Q. Where do you find your inspiration to consistently write and sing about such diverse topics?
MERI: I guess it’s like most artists. My inspiration comes from everything around me, from the experiences I go through, to the people I’m with, to the news I read, to the art/stories I consume, to those crazy ideas that pop up in conversation.
I live a very diverse, colourful life so there’s lots of diverse, colourful topics that come from it!
In general I’m never short on ideas. Though, I currently have a list of almost 60 songs that are on my ever-growing “To write” list, so even if I have a particularly uninspired day I have springboards to jump off creatively. I think it’s always good to have a notepad (or notepad app) handy at all times as an artist to jot down ideas.
Q. How often are you writing and recording?
MERI: Right now as I’ve been consumed by touring, with literally no substantial time in between travel and performing, I haven’t been able to write or record much. It’s been tough! The part of the indie artist life I enjoy the most is the songwriting so I always want to do more of it.
In general, I think I’m a little different to some artists, I tend to go for the “prolific” method of songwriting. I’ll write many songs and then pick the best ones to officially release. On my YouTube channel I’ll often put up other ones I quite like, but don’t think are strong enough to go up as official releases.
I also do my own recording and music production for not only many of my own songs, but many of the casual cover songs I release. Naturally, this means I spend more time in the studio than artists who outsource the music production completely. But, I enjoy the technical, nerdy side of things and properly learning the ins and outs of my craft, so I see it as time well spent.
Q. What is your advice to someone starting out and trying to find where they belong in their world?
MERI: The advice which I most wish I’d been given when I was younger was to just release things. They don’t have to be perfect, they don’t have to be the next viral sensation. But, putting things out forces you to polish them as much as possible, it gives you honest feedback and allows you to experience (and refine) the complete process.
The wonderful thing about putting things out is that you can always go back and delete them in the future. If you decide to change direction or decide that you no longer want your older work to be publicly visible, you can delete things. But, in the meanwhile, you’ve learnt and grown going through the whole process.
The feedback you get, from people that know you, people that don’t know you and from being able to see your own output collected together, is also invaluable. It’s very different to having concepts for releases scribbled out, a collection of songs you think are great or people telling you that you’re talented.
It’s a good reality check too. It’s a surprise how many of the people who said they ‘loved’ your work suddenly go missing when they have to pay $1 for a song download. Or, how when you see your concept all laid out it’s nowhere near the grand, rockstar vibe you thought it would be.
Q. Do you plan your ventures? What’s next for Meri Amber?
MERI: I do plan my ventures! I love the scheming process. I always want to do so many things at once and the endless possibilities in the planning stage are so exciting. I’m also a chronic addict to having things completely planned out. I tend to have releases planned many months in advance and even daily evergreen social media posts planned months in advance too. I can’t recommend getting a planner enough!
The next thing in the Meri Amber universe is an overhaul of my YouTube channel, which has been slowly starting to take place behind the scenes for a little while but will properly be seen-through with new videos soon. I’ve been working really hard on this and am very excited about the changes to come!
In terms of official CD releases, there’s going to be a bit of a break. My last two CD releases (Pop Goes The TARDIS and Retro Sherbet) were released relatively close to one another (September 2015 and February 2016) and I want to take a bit of a break before releasing another. So, you won’t be seeing a new CD from me this year, but there may be one at some point next year.
Q. What’s the latest music video you’ve released?
MERI: The latest music video I’ve released is the darkest one I’ve made yet. It’s the music video for the song Comment Me.
Social Media:
Website: http://meriamber.com
YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/meriamber
Spotify profile: https://play.spotify.com/artist/4ULUypMfEm9tEgWbzsww3b
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/music/artist/Meri_Amber?id=Atdzmzpehgarttxsxtka5ub6mia&hl=en
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/meriamber
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/meriamber