KISSIMJAU TALKS THE BASEMENT

Interviewed by Culture Coast Talks editor Daniel John. Interview transcripts might have been edited for length and clarity.

What prompted this song?

Making 'The Basement', me and the producer I worked with, Øyvind Glåmen, were talking about the craziest clubs we've been to and got to talking about a specific club in a basement in Amsterdam. From there we just tried to re-create the feeling of that club both in the production and topline really!

You've worked with Glåmen before?

Yes, so I worked with one of my go to producers, and I think we actually made another idea first in that session, but it just did not really stand out, so then we decided to go for a whole other vibe and just make something crazy!

For your previous single 'Voodoo Doll' you also dropped your first proper music video. Are there any chances for a music video here too?

I would love to make a music video for 'The Basement'! We did make a teaser video which was super fun, and a bit scary since a part of it was filmed in an old bunker filled with bugs. I think for a full video it would be sick to get some shots from an actual underground club with lots of people and crazy things going on in every corner of the rooms.

How early were you already a pop–girl?

To be honest I feel like I've been a pop-girl my whole life! I've been writing songs since I was eight and I always followed the “pop structure” of my favorite pop songs. Although I feel like my taste in pop has developed a lot the last few years, and now I'm experimenting more with both structure and sound!

What pop stars influenced you early on?

I grew up having Rihanna and Lady Gaga as my idols and I particularly was inspired by Lady Gaga's electronic sound in her 2010-era!

Last year was a real good year to be a Kissimjau fan. You put out a lot of songs?

Last year was the best year of my life so far, I feel like I really started finding my own thing in music and really connecting with people. I'm so proud of myself but I also think that was just a beginning of something much bigger.

Will you keep up the pace this year?

I definitely will keep up the pace! The last months I've been focusing on making more music, and I have a set number of songs I want to release this year which is more than last year, so no room for breaks here. I also might have some concerts coming up which I'm super excited about since I love playing my music live!

Are you still writing for other artists, or does all of your focus go to Kissimjau–songs?

I write for artists from time to time if it's a project I think is really cool or sometimes just for fun to get my mind off myself! I definitely focus mostly on my artist project now though, since I feel like that's what brings me the most joy and I also love being able to perform what I make!