Lisa Danae is an extremely talented Filipina-American singer who loves to take centre stage! She’s not long released her most recent single “Starlet” – which is now available to stream on Spotify!
This week has seen the release of the incredible music video – which was filmed and directed by Josh Suguitan – for the track which you can watch below;
“Starlet” is such a catchy tune that you will instantly fall in love! Also, if you’re into your fashion, then the music video will definitely be to your taste.
We git in touch with Lisa Danae to talk about “Starlet,” what future plans she may have and, the question we all want know, what her favourite Disney film is. Check out what she had to say;
First of all, just wanted to see how you’ve been during these crazy times? How have you been able to keep motivated with everything going on in the world?
Thank you for asking, and I hope you and yours have been well and are taking care of yourselves. I’ve been good for the most part, but starting to feel the wrath of losing a lot of human interaction and being enclosed by the walls of my apartment. I don’t see really anyone except some of my family and a couple friends, but even that is maybe once a week if any at all. I didn’t stop at all in March when quarantine first started and was working on music and social media content 7 days a week, so I think I’m also feeling a little burnt out. I started manifestation meditation a couple months ago, which has helped me a ton and I make sure that I am taking off 1 or 2 days a week now to recharge!
Let’s talk about your new single “Starlet.” What can you tell us about it? How did it come about?
“Starlet” was inspired by another music writer from Musical Notes Global. She wrote reviews on my past releases “Type Erase” and “1445” and called me a rising pop starlet. From there my co-writer, a girl named jaen, reached out to me and told me that we needed to write a song called “Starlet” because it wasn’t a term that we hear frequently and it was just such a big compliment overall. During the writing sessions, we talked about how I idolized other artists growing up and what about their career I wanted to emulate in my own. We started talking about my experience in the music industry, and the amount of rejections and doubts I was hearing, so eventually I just took a stand and sought opportunities without any help and created my own path in order to achieve my goals.
Could you describe your song writing process for us?
I tend to co-write, so my writing process is very similar to an interview. If I don’t have a lyrical concept in mind, whomever I am working with generally asks me what’s on my mind, and they start to take notes of bits and pieces that stand out to them. Usually with that approach, I may talk about a lot of things, but repeat myself, so the concept is pulled from there or I end up talking about one particular incident, which ends up being the topic of discussion. If I have a concept in mind, then my co-writer tends to ask who, what, when, where, why and how. Normally, the lyrics and melody are set before I take it to a producer to build the production around it, but sometimes the production has been built while piecing the lyrics and melody simultaneously.
You also dropped a music video for the track. What was it like filming that? Can you tell us the story behind it?
The filming for this song was pretty spaced out. Each day was a new location and each location had separate looks except the scenes that emulate Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, and Britney Spears. We started filming in May, capitalizing on the Los Angeles-city landscape, but due to the events of racial injustice at the end of May, we decided to halt production to redirect our energy positively in other ways. We resumed filming in July, and wrapped a couple weeks into that month. I had a lot of fun shooting this video because I was able to shoot at places I had never been to in LA and it was fun dressing up in 7 different outfits. This video was all about the looks and the camera work. I didn’t want to go literal for this one and enjoyed the simplicity as a juxtaposition to the intricate, anthemic production. I wanted to highlight three female artists that I looked up to growing up and accentuate the transition of owning my own identity by highlighting the four looks on the artwork as all four represent the styles that make up starlet, Lisa Danaë.
You regularly release a talk-music podcast called “Sound Scrub”. That’s pretty cool! We love a good music podcast. Could you tell us a bit more about what that entails?
Sound Scrub dissects the writing, production, and recording process of a song with the artist and anyone else involved such as a co-writer and producer. I really enjoy the process when it comes to putting my songs together, so I wanted to learn how other artists bring their songs to life and what inspires them. Everyone has a different story and approach to writing, so it’s something that would be of interest to those that want to learn about the roots of a song.
What advice would you give to young female artists who also want to become a singer?
The music industry is notorious for double standards when it comes to male and female artists, so stay true to yourself and fight for what you believe in is right. You’re going to cross paths with a lot of men who think you are being too “loud”, overreacting, and so much more, but know that there are also men who will understand your vision, believe in your brand, support your image, your music, everything. It’s extremely discouraging, but if you really want this, you have to stand your ground and stay strong. The right people will come to you when you are ready, so be patient.
Now, we see that you’re a huge Disney fan, and this may be the most important question of all…what is your favourite Disney film and why? Think long and hard about this!
Very tough question and to me there are so many different types of Disney movies such as animations, live actions, Pixar animations, etc., so they definitely have a huge catalog to choose from! I would focus on the animations I grew up with and the one that made me realize I wanted to be a singer which is Aladdin. That movie to me is so magical and I love the music, the story, and the comedic moments. I have also always wanted to be Princess Jasmine and have my own tiger! Other than that, like I said, this movie was when I realized I wanted to perform the rest of my life. I used to line up my stuffed animals in front of the TV and stand on the couch singing and performing to them with Disney songs, but Aladdin was the one that I played over and over again!
Finally, can you tell us what you are currently working on? What are your future plans?
I am currently wrapping production on the second single of the year and then will start the third. My plan was to release 3 this year and follow with more at the beginning of 2021, however, due to everything going on in the world, I have to take it day by day. I had to reassess when it came to recording because I normally don’t record remote, so it took me time to adjust. Sadly, I may release only one more this year, but will continue to have more releases throughout 2021. Other than that, planning to continually live-stream and always creating content whether it’s for music, fashion, or my everyday life on Instagram, TikTok, etc!
We absolutely love this pop diva and can only hope that you do as well! Be sure to follow Lisa on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, to keep updated! You can also listen to her Podcast “SoundScrub” here.
What did you think of “Starlet”? Let us know what you thought over on our Twitter! – @AboutThe_Noise