Day three of the CMJ Music Marathon arrived, and everyone was still having a great time. This event is one of best things that has happened this year.
To get started, there was a very informative panel session entitled, Metaheads: Harnessing The Intrinsic Value of Metadata, with three gentlemen in the entertainment industry. JP Bommel—president and founder of BCi lead the discussion, as Jesse Kirshbaum—founder of NUE and co-founder of SoundCTRL and Bill Wilson—leader of all things digital at the Music Business Association joined him in evaluating the importance of actively using metadata to gain an audience and relevance. Although it was a difficult conversation to fully grasp, everything being said was helpful in learning about how metadata is a fundamental asset to gain control on engaging people to commit to your work as an artist. One of the things they mentioned was the importance of the hashtag. One of the panelist was even wearing a shirt with hashtag symbols all over it just to stress the beauty of using it to push your work.
Another wonderful thing that happened today was the conversation between Nika Roza Danilova (otherwise known as Zola Jesus), and John Norris, as we watched them hash out everything from why she made the move to Washington and the meaning behind her new album.
Zola Jesus’ new album Taiga came out a few weeks ago with new recording label Mute Records. The album consists of eleven songs that she originally wrote acapella but later added instrumentals, as she claims that she is a vocalist first and an instrumentalist second. In the album, she mentions how she really loves the brass ensembles in her records. Her new album came out exactly the way she had wanted it to.
She left her former record company to expand her horizons, which is another reason that influenced her decision to move to a less-civilized island in Washington. “I was so fucking sick of society,” says Jesus, which also reflects her songs in her new album. This was her way of removing herself from what she explains as the accepted norms that control and keep people from freedom, while still admitting that a lot of society is still written in her DNA.
Zola Jesus mentioned later in the interview how she has a control freak problem but is learning how to have faith in the people she hires. Doing so, she feels content with how the songs turned out for the new album. The song “Nail,” she explains showcases her voice. Although she was called “The Ice Queen” by Fader a few years ago, characterizing her records as cold, she, however, thinks she is more cold than hot but not completely cold. Her new songs would clarify that. The song, “Dangerous Days,” is a song unlike her typical music that has a strong hook; one of the reasons it has been considered a pop song. “Dust,” another song from her new album, that was inspired by a Sam Cooke song displays a soulful quality to her voice.
At one moment during the interview, Jesus got a little more personal with us and explains how she is her own worst critic. She always knew that she wanted to give her music to the world. But since she was young, she couldn’t even practice in front of her parents for fear of being humiliated and criticized. Although she still struggles with this, she has learned to relax and allow her music to be enjoyed.
Read mxdwn’s coverage of CMJ 2014 Day One Part One
Read mxdwn’s coverage of CMJ 2014 Day One Part Two
Read mxdwn’s coverage of CMJ 2014 Day Two Part One
Read mxdwn’s coverage of CMJ 2014 Day Two Part Two
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