New Artist Shaelyn Avalon talks about love, favorite artists, and her emotional double release “My Love/ Everynight”.
Where are you from?
I grew up in a small town in the Central Valley, not a lot of people know where Selma is so I just say “Fresno” when anyone asks. My grandparents have lived there forever and we’re really close so I go back to visit pretty often.
How long have you been making music?
I’ve been recording music for 5 years now, which is crazy to me. There was about a two year gap somewhere in there where I was just writing and nothing else though so I don’t really count that. My first song came out in 2015 and then I put out another one a year later. It wasn’t until 2017 that I really buckled down and got some work done and even then I released all that music in 2018. The drastic difference between the music I wanted to make then and now is cool to look back on.
How many songs /albums have you released to date?
So far, counting my EP, I have 11 songs total that have been released. My first song “Better Than” is scheduled for a rerelease soon since the original distributing company took it down when I switched over to OneRPM. I have about a half dozen songs in the works right now that I’m excited to put out!
Can you tell us about your latest release and the background and inspirations behind it?
My latest release was a double feature, My Love/ Everynight. Everynight tells a love story, it’s very sweet and I wrote it about the boyfriend I had at the time. I thought we were serious and we were planning a future so it was very pure in intent. My Love is about a partner struggling with an alchohol problem. My mental health definitely took a huge beating from trying to not fall apart every week. They say hate the sin, not the sinner. I don’t think I could ever hate him, at his core I saw a sweet guy who just needed me to help him. In helping him I lost my sense of self and ended up falling into a depression that made me really have to grow up and learn to take care of myself. Hence, the huge gap in lyrical maturity vs my first EP Wonderland. I drew a lot from artists with synth sounds in their music, a lot more ballads for sure, even some background music from YouTube shows I watch.
How have you ended up in the music industry?
I’ve been working towards this my whole life. I did a lot of theater and choir when I was a kid and always felt happiest while onstage. Outside of that I didn’t really fit in growing up, I was bullied a lot and had to be homeschooled for a short period of time. Moving out to LA I found a place where I finally felt accepted and free to express myself. I really came out of my shell when I got scouted for modeling back in 2015. I walked LA Fashion Week for the first time last year (2019) and it was amazing! That avenue definitely has built a platform for my music more than anything else.
What do you think of the music industry in 2020?
It’s a really crazy time with this whole Pandemic. None of us have ever experienced such a standstill in our ability to create or to perform. I’m seeing a lot more digital releases than anything else, it’s great for connecting to fans worldwide. My hope is that once this is over people really just focus on the art instead of just charting. Like, yeah if I were to chart it would be amazing! I’d be extremely grateful, but I don’t make music with that single thing in mind. I want to reach the girl or guy in their room who needs a song to carry them through a hard time.
Who do you think the most influential artist?
Taylor Swift is at the top of her game always, Ariana Grande has a lot of influence as well. Billie Eilish is doing extremely well for herself and is who everyone is talking about. Super talented girl and very down to earth!
Who have you collaborated with so far in your career?
I haven’t been in the game long enough to have collaborated with anyone but I am open to it, I have a pretty extensive list of people I would love to sing with either onstage or in the studio.
How do you think you differ from other artists?
I think the thing that sets me apart from a lot of artists is how open I am with what my music is about. I’m extremely blunt, sometimes it gets me in trouble. When I put out Narcissist it was like “Okay, cards out on the table. I have nowhere to hide”. Again, with “My Love”, I was so scared to release that song that I actually reached out to my ex that I wrote it about and had him listen to it first. He liked it but like obviously the message still stung. I never want to do people like they did me so it’s really crazy being a writer and having all these people hear my side of the story, definitely an uneven playing field since I don’t tend to date people in music.
Dead or alive, who would be your dream collaboration?
I would love to collaborate with Madison Beer. Every song she puts out is a song I relate to a lot and wish I had written. She just has such a cool way of looking at the world and I’d have so much fun just talking with her about anything.
What was the first album you bought?
The first album I bought with my own money was Selena Gomez & The Scene’s Kiss & Tell. I bought it with the A Year Without Rain Deluxe Edition CD. She was my first major music influence and I wanted to be just like her! Oh! And Taylor Swift! I am the biggest Swiftie! Speak Now was my first Taylor Album but Red is my stan album.
What’s your favourite song at the moment?
“Selfish” by Madison Beer, “Lie Like That” by Loren Gray, “2AM” by Astrid S, “Joke’s On You” by Charlotte Lawrence, and “Hate Me” by Ellie Goulding and Juice WRLD. I can’t really pick one but those are what are on a constant loop right now on my phone.
If you had to sell your music collection tomorrow, what album would you leave in your draw?
Haha, I mean luckily I don’t have to think about that yet! I’ve got time.
What is your favourite saying?
My favorite sayings right now are “We stan!”, “It’s a vibe”, “and “Love that for me!”. I’m always watching YouTube vloggers so their lingo just rubs off on me. Another thing I say a lot is “My fave”.
What other hobbies or interests do you have?
I really like dancing. I still try and go to at least 2 ballet classes a week and love experimenting with contemporary jazz and lyrical. I used to play flute in my high school band so I’ll pick it up every once in awhile just to make sure I still know how. Other than that I’m just like your typical young adult, I like going out with my friends and having spur of the moment adventures and just going places we haven’t been before. Those are like my fave thing ever!
Do you have any tattoos or piercings?
I have my double piercing on my ears. I got my second after my breakup last year. I told the manager at Claire’s that it was a breakup piercing and she was like “Yes girl! I support you!”. I don’t have any tattoos, my pain tolerance is extremely low!
Tell us more about your upcoming project or this new project?
The stuff I’m writing now is a mix between emotionally cathartic and clubby vibes. I want to do it all honestly. I don’t want to place myself in a box.
What’s in the pipeline after this project?
I’m always writing and have more songs in the works. I’m hoping to release an album at some point. I don’t wanna say when but I think building on the small fan base I have is what’s most important right now. I’m still finding my sound.
Thank you for your time and may you carry on making great, fresh music.
Thanks so much for having me! I’m looking forward to chatting again soon.
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