AMERY, the rising Belgian star you need to look out for, explains the story behind 'California Love'
AMERY, the 21-year-old pop/R&B artist from Belgium, is a rising star you need to keep your eye out for. The artist has just put out his fourth single 'California Love,' which can be best described as an electrifying pop track that is the catchiest song of summer.
The young singer explains the journey behind 'California Love' and his future plans in the industry. Here are some edited excerpts from Meaww's interview with AMERY.
What was the inspiration behind California Love? Considering this is your fourth single, how do you ensure each song's versatility?
My producer James Lowland and I were jamming: he was playing the piano and he came up with cool chords. I told him to keep playing that and all of a sudden, I started singing 'California Love'. The melody came very quickly. That's basically how the song came to life.
Every song represents the mood I'm in when I'm writing it. No one is feeling happy every day and though I’m always writing about love, there are so many emotions and moods that come with it. So I try to show all this variety of emotions. I'm always looking for something different.
Could you walk us through the production process? What were some of the challenges that you faced while recording?
I remember there was a point when I thought I would never be able to finish this song. While the whole structure and main idea were done very quickly, I wanted to take time to take it to the next level and really make it great.
When did you first start performing? Who are your biggest influences?
I started performing in high school. I remember there were a lot of events and I tried to perform at each of them. But my first concert as AMERY was only last year.
Michael Jackson is the greatest, period. If it wasn't for MJ I wouldn't be here. He is my biggest hero. Rihanna is also a big influence: she is amazing and I love her confidence. She dares to try different things and she nails it every time. I learned to stay true to myself by watching her.
Beyoncé is a beast. I mean, what else can I say? She's the best performer of my generation. Her energy on stage is what I aim to reach for in my own performances.
Pick one artist/band — living or dead — you would like to collaborate with.
Rihanna! She is the Queen. Literally, everyone wants to collaborate with her. She's the face of my generation. It would be an honour to do a song with her, or even stand in the same room as her, haha!
What kind of music do you like listening to?
I love being versatile in my own music so my playlist has a lot of variety as well. It’s a mix of 80s, 90s, 00s and 10s music: each era delivers something special, that's why I love it.
I’ll share one of my playlists very soon on Spotify, so make sure to follow my profile if you don’t wanna miss it.
Do you prefer Vinyl or digital? How helpful or harmful do you think music streaming is for up-and-coming artists?
I'll go with digital just because it's easier to use and you cannot lose your music.
I think it's helpful in one way because your music can reach a big audience across the world. But on the other hand, there is A LOT of music on streaming platforms. So there's more competition and you have to stand out, you have to be special to catch people’s attention.
Any plans of touring soon? What can we expect next?
AMERY: I'm in the process of finishing my album and doing concerts. I’ll be performing at many Belgian festivals this summer and once my album will be released, I would love to go on tour with my band, that would be great.