Alisa Stepura is a musical artist/producer who began her musical journey on the age of 4, after being gifted a piano by her mother and father. She rapidly discovered to play and started composing, and at 11 began producing her personal music. Beginning 2020, she has been releasing a report yearly on the day of her birthday. In 2021, she graduated from Columbia Worldwide School, specializing within the arts, and awarded the Jim Lawlis Memorial Scholarship, for displaying excellence in musical training. A yr later she enrolled into the Institute of Modern Music Efficiency for a Bachelor’s diploma in Inventive Music Manufacturing. Her focus fell on paying homage to earlier eras of music and exploring classic sound. Closely influenced by rockstars like Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones, she launched her EP “Strike Me a Smile!” on the twenty first of June, 2023. She admitted to having been mentored by the professors at her college through the course of creating the EP. This three-song work was her immersion into working with analogue gear within the these days’ period of digital manufacturing. Two of the songs, “Strike Me a Smile!” and “Rise up”, have been created with the give attention to merely deriving a very good and nostalgic feeling, whereas the monitor “Ratched and Divine” was her expression of anger in direction of how neglected the difficulty of driving beneath the affect generally is in society.

1. Your musical journey started at an extremely younger age. How did receiving a piano at 4 years previous form your method to music?

Alisa Stepura: I grew a lot extra related to music, particularly the music I already knew and preferred. I discovered how you can play quite a lot of the songs my Dad would placed on our CD participant each morning and it made me really feel like I used to be part of the music, somewhat than only a listener.

2. At simply 11, you began producing your personal music. What prompted you to delve into music manufacturing at such a younger age?

Alisa Stepura: Truthfully simply curiosity. I opened up Storage Band and realized I had the chance to truly create one thing important. I’ve had a Yamaha synthesizer since yearly childhood and would report little 4 monitor items on it generally, so I’ve all the time needed to create, simply haven’t had the best outlet.

3. Releasing a report yearly in your birthday is a novel custom. How has this annual launch formed your progress and creativity as an artist?

Alisa Stepura: It’s been forcing me to get out of musician’s block all these years. Releasing one thing yearly appeared simple as first, it wouldn’t take me lengthy to jot down and report one thing, however as my focus shifted from amount to high quality, it grew to become more durable and began feeling as extra of a burden at occasions. However I’m nonetheless going 4 years sturdy and planning to make it to five and (hopefully) past. I take pleasure in not having the choice of relaxation, it forces me to be extra energetic.

4. Graduating from Columbia Worldwide School within the arts and receiving the Jim Lawlis Memorial Scholarship is spectacular. How did this tutorial background affect your music?

Alisa Stepura: Jim Lawlis was my first music trainer at that faculty. He was additionally the primary faculty music trainer who believed in me. My earlier music trainer wasn’t my largest fan as a result of I couldn’t play the clarinet adequate for his liking. It made me view music training as one thing that I may by no means take pleasure in totally until I performed an orchestral instrument and was a principle geek. At CIC, all the pieces was totally different. Instantly the truth that I used to be extra into the manufacturing side was seen as cool as an alternative of annoying. Mr. Lawlis was very gifted, variety and affected person. He sadly handed away in 2021, however I actually loved being one among his college students. We received one other trainer the next yr, Dr. Lina Li. She was simply as wonderful and the way in which she taught principle remodeled my view of it fully. I began consciously incorporating it into my very own work and it made me a a lot better songwriter. That’s all due to her!

5. Shifting onto the Institute of Modern Music Efficiency, how has this formal training impacted your type and approach?

Alisa Stepura: Pursuing greater training in manufacturing was among the best choices I’ve ever made! I received far more hands-on expertise with numerous gear and kit. I went from pondering I can produce to understanding I can. Assembly a lot of like-minded and very gifted folks has been an absolute pleasure. I lastly discovered my type and fell in love with the world of analogue sound.

6. “Strike Me a Smile!” appears to pay homage to earlier music eras. What drew you to discover and infuse these classic sounds into your EP?

Alisa Stepura: Private style greater than something. I’m an enormous fan of all the pieces classic so I needed to create music in that type.

7. Mentoring from college professors is efficacious. How did their steering particularly affect the creation of this EP?

Alisa Stepura: The blending and mastering half was the toughest to “get proper”. They guided me by it very nicely and I believe the teachings I’ve discovered from mixing the EP formed my mixing type essentially the most. It nonetheless wants quite a lot of work, however with out their recommendation it wouldn’t be wherever close to it’s present sonic state.

8. Your EP explores each analogue and digital manufacturing. What challenges did you face merging these contrasting strategies?

Alisa Stepura: Among the components are recorded on reel-to-reel tape. I had a “dangerous take tape” and a “good tape”, the latter being what was then recorded into the digital venture. As soon as I punched one thing into the nice tape, I solely actually had one attempt to do it. If one thing went improper and I used to be off in timing or take alternative, I needed to redo the entire thing to get the layers proper. The vocal traces have been the toughest to redo as a result of I’m huge on harmonies and having a lot of them.

9. “Strike Me a Smile!” and “Rise up” intention for a nostalgic really feel. May you share the inspiration behind these tracks and the way you captured that essence?

Alisa Stepura: Strike Me a Smile! was very closely impressed by Heaven Is a Place On Earth. The story begins with me listening to It’s Not Dwelling If It’s Not With You by the 1975, and as we’ve heard them type of admit, it’s principally that very same track remade of their association and lyrical type. I believed to myself, I may take inspiration from that track in higher methods, proper? Like with out stealing all the melody. I took the instrumental association of 80’s pop rock and vocal combine as inspiration for my path and the track got here to life because of this. As for Get Up, I heard Le Freak performed dwell by my college professors at one among our brisker’s occasion and couldn’t get that track out of my head for an entire yr. It impressed me to make one thing in the identical 70-80s disco type. I then in fact confirmed it to a few of my lecturers. The track principally got here full circle.

10. In “Ratched and Divine,” you deal with the difficulty of driving beneath the affect. How vital is it so that you can use your music as a platform to spotlight societal points?

Alisa Stepura: I believe addressing severe points is vital for anybody with a platform. By means of music, we as songwriters form the world in our personal methods. I discover it relieving to precise my emotions about sure subjects by music. I positively plan on persevering with to take action.

11. Are there any particular experiences or moments in your life that considerably influenced the tracks on “Strike Me a Smile!”?

Alisa Stepura: After faculty was over, all my buddies received sort of scattered world wide and received on with their grownup lives. So have I, however I spent quite a lot of time touring final yr so I received so see a lot of folks from my “previous life” once more, in a very new gentle. Everybody grew up, received severe about life objectives, and are merely completely happy proper now. With sheer luck, I managed to reunite with some folks in locations I didn’t count on to see them in any respect, in cities neither of us lived in and easily occurred to be visiting on the similar time. That prompted me to jot down the monitor that the EP is known as after.

12. As somebody deeply concerned in each composition and manufacturing, how do you navigate the interaction between these two parts when creating your music?

Alisa Stepura: Being each the composer and producer truly makes issues very simple. As soon as I’ve an thought I don’t must seek for somebody to assist me being it to life. I merely do. It relieves me of miscommunication as an artist as nicely, I do know what sound I would like and I don’t must attempt to clarify it to anybody. I give you an thought and report it immediately.

13. Your influences embody rockstars like Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones. How do these influences manifest in your EP, if in any respect?

Alisa Stepura: On Rise up, I attempted to play with percussion as a lot as potential, similar to the 2 legendary aforementioned bands did. I’m additionally gentle years away from being as gifted on guitar as Jimmy and Keith, however I tried to get artistic with the riffs and melodies performed on all the songs too.

14. How do you navigate the tremendous line between paying homage to previous eras of music whereas making a sound that feels recent and up to date?

Alisa Stepura: I’m continually trying to find new inspiration and quite a lot of it comes from immediately’s largest (and underground) artists. It retains my type recent whereas I discover methods to make timeless music just like the 80s hits I discussed beforehand.

15. In what methods did working with analogue gear problem your typical artistic course of? Have been there any shocking discoveries alongside the way in which?

Alisa Stepura: Probably the most shocking discovery was how good it felt. If you’re not working with a binary code on a pc however somewhat with voltage inside a desk and outboard gear it nearly feels as should you’re the center, pumping blood by them. It made me really feel so alive to function numerous analogue parts.

16. What would you contemplate essentially the most profitable, proud or important level in your life or profession up to now?

Alisa Stepura: My mother and father saying they’re pleased with me.

17. Are there specific themes or ideas you’re desirous to discover in your future musical endeavors?

Alisa Stepura: I actually need to work with synthesizers and textures extra. Sound synthesis may be very fascinating to me and I’m at the moment making an attempt to work with and discover it extra.

18. Collaborations usually broaden an artist’s artistic horizon. Are there any artists you aspire to collaborating with sooner or later?

Alisa Stepura: There are literally fairly a number of folks I’m at the moment collaborating with on the album! Even on the track I’m releasing in a number of days, I’ve had the possibility to collaborate with a gifted choir supervisor and his ensemble, Julius Mike. I actually take pleasure in collaborating with my finest good friend, Daria, as nicely. She brings wonderful concepts to the desk and has mind-blowing vocal talents. There’s much more collaboration to come back on the album, which is at the moment within the works.

19. Placing apart any accolades or criticisms that followers, the trade, or the media might afford your persona or music, is there something about you or your music, you suppose folks might overlook, underestimate or misunderstand in any respect?

Alisa Stepura: Maybe that each single track has a lot deeper that means than it may appear at first. The mentioned that means may simply be interpreted in a different way by totally different folks, but it surely’s all the time there. Normally it’s one thing private, however quite a lot of the occasions I’ll use imaginary storylines in songs to debate one thing I really feel deeply about.

20. What do you discover most rewarding about what you do? And do you’ve got a selected imaginative and prescient or purpose set in your thoughts that you simply want to obtain within the close to future?

Alisa Stepura: Settling again in my chair and listening again to one thing I simply made that actually like is among the finest emotions on the planet. After all listening to optimistic suggestions from different folks is simply as vital and feels fairly inspiring, however I’m all the time my very own largest critic. For me to love one thing I made I actually must drive it to perfection. My largest purpose proper now’s to complete the album that’s within the works and make it a cohesive piece of artwork prepared for launch in the summertime.

OFFICIAL LINKS: https://instagram.com/alisastepura