Young and upcoming artist Emilia Vaughn is an American alternative pop singer-songwriter. Emilia released “French Film” that gives us an inside look at heartbreak and loss with her singles followed by her EP “Eighteen,” with the support of artist development partners OC Hit and DNT Entertainment. We had the pleasure of interviewing Emilia Vaughn, and here is what she had to say:
Q: How did you break into the music industry as a young, aspiring artist, and how has that affected your life?
EMILIA: I have been writing songs since I was very young, playing them for family and friends, and producing them on Logic in my bedroom. When I turned 17, I started working with OC Hit to professionally produce and record my songs, and soon afterwards, started working with DNT Entertainment to help me build my brand and connect my music with my audience.
I struggle with anxiety and depression, and music, poetry, and art are coping mechanisms for me. Being able to share these feelings with others in an effort to help them with anything they could be dealing with makes me feel grateful. I want to be seen as a friend to others.
Q: Tell us about your debut single, “French Film,” now that we have our chocolate croissant and tea. Do you speak French?
EMILIA: Though “French Film” was not technically my “debut” single, it is my first more alternative pop single. It starts out as a ballad then has a surprise ending that I wrote on my electric guitar. I had a lot of fun because I usually write songs on piano, keyboard, or acoustic guitar, so this one is cool and allowed me to experiment a bit and pull in a new instrument.
I wrote “French Film” about the story of my friend who lost love in her life not only from bad relationships with boys who treated her poorly, but also the loss of family and friends. This song is a cry for help and will relate to anyone who has experienced heartbreak and loss. My goal with this song was for people to have something to connect with when they are going through painful moments in their lives.
As for the French language, I do not speak it, however google translate has come in handy in my songwriting. I actually wrote a Mother’s Day song in French for my Mom a few years back using google translate. It’s called Nouveau Départ, which means “new start.” My Mom lived in Paris one summer, and my voice teacher was having me perform songs in French, so I thought I would combine the two and write a song for my Mom in French. I have been to France and absolutely love it! I had one of the most beautiful days in my life on the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Cassis.
Q: I observe you play a diverse range of instruments; whichever three are your top picks, and why?
EMILIA: I play piano, keyboard, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keytar (like Howard Jones!), ukulele, recorder, and a bit of bass! I love to use all of these, and I love to produce music as well, which involves hearing many instruments, sounds, and voices that could go into a musical composition. My top picks might depend on the mood I am in and how fast the music is coming to me in my head, or the style I want to convey.
For example, if I am in one of my mellow moods, I love to just grab one of my acoustic guitars (I have a Ryan and a Taylor), and let my feelings find their way to the sounds I create with the frets and strings. For “French Film,” I really wanted a new sound and was having fun with my electric. Recently, after listening to the whole new album from The 1975, I was inspired to write a song reminiscent of them, so I thought about the feelings I was having about a love triangle, and the next thing you know…I had a new song for piano/keys.
Q: With your growing following on Instagram and TikTok, how do you feel social media has impacted your career?
EMILIA: Well, Instagram, TikTok and social media in general, have given me the ability to connect with my audience and that’s exciting. One of my favorite things to do on TikTok is the lyric challenges by other artists. It allows me to collaborate even when I don’t know another artist and they don’t know me. I did one for one of Dean Lewis’ songs “Hurtless,” and one for John Ledgends’ “Nervous,” and those were great.
My goal with social media is to build an organic audience and community of loving and open-minded people who are authentic and caring, so I really hope I can create organic growth and spread love and light on social media. My dream is to help people by sharing my music, my artwork, poetry, and my feelings, and social media gives me the opportunity to do just that so I am grateful to have access to this technology and these platforms.
Q: Any producers or artists you would love to have a future collaboration with?
EMILIA: Oh yes! So many. It’s hard to narrow down, but I have to say Jack Antonoff, who is the lead singer of the Bleachers. Sometimes I will hear something done by another artist and love it, and then I find out it’s a Jack Antonoff collaboration, so I would love to work with him. I also have been listening to a lot of beabadoobee, and I just love her also. I grew up listening to Alicia Keys, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Stevie Wonder, and many others, so I hope to have the opportunity to collaborate with these artists at some point in my career.
Q: You have an exciting year ahead of you! Any other performances or releases we should look out for?
EMILIA: You have an exciting year ahead of you! Any other performances or releases we should look out for?
Emilia Vaughn: Well, right now, most of my performances are here at Berklee College Music, where I started in January to further develop my skills. I took a gap semester and worked on my next EP at the end of 2022. The first single from the new EP is called “Dead Bouquets,” and it’s coming out February 23, 2023.
Please listen! I’d love to know what you think. I will have five or six songs on that EP all ready to go, and I keep on writing more songs and have to produce them and keep pushing them out. Also, on Valentine’s Day I released the music video for my single “French Film,” and I am excited for everyone to see this awesome video that my team and I produced.
Music is inside of me and various events in life, whether it’s a text from a friend, a death in the family, a birthday, or a break-up, these feelings inspire me to create music. I am really hoping to go on tour this summer, when I have my first break from college.
Oh! And…since you are also a Fashion blog, I would love to say that I also love fashion, ranging from cool scores while thrifting to designer shoes from NYC!
Interviewed by Shertara Brazil
FOLLOW EMILIA VAUGHN:
