I had the honor and pleasure of communicating with Holly Stell. A Vacaville artist who at a young age started singing and continues to follow her dreams in the music industry.
Q&A with Holly Stell
Maggie Guevara [MG]: When did you start singing?
Holly Stell [HS]: Age 3. First voice lesson when I was 9.
MG: What bands and artists did you listen to growing up?
HS: Boyz II Men, The Beatles, Mariah Carey…and Britney Spears and the Backstreet Boys, Obviously.
MG: What’s a typical day like for Holly Stell?
HS: I always have to have my coffee. I am in love with my new Keurig it’s amazing. Then I’ll light candles and listen to The Weeknd while I wake up. After that, I’ll usually hit the gym or go on a hike at my favorite place, Pena Adobe, then get ready and hang out with my family and friends.
MG: What artists are you currently listening to?
HS: I’m obsessed with The Weeknd, Jhene Aiko, Frank Ocean, Florence + the Machine, A$AP Rocky, Yuna, Hans Zimmer, and Wiz Khalifa.
MG: Tell me a little about yourself.
HS: I’m a very laid back person, but when it comes to my music I’m a perfectionist. I believe that the smallest elements in a song are just as important as the more noticeable ones because they all are contributing factors to what makes a sound unique. Writing music has become a part of me. It’s one thing to cover a song from another artist, but when you’re singing a song that you wrote it allows you to cater to your own specific emotion rather than someone else’s…You’re able to add subliminal messages that only you understand while matching it with the perfect melody. Writing is also very personal for me, so it’s crazy to hear a song that you wrote at 3am in your bedroom mixed and mastered. I love performing for people because it allows me to connect with them. I want my music to give people chills and tap into everything words alone can’t.
MG: When writing your lyrics, where does your mind go when you decide you have the words you want to convey when you sing?
“I’m in my own world when I write. Every emotion that I try to look past comes to the surface. It’s healing for me to put these lyrics to melodies.” – Holly Stell
MG: How would you personally describe your music to someone?
HS: Abstract, Subliminal, Trance, Epic, and Mystical. I like epic chord progressions with dope beats. I think people put so many limits on life as it is, so why put limits on something as beautiful as music? I have no genre.
MG: Tell me about one of your most memorable moments while singing so far.
HS: Singing for President Bush, staying in an apartment in Paris while filming a PBS special and hearing Oprah say my name. I also performed my new song “Blind” for the first time at a festival recently and a little girl and her Mom loved it. That meant the world to me.
MG: Are you planning on going on tour? And if so, where were you thinking of going?
HS: There are shows lined up but no official tour yet. I would love to start out with some intimate settings to connect with fans.
MG: Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently while developing your sound?
HS: I would have liked to collaborate with more hip hop artists. I really enjoyed working with Red Dove.
MG: What are your strengths?
HS: I have an ear for exactly what I want in a song.
MG: What are your weaknesses?
HS: I procrastinate and my mind is always in so many different places at once that it’s hard for me to focus on finishing a song.
MG: Thank you so much for your time, Holly.
FB Music Page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Holly-Stell/22636961567
