Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist iris a. came into my world last month. The New Jersey-based musician had just put out her debut single ‘in another world’, and I instantaneously fell in love with the cinematic and evocative tune. She then came along with ‘but I’m still here’, and I just knew that I had discovered an artist I wanted to get to know better.
Over the moon that she agreed to an interview, iris a. chats with us about how she learned to read guitar tabs when she was 10 and who some of her biggest musical influences are. Oh, and we also discuss our shared love for lowercase lettering! Without further ado, please give a big welcome to our new friend iris a.
Hello and welcome Iris! I’m so excited to introduce you to our audience! I love discovering artists still in their infancy musically! When did your love affair with music begin?
Hi, Jeremy! Thanks so much for the warm welcome! 😊 My love for music starts with the great Disney Channel original movie, High School Musical. I used to play the franchise’s karaoke game and would sing along to their songs as a little kid. I also played other music games growing up like Guitar Hero and Rock Band, where I came across music made by Paramore. I absolutely loved their sound, and they had a big impact on introducing my ears to rock at a young age.
After I watched the movie, August Rush, it inspired me to learn the guitar. I taught myself by watching YouTube videos and reading guitar tabs when I was 10 years old. My parents saw my love for music grow as I grew older, and I was lucky enough that they put me in vocal and piano lessons during middle school. At the same time, I grew to be a fan of Taylor Swift’s music (I was a huge baby Swiftie). She was my biggest influence when I started writing songs in the 5th grade. I loved how much of a storyteller she was. Soon, songwriting became a way to release all of the emotions I was feeling. It became cathartic for me. With the way that music helped me feel understood when I was younger, I knew at that age that I wanted to try and do the same for others.
My introduction to your music came in the form of the beautiful ‘in another world’, and I was instantly struck by the haunting and cinematic nature of the tune. How did you decide it was the song you wanted to introduce yourself to the world with?
Out of the five songs that I’m planning on releasing this year, ‘in another world’ felt like the best contender out of all of them. One of those five songs felt too vulnerable for me to release as my introductory song. I had to warm up to the idea first of people that I don’t know and people that I do know being able to listen in on my deepest thoughts. The lyrics in ‘in another world’ are a bit heavy, but it still has a hint of hope towards the end. And, compared to my second single, “but I’m still here’, this first release was more musically experimental. I wanted to showcase that I can dive into other sounds and atmospheres, instead of the more acoustic-based nature of that second single.
I also wanted my first song to hold some sort of significance to me when I looked back at it. I love symbolism, so I also wanted the release date of my songs to be important. When I was trying to find dates for my first two singles, I skimmed through a couple of my old diary entries that I’ve written over the years. I came across one from August 12, 2013, after I had finished middle school. Vaguely speaking, I wrote about two different careers: one that I wanted for myself (a music career), and one that someone else wanted for me (something more practical). Exactly 10 years later from that diary entry, on August 12, 2023, my first single came out. ‘in another world’ being my first release on that date was symbolic in terms of me doing something for myself – something that I want to do. Emphasizing that in this world, I can do the things that make me happy.
You recently put out your sophomore single ‘but I’m still here’ and it’s another song that I’ve absolutely fallen in love with. I know that it’ll form part of a five-track EP that you’re planning on releasing soon. What more can you tell us about the record?
Thanks for checking out my second single, I’m so glad to hear that you liked it!! My five-track EP is titled ‘past, present, possibilities’. I’m planning for it to be released on November 11, 2023. The songs tackle my feelings with time: wondering about the future, wanting to go back to the past, not being able to live in the present, but also trying my best to do so while being hopeful about the possibilities. The tracks have some of my favorite lyrics I’ve written, and I’m excited to finally release them after years of keeping them to myself (and the friends who’ve kindly lent me their ears and let me share my songs with them).
I also wrote, recorded, produced, mixed, and mastered all of them in my bedroom! I’m a DIY artist, so it’s been quite a time trying to juggle all of these tasks. But I’m determined to get my music out there. The songs come from a time in my life when things felt dark, so I’ve been nervous about my releases and how honest I am in my lyrics. But all I hope is that the songs reach the people that they need to. I know how I feel when I come across a song that I resonate with, and I hope others can feel the same when they listen to my songs.
I’m always intrigued by artists who decide on uppercase or lowercase lettering when it comes to their names or their songs. MGMT, or will.i.am for example. What made you choose to stylise your name as “iris a.” and have your songs in lowercase?
This is such a great question! I’ll talk a little bit about why I went with “iris a.” for some added background. I had been going back and forth between so many different artist name ideas that it was hard to decide – some included my name (like “Iris XXI”), and some didn’t include my name (like “eleven XXI”). Ultimately, I decided on “iris a.” because it was still representative of me as an artist and as a person, but it still kept my sense of privacy since I didn’t want to use my full last name. And so, I was sitting with a friend of mine at my computer when we were looking up different variations of Irises on Spotify. When I typed “Iris A.” in uppercase, it honestly just didn’t look as nice as “iris a.” 😂. To me, “Iris A.” feels like I’m back in school again and writing my name on top of papers. It felt too formal.
That’s the same reasoning for why I have my songs in lowercase. “In Another World” feels more serious to me than “in another world.” It’s also how I usually type when I text – everything is lowercase except for the first letter of sentences and any “I”s that are used (which is why “but I’m still here” has the capitalized “I’m” in it). It feels more laid-back, like a casual conversation, compared to if the title had uppercase lettering.
Who are some of your biggest musical influences?
At the moment, my biggest influences are Lizzy McAlpine, Jeremy Zucker, Oh Wonder, MARO, and PVRIS (aside from Taylor Swift and Paramore, both of which had a huge impact on my musical beginnings). Lizzy’s vocals inspire me greatly, and I love how her lyrics seem so personal and authentic. I admire it whenever artists are honest in their music. I also like her usage of interesting chord progressions that I don’t hear often. Jeremy is one of my favorite producers, and his music production is something I aspire to. I’m a big fan of the different layers and elements he adds to his tracks, all of which keep his songs sonically interesting. Oh Wonder has also had a huge impact on me with their musicality and beautiful music production. I love MARO’s smooth vocals, and also how she uses more unique-sounding chord progressions. PVRIS has been my favorite band since 2014, and their alternative rock sound has probably made its way into my own music, too. My songs, musically and lyrically, are a blend of all of these different influences, and I hope to be able to stand on my own as a musician as I develop my voice and artistry.
Success is such a broad term with different meanings for everyone. What would “being successful” in the music industry look like to you?
I’ve been trying to figure this out for myself lately. I don’t want to fall into the trap of “I’ll be successful once I achieve this.” Because what if once I achieve whatever that is, I want even more? I feel like it’s hard to find a balance between striving towards your goals, while also being satisfied with where you are. At least, that’s where I am right now. After my first release, I told one of my friends that I’d love it if my five songs reached at least 1,000 streams on Spotify by the end of the year. Numbers can be a concrete way to track growth, but at the same time, I don’t want my success to be based on numbers.
For me, I’ve seen success whenever people tell me that they resonate with my lyrics or relate to the song. As I said before, music has helped me feel understood and seen, and I would love it if I could help others feel seen, too. One stranger even commented that I’m a lyrical genius, and I genuinely felt honored because I’ve thought that same exact thing about Lizzy McAlpine! (*whispers* But if we’re technically speaking, I think “being successful” in the music industry for me, personally, would be once I’m able to write, record, and produce music full-time as a career without needing to work at any other job to support myself.) In the grand scheme of things, when I take a second to really think about how people have told me that they resonate with my words, I do feel accomplished.
Which of your lyrics would you like to see printed on a T-shirt?
I’d love to see “but I’m still here” printed on a T-shirt. It’s such a simple line, but in the context of that song, I like the way that it transforms from an “I feel stuck because I’m still here” to an “I won’t always be stuck, as long as I’m still here.” A friend of mine told me that this song feels like a self-affirmation, and I agree. Maybe there could be a little “but I’m still here” lettering embroidered on the front of a T-shirt, and the lyrics of “there’s places to see and there’s people to meet / and there’s mountains to climb and to move – iris a.” on the back amongst a mountain design. Most of the lyrics in this EP are darker, and I like how light these lines feel. I like how there’s a lot of strength in saying “but I’m still here.” It’s one of my more positive lyrics, and it’d be amazing to see what I’ve written physically out there in the world.
Thanks so much for chatting with us Iris! It’s been awesome getting to know you a little bit better! The team and I can’t wait for the EP to be released! What do you have planned for after that?
Thank you for having me, Jeremy!! After my EP, I’m planning on releasing songs from a concept album of mine. It consists of 12 songs, and they’ll follow the emotions that I went through after a breakup: the love I felt, the loss I felt, and the light I found after that experience. I’m hoping to release a song from that collection each month after the first song comes out. If all goes well, I’ll be releasing a single every month for one year, revealing all the lessons I learned after someone I loved left. I’m super excited for my EP and future album to be out, and I’m looking forward to seeing where my music career goes 😁. Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me!!
