I was a toddler and I’m told that this is where my love of singing began. That after class I would sing all the way home and then keep singing until I went to bed that night. This may come as a surprise, but I’m told that I was actually horrible at singing. I believe my mom uses the word atrocious. So, once I graduated from Music Together and was singing actual songs, my parents were more than happy to put me in voice lessons to save their ears.
Describe your music?
My music is an indie-pop blend inspired by youth and the teenage experience. Combining sounds from many different genres, I strive to write creative, original, and honest music that people can listen to when they’re crying or partying. Inspired by artists such as Taylor Swift and Harry Styles, my music combines the modern sound of indie music with the classic instruments of older music.
How / When did you get your first guitar?
I think I started asking for a guitar around the time that my older brother started guitar lessons. I probably thought that he was so cool and mature taking actual lessons, and naturally younger siblings have to copy everything their older siblings do. So, that year for Christmas I got my first guitar. It was a sparkly pink electric guitar (that was so horribly out of tune). I think I was around 7 at the time so it was the tiniest little thing but I really loved it and loved playing it, even though I wasn’t taking lessons and didn’t actually have any clue how to play.
What is your favorite guitar? Make, model and does it have a name?
This may sound kind of silly, but my favorite guitar that I’ve played isn’t actually one that I own. It’s actually a custom Taylor that my guitar teacher has and lets me borrow for lessons and performances! I really love playing that guitar so maybe one day I’ll actually be able to buy it from him!
What was your first performance like?
This is actually kind of a tricky question to answer because I kind of consider a few performances my “first performance”. The very very first performance on a stage was my first grade performance of “Frog and Toad” in which I played frog. My first time singing onstage solo was for my fourth grade talent show where I sang “Let it Go” from Frozen in my spectacular Elsa dress. Then, my first performance where I sang an original song was at the award ceremony of a local art competition where I had won the grand prize for my song “Our Time”, which I hope is never heard by anyone. My first performance where I had an actual set list and sang more than one song was at a local farmer’s market June of 2022. This particular performance was also special because it was the first show after my school career ended and my music career began. Last but not least, the first paid ticket show I did was in December of 2022 when I opened for Grace Leer.
What was the title of your first original song? Did you record it?
The song “Our Time” that I won the grand prize for at the local art competition was actually the first song I ever wrote and recorded. I wrote it on a family trip to Ireland and recorded it with the help of my voice teacher at the time.
What is the process of writing your music?
Honestly, every song is a little different. The first things that comes to me is usually some lyrics and a melody. As a vocalist, I usually focus on lyrics and melody before going in and adding music later. Sometimes songs start with just a concept, sometimes it starts with a lyric idea. The writing process is also something that varies song to song. I’ve had songs take 20 minutes to write and I’ve had some that take weeks to write, it really just depends.
Tell me about your single “Strawberry Pie”?
This song is the beginning of a new era for me. After writing music for many years now, I feel like I have really found my own unique sound with this song. Written about my high-school boyfriend, Strawberry Pie isn’t your typical breakup song, but rather my chance to look back on this relationship with a bit of sarcasm and humor.
Tell me about the making of the video?
This video was so much fun to make! I filmed it with my best friend in and around my house. Since I knew that I wanted a more home-style video that introduces the viewers to my world and my personality, most of the footage we got in the video is just the two of us fooling around and having fun. Everything about the filming was super casual; all of the props were things I found around my house and for a camera we just used my iPhone!
Can you cook?
Cooking is doable for me, but the truly horrible thing is baking. I don’t know why I struggle with it so much, but very time I have tried to bake, it has always ended terribly.
Whose idea was it for the video?
I came up with the concept for this video with my producer in the studio as we were recording the song. Since the song is pretty sarcastic and silly, we were just throwing around ridiculous ideas for a music video. We knew immediately that it should be a more casual home-style video just based on the vibe of the song; I didn’t think a super polished, movie-like video would match the indie vibe of the song. Chad, my wonderful blow-up boyfriend, was one of the ideas that we came up with that immediately stuck. From there, it just became about how ridiculous we could make the video, while still making it doable for me at home.
What are you feeling about streaming music?
Streaming music is definitely a double edged sword. In some ways it is great. I love how accessible and easy it is for listeners, and how beneficial it can be for artists to share their music and expand their audiences. However, iPhone.
Are people forgetting that the # is a part of music?
This is a super interesting question and as sad as I am to say it, I think that yes, it’s very common for people to forget that # is a part of music. Given the prominence of social media today and the impact that it has had on daily life for the average person, I think the most common way to think of that symbol is as a hashtag. Sometimes my first thought is to label that as a hashtag instead of a sharp note, even though I am a trained musician.
Digital vs. vinyl?
Digital is definitely easier but I LOVE vinyl. I got a record player as a gift for my high school graduation and to be honest I’ve been obsessed with collecting vinyl since.
What song from the past is in your mind right now? Moreover, what is the meaning that song means to you?
This is not a song from the distant past but “Let it Go” from Frozen has been stuck in my head the past couple weeks after watching Frozen while babysitting. Let it Go was the first song that really solidified my love of singing and being onstage. When I sang it for my fourth grade talent show, I realized how much music impacted my life and brought me joy. Singing that song in my Elsa dress was the first time I remember being just truly happy and present.
Is pay to play still a thing? Now pay to play also means things like a playlist on the internet and opening slots for a major band on tour.
Now I think pay to play pertains less to live shows and more to having a song played somewhere or placed on a playlist. Personally, I think live shows don’t have quite as much significance as streams now just because so much more emphasis is put on an artist’s number of streams and followers.
If the cost was down to the point you could do it also, would you be willing to do Holographic concerts in our living room?
Honestly, probably not. For me, a huge part of the joy of performing comes from interacting with audience members. I love talking with little kids and watching how people react to the music. I also think a huge part of my enjoyment of live music is going to concerts, and I definitely think that holograms would take away the special thing about seeing your favorite artist live.
If you can’t do music what would you like to be doing?
Truthfully, music is the one thing that I’m super deeply passionate about and kind of the only thing I can really see myself doing for my whole life. But, I could see myself going back to school later in life and studying something like physics!
Are you going to do a travel blog again?
Maybe! I love making memoirs of my travels and sharing them with my family and friends, but I don’t know if I want to share every trip of mine. I will definitely keep documenting my travels and might share some of that!
What is your happy place?
Tough question honestly. There’s a couple! This may be cliche to say as a musician, but somewhere playing music and singing is honestly probably the happiest place for me. For as long as I can remember, I have had really bad anxiety and music has been the one thing that is able to calm that anxiety. Singing helps me actually be present and quiets my head in a way that not many other things are able to do. The other place that I consider my happy place is the gym. I am totally a gym rat; my little brother and I go together every day! Similar to playing music, working out at the gym is something that requires so much concentration and forces me to be present, so there is no space for overthinking or anxiety.
Do you think you would be willing to sell your back catalog if someone like Universal is will to buy everything, such as all the rights to all your songs? Remember anything that you create forward will be 100% yours.
I’m not entirely sure. I like the idea of owning the rights to all of my music. All of my music is so personal and connected to me that it feels like a part of me. I think that I would hate to have to give that to something else and not be able to legally call it my own. However, in a case similar to David Crosby, that might have to change because of necessity.
Sony Music and Warner Music Group- , The ByteDance-owned video app revealed 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?
To be honest, I don’t think that I could use TikTok more than I already do. As someone who uses TikTok a lot, I realized that it is such a great way to be discovered by potential fans. The amazing thing about TikTok is that it has created a way to be exposed to a larger audience than ever before, so I definitely think it’s important for new musical artists to try and take advantage of that incredible resource.
The station will be part of a new TikTok collaboration with SiriusXM and its subsidiary, Pandora, to jointly promote emerging talent. Do you think this platform could become a force in the future of streaming music?
I hadn’t heard about this but it sounds really cool! I definitely think that given how influential TikTok has become to the music industry, that this platform could have a large impact. Already, we have seen how songs that go viral on TikTok become successful in a more mainstream sense, so I think that this platform will just solidify that process. This channel could be such a great way for new artists who are popular on TikTok to continue to share their music with a wider audience (people who are not on the app) so I really look forward to seeing it be established
