Name: Nyah Grace
Nationality: American, UK-based
Occupation: Singer, songwriter
Current release: Nyah Grace's new album Divinely Devoted is out via Palawan.

If you enjoyed this Nyah Grace interview and would like to stay up to date with her music and live dates, visit her official homepage. She is also on Instagram, tiktok, and Facebook.



When it comes to experiencing strong emotions as as a listener, which albums, performances, and artists come to mind?

For me, this would be Minnie Ripperton.
 
There can be many different kinds of emotions in art – soft, harsh, healing, aggressive, uplifting and many more. Which do you tend to feel drawn to most?

Pensive and Reflective.
 
I have had a hard time explaining that listening to death metal calms me down. When you listen to a song or composition, does it tend to fill you with the same emotions – or are there “paradoxical” effects?

There are certain songs which my Dad showed me – “Frontin'” by Pharell Williams makes me sad and miss home although it’s a great fun song as it reminds me of family.
 
In as far as it plays a role for the music you like listening to or making, what role do words and the voice of a vocalist play for the transmission of emotions?
 
The voice plays a massive role in terms of conveying emotion.

There’s an opportunity to story tell in a totally different way in how you are singing it, not just the words you sing
 
When it comes to composing / songwriting, are you finding that spontaneity and just a few takes tend to capture emotions best? Or does honing a piece bring you closer to that goal?

The first take feels like it captures my emotions best.
 
How much of the emotions of your own music, would you say, are already part of the composition, how much is the result of the recording process?

50/50
 
For your current release, what kind of emotions were you looking to get across?

Longing and romantic emotions mixed with a little bit of sombreness.
 
How do you capture the emotions you want to get across in the studio?

By honing in a little and simultaneously not thinking too much about it.
 
How does the presence of the audience and your interaction with it change the emotional impact of the music and how would you describe the creative interaction with listeners during a gig?

Interacting with the audience changes the impact quite a bit, especially if people are noticeably into it and reacting well.

It helps me perform and convey emotion better.  
 
Would you say that you prefer to stay in control to be able to shape the emotions or do you surrender to them and allow the music to take over? Who, ultimately has control during a live performance?

It has to be a mix of both, just to ensure I’m not physically crying on stage.

The emotions that music is able to generate can be extremely powerful. How, do you think, can artists make use of this power to bring about change in the world?
 
By allowing people to listen to their message – whatever issue they want to draw attention to, musicians have a massive opportunity to make people listen and take notice of the important things.