Woodstock based singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata is in the midst of a 26 date tour across the US. The artist has taken a more intimate approach to her live performance by playing at smaller venues and having a rather bare stage set up. Yamagata has been fortunate to have a long career in the music industry and has been touring for over 17 years. Yamagata is often recognized for her soulful and emotional music. Her latest album Tightrope Walker was released in September of 2016 and was funded via PledgeMusic. The artist has been able to develop a strong relationship with her fans given her long career and genuine caring for both her music and audience. mxdwn got a chance to interview Yamagata and hear about the tour, new music and her stance on the changing music industry.
mxdwn: You’re a little less than a month into the tour and have about a month left. How have the shows been going?
Rachael Yamagata: They’ve been amazing actually. I just didn’t know how this tour would be received because I’m playing completely by myself. I’m trying out this video sort of movie that runs throughout my set to get a visual. I’ve been thrilled because the audiences are loving it and they’re just super into it. There’s just a great exchange of energy between myself and the audience. It’s like a giant road trip, I’m out here by myself for a couple days before my Asheville show and I’m kinda loving it actually.
mxdwn: For your live set, it’s just you, whatever you’re playing and a visual element. How does this raw setup help the audience take in the music?
RY: My fans requested something like this, but I’ve honestly been too freaked out to even try. This has been such a good experience for myself as well as answering what a lot of fans have been requesting.
mxdwn: This tour features pretty small venues, what was the process like of picking these venues and how do you think they impact your performance?
RY: It was very intentional to go for that special, unique experience and I think when venues get too big you lose that just because of physical proximity. A lot of the songs are dark and deep and we chose venues that had a vibe. We’re on the smaller side and we have been really lucky with getting things like a baby grand acoustic piano, which I think also, for me, makes a huge difference instead of throwing a sheet over a keyboard every night.
mxdwn: How do you think your background in theater has impacted both your music and your live presence?
RY: I think it’s given me the experience of being on stage. I’m on my, I wanna say, 17th year of touring, it doesn’t come naturally to me. I’m a real homebody, hermit, introvert, and you wouldn’t know it from my shows, but that’s where I feel comfortable in this world. I think that forcing myself to do it in a way has certainly helped the show and there is certainly a comedic element to what I do that’s very entertaining and I think I’ve had to do that so people don’t just cry through the whole set.
mxdwn: After this tour are you planning on working on new music? How would say the direction you’re going in compares to that of your previous records?
RY: I actually have no idea. I never know where a record is gonna end up. The last record Tightrope Walker, I really just wanted to do a stripped down record of vocal and piano or guitar, and it became this giant epic production and I had so much fun with the production side of it. The songs that I’ve been writing are such early drafts, that I could not tell you. For all I know it’ll be an electronic hip-hop record.
mxdwn: Obviously, Woodstock has an iconic music scene, is that where you find a lot of inspiration? Do you have a go-to artist or something for inspiration?
RY: People are so interesting to me. The underlying motivations for why we do what we do, how we connect with each other and how we don’t. I think songwriters tend to be very intuitive and perceptive, the way that we’re struggling through and trying to be more authentic with each other and ourselves; that’s endlessly fascinating to me. All of my songs are circling around that, that’s a core theme. In the past, it was a lot of relationships centered on love relationships and now it’s broadening out to a more worldly area.
mxdwn: What’s your creative process like?
RY: I get snippets of ideas. I’m not a big ‘sit in the hotel room and write a song’ type of person, but I will capture a lyric or a phrase or people watch and get some ideas. The road is filled with so much other stuff that I’m basically living as fully as I can on the road and then after I go somewhere like the woods or something in nature and I kinda process everything. That’s when I really get into writing.
mxdwn: Who have you been listening to lately that you think we should give a listen?
RY: I love Emily King, I’m super into her right now. Sandy Bell is an artist that I just have been introduced to and she is so, I keep describing her as a David Lynch movie. She’s a friend of mine and she’s gonna open up for me in North Carolina. Lukas Nelson, Willie’s Nelson’s son, he’s got new music out. Those are some of my favorites for sure.
mxdwn: You’ve been part of this ever-changing music industry for a while now. What do you think of all of these changes, like streaming, and where do you think the industry is going to go?
RY: I think it’s really fun as sort of an entrepreneur, you can get really creative right now because it’s sort of a giant puzzle that everybody is trying to solve. It has allowed me to be on the front end of some weird things, like I’m self-managed and I’ve been self-managed for 16 years. I was early in on the pledge music campaigns to try and figure out the funding. I’ve educated myself a lot about the business side of this because I had to. You’ve gotta be good with a budget. If you’re gonna make records you’ve got to find ways to raise money. It’s really tricky, my newest analogy is ‘making records now is like, depending on how much you spend, buying a $100,000 house and then giving it away for free each time’. That’s not sustainable. You have to figure out how to survive financially, which means you have to make better work because it’s gotta cut through the massive amount of music that’s out there now. I’ve been thankful because the early days of being on record labels set me up with getting on the map. I’ve been able to sustain a fan base. It’s not as secure of a career for someone that’s like thinking of being an artist, you have to work.
mxdwn: There’s a lot of changes when it comes to the music industry, especially when it comes to the role and treatment of women. What’s your stance on everything that’s been going on like the #MeToo movement? What do you think we can do as a culture to protect women better in the music scene?
RY: It’s about time, ya know? I’ve been trying to figure out where I fit with things like show gear because there is a discrepancy between, I think, gender because of who’s making what. There are still attitudes that exist within the music industry of ‘you can’t do it’ or ‘you can’t do it alone.’ I’ve had people tell me that for years, but I’m wired in a way where the minute you say that, that’s the exact thing I’m gonna try. People keep telling me I need a manager and I would love a manager. It’s not like this isn’t 3 full-time jobs at once doing this, but I’ve also been touring and making records and doing amazing things as my own manager. I’m very interested in seeing women understand their power, which they have and have always had, and watching the world start to recognize it more. I have a lot of amazing women artist friends, and I really like having them to communicate with and encourage each other to grow.
mxdwn: You’ve had a long road to get to where you are today as a solo artist, what is some advice you have for aspiring artists?
RY: As an artist, be your own authentic voice. Find your mentor, look for mentors that you trust artistically. Don’t be persuaded by any sort of artistic shaping, know your own voice and know what you do. No one else does it, and that’s very unique. You will find your niche, your place to go. In terms of a working artist, this is a huge investment on many sides, so know your money, know your business. Have integrity, appreciate and connect with people with integrity, and work really really hard. Study up on every aspect of it. You become a better artist and a better person if you know how each department is functioning and you have to know human nature. Don’t give away your power to other people just because it seems overwhelming or you’re not wired for it. Just know the pieces and how they work.
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