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Matthew: You’ve originally come from Brooklyn, New York. Was it tough growing up in that neighborhood, and did it make an impact on who you are today?
Maya Azucena: Well my mother was a very strong woman, or I never looked at my circumstances, so if we had a little struggle together or what have you, it was nothing I couldn’t get through., you know, learning how to deal with it. Living in Brooklyn is apart of my personality, it makes me who I am today.
Matthew: What does it feel like to perform with artists such as Isaac Hayes, Leon Ware, Isley Brothers and Gladys Knight?
Maya Azucena: It feels like an honor, I feel so humbled. You know I’m just an artist, and to share the same stage, and support those artists, it makes me so humbled. I want to do my thing, you know, and represent a younger generation of music that’s coming up with classic, music that lasts hopefully as long as there music has but mostly I just feel very humbled in and I have a great deal of reverence for, you know, my elders that came before me and who are just so inspirational and powerful as artists. I feel blessed to just be in there presence, and to be invited on a bill with them is just really an honor so I just give so much respect to it, as much as I can.
Matthew: How would you describe your sound and voice?
Maya Azucena: My style of music I kind of have a name for it, I call it ‘Raw Soul’. It’s soul music, live based soul, with hip-hop and funk influences. It’s has attitude to it, a lot of energy but still a lot of heart. But as far as the voice goes it’s just me (laughs) but other people say, the press people refer me a lot to Chaka Khan. I guess my voice; I have a very large range and a lot of energy in it.
Matthew: When did you begin singing and what got you started?
Maya Azucena: I’ve been singing since I was four, so I was pretty serious about it (laughs) and I’ve always known that I wanted to stuff within the arts from as young as I can remember. At time I had some vocal training; I studied classically, and started to learn the craft better. I have been booking and managing myself as a singer for about five years now. So, I mean I’ve always know but on the other hand, it’s been a focused career for about five or six years.
Matthew: Does it get stressful sometimes doing it by yourself?
Maya Azucena: There’s definitely a lot of stress involved but any-body who starts a business deals with this kind of stress all the time, it’s not unique to me, it’s like anybody who tries to get a vision of the ground the people don’t see right away, anybody who’s in that position has to cut through some thick rope to get through to the other side. So it’s definitely a lot to handle, and there’s definitely a time when I’m amazed, you know, that how many hats that I have to wear, but I’m very for filled, and I always have moments that a very redeeming moments, where I realize that this is important, and how special it is for me to keep doing what I’m doing. Yeah, it is difficult, but I’m in love with what I’m doing and that is the main thing.
Matthew: Who inspired you as a child and currently in music?
Maya Azucena: Well my main musical inspiration coming from when I was a youth would be like, as far as songwriting goes, would probably be like Earth, Wind & Fire, Stevie Wonder, those are very big inspirations as far as song writing goes. As far as singing style goes I’m very inspired by Mahalia Jackson. She is a classic Gospel singer, who is actually Aretha Franklin’s main vocal inspiration, Mahalia Jackson is one of my main inspirations as a singer and then you also have prince, younger Michael Jackson as a singer. Those characters, you can put all of those together, those are some of the main inspirations for me. Obviously I love all kinds of music and then I grew up on, you know hip-hop, classic hip-hop, everything from you know how to rock a crowd, to I just like the style, so all those things have been an inspiration to me. Contemporary artists, I mean I’m in love with a lot of different artists now. Were in a constant process of inspiring each other, you know, but I do I have a lot of respect for Mary J Blige. She’s really stuck it out, and really continued to grow as an artist, and it’s so cool to see. I am inspired by I love, do you know Anthony Hamilton?
Matthew: Yes…
Maya Azucena: Yeah, I just think he’s incredible. I have a lot of mutual admiration for people that are out now. I have another friend that’s doing so well right now, called John Legend.
Matthew: Oh yeah, ‘Ordinary People’ is my favorite track of his.
Maya Azucena: Yeah, I think he’s a very talented song writer and he’s also such a hard worker, and I just admire that because I would see him when we’d go on the scene in New York.
Matthew: Wasn’t he originally called John Stephens?
Maya Azucena: Yes, you know, somebody said it as a joke to him, like ha ha, you should be John Legend and he thought it was catchy.
Matthew: That’s cool…
Maya Azucena: Yeah, so before he got his first major record deal he decided to switch it up. You know, apparently it is a cool name, because people remember it.
Matthew: Ok, back to you…when you travel to different cities like London, Amsterdamn, Rotterdam, etc does it get hectic, and do you miss the simple life?
Maya Azucena: No (laughs). I don’t miss anything; I feel like I am where I’m supposed to be and I’m in love with this whole experience. One of the most incredible things about traveling is how many beautiful, beautiful people I meet along the way, it’s so, you know you get to perform were ever you want, in front of a new audience, you have this real powerful connection, it’s so excited, I love it. You know traveling for me is a real joy, there are always things like your not home. You’re not sleeping at home or eating food out of your refrigerator, but the things you get in return, you know I feel like I have family all over the world now. So whenever I travel, I’m going to visit my family that I don’t get to see all the time, so you know I really enjoy traveling. Whenever I do, it just opens up my world so much more.
Matthew: Are you satisfied with your current status as an artist?
Maya Azucena: You know I’m on the rise, I feel like I’m more recognized, I’m working really hard and it’s starting to blossom to the next level, so I’m not frustrated where I am, but I know that it’s a constant process of change and growth so I don’t believe that I’ll be in the same position today as I’ll be in a few months away, you know, I just move forward to the next level. My desire is to be comfortably an international artist, so that I can completely travel, and not have to worry about getting my music out to the world.
Matthew: Would you ever think of going mainstream or getting a major label?
Maya Azucena: The thing is: I don’t feel that I need it so bad that I can comprise who I am as an artist. But I would love to have support of a team that is on a major label level. I mean I do believe that this is possible, but being an independent artist can be really cool, I have the edibility to develop fans and a market, in many different places around the world. So I feel that if a major label can be supportive of me, can only take me up to a higher level.
Matthew: And also I can imagine it being more rewarding doing it yourself…
Maya Azucena: Well, you know, there are so many rewards, you can feel that pain more but you can also feel the rewards more. Also I was telling someone yesterday that I don’t have any restrictions like artistically and creatively, like if I feel inspired I can just go in the studio and do anything I want without someone telling me you’re not allowed. I would like to maintain as much business involvement in my career as much as possible. I’d like to keep a handle on my business, but I think there’s a way were you can make a marriage between the two and have the help of a label, it’s business, it’s just coming up with an agreement that works with everybody.
Matthew: You’ve teamed up with DJ/Producer Rich Medina; how was that?
Maya Azucena: Oh, teaming up with Rich, well Rich Medina is one of my favorite people in the world. I think he’s so much fun and he’s such a talent and were very similar in the way we do business, like we have an on going writing relationship that always really inspired, we just get each other, so working with him is just great, it’s a lot of fun, I’m just looking forward to what else we’ll do. I mean we there is one thing that we’ve done and it’s leaking out a bit, its called ‘I Saw This in You’. We didn’t set vinyl but it’s definitely on a kindred spirits on sampler, and we’ve definitely got it onto some radio people. It’s kind of leaking out, I guess we’ll figure it out, I think he’s hosting a mix CD for me, so I think we’ll just put some of the stuff on there.
Matthew: What are your views on internet promotion?
Maya Azucena: I am very excited about the power of the internet. I literally embrace it, so internet promotion; I think there’s a talent in taking advantage of the internet. As far as getting supporters around the world through the internet. It’s like only 10 years ago there’s so much things that we couldn’t have done as independent artists. The internet wasn’t were it is now, like myself, being so far, no label, no manager, no booking agent, it’s the only reason, why do people review me in Japan, how do people know who I am in Australia, you know, people have access to my music and they can contact to me, I think that its incredible, I’m sure you have to be careful and not be taken advantage of, in the career world. I’m trying to do an art so the internet can try and steal your art, but for me right now I think the internet is just great.
Matthew: What can we expect from Maya Azucena in the future?
Maya Azucena: I want to send you my biography because there are a lot of things that I’ve been working on that I didn’t even have the chance to touch on. When you say what you can expect from me, I mean there’s a lot going on that you can start to look for. For in the example I’m on a new single that’s by a British rapper called Nomadic, it’s called ‘This Is for the Music’, it’s a song that wrote together and we shot a music video for it. So I think in the UK market you’ll be seeing me pop with that, I just did a big project with a hip-hop artist in Italy, which is a pretty one. He’s going solo he’s called DJ Chad, I just wrote a song for his record and we just shot a video for that, which is showing on MTV in Europe. In the next two weeks I’m going to Croatia at the end of the month, you know there’s all this cool stuff, and then my own music for my next CD. I have pretty much most of my next CD done, I’m just stopping it right now, as I’m looking for a record deal, it’s on hold.
Matthew: Do you have a title for the CD yet?
Maya Azucena: I’m going to hold of giving the title but I don’t know what the title is yet.
Matthew: What does your new record have to offer, does it have anything different from your previous record?
Maya Azucena: It’s definitely like the next step up, you know, it’s a little more mixture of produced sound, together with the live sound. I just think the songs are like the next level as well, I’m just happy about it; it’s just the next step up.
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