Alli's Articles
INTERVIEWS, REVIEWS, CULTURE PIECES, MUSICAL RAMBLINGS.
As we approach the 2 month mark of the state-induced stay-at-home order here in New York, I can’t help but wonder what all of the artists I’ve talked to during my first year at SUNY New Paltz are doing now. One particular artist I thought about was Brian Casey, known as BZA, a rapper in my year. We met up on campus back in January to talk about his first EP, Life of Brian, that had just come out. He had said that he recorded most of the songs on that EP up at school, so I was curious as to how he was going about recording and songwriting at home. Being in quarantine has given every artist loads of time to write and record music, and this unique experience could definitely be used as fuel for future releases. This proved to be the case with Brian, who put out a new single “EYE OF THE LION” this Tuesday. It’s reassuring and inspiring to see musicians continuing to put music out during these strange times. Somehow it makes everything seem a little more normal. I talked with Brian about his new single, how he’s been taking the quarantine, and future plans post-pandemic. Has quarantine affected you, both personally and the way you make music, at all? Not really, it’s been a great time to reflect on my first year of college and to start making more music. Are there any differences between the writing process of Life of Brian and the new single? The difference in writing this song and my EP was that I put a lot more energy into it. While making “EYE OF THE LION,” I’d blast my speakers and try to create that spark I’ve never had before in my music. Also, I took my time with it. There was a lot of editing and planning so now I’m excited to finally show everyone. It’s now been almost 5 months since your first EP came out. Looking back at it, how do you feel about it now? To be honest, I wish I held off on releasing it. But on the other hand, those songs resembled what I felt at the time, so if I released it at any other point it wouldn’t have sat well with me. Has being away from New Paltz affected the way you’ve made music at all? Not really, I actually have more privacy making music in my basement than I do in the dorms. But one thing I do miss is showing all my friends the music in person. Sending them links just isn’t the same. I wish I could see their reactions. Would you want to do any live performances in the future, when the virus dies down? Yes! I can’t wait till I can perform. I’ve only done it a couple times but it’s hands down the best part of this whole process. Are you thinking of releasing another EP in the near future? We’ll have to see what happens! Thank you Brian for answering my questions! Listen to BZA’s new single, “EYE OF THE LION,” on SoundCloud now! Follow BZA on Instagram!
0 Comments
|