COLLECTION 2: STORIES & INSPIRATIONS

I’ll keep sharing the stories behind my demo songs: the music I grew up with, the stories and places that inspired the writing, and some of the personal experiences behind the lyrics. I write from life and experience, in my own words, while still leaving room for fiction and storytelling. This space is part of that, a place where the songs and the person behind them can speak for themselves.

I’m always striving to write better, to express myself more clearly and more honestly, and I think that’s part of what makes me a good lyricist. My life now, in my 30s, feels calmer in many ways, but I feel more alive and more myself than ever. Writing is not just a hobby for me. It is a way of life. There is no better feeling than getting lost in the flow, creating a whole universe within each piece, and then hearing the words come alive, even in demo form.

From being born into a family that was music oriented, and spending the first years of my life surrounded by elephants, lions, and incredibly disciplined artists, to the people I met growing up, the different jobs I held, the degrees I completed, the cities I lived in, the interests I developed, and the passion I continue to carry with me, all of it shaped me into the person I am today. And when I look back, I wouldn’t change anything.

Collection 1 brings together older, unrelated pieces from different phases of my writing practice. It was a deliberate phase, written and shaped by instinct, experimentation, and a desire to connect with the kind of pop songs my younger self would have loved to create, even though she would never have admitted it at the time. Through these pieces, I explored lyrics, sound, and storytelling.

I am now building a more focused collection, and that takes time. As I upload new songs weekly, some older pieces will be moved here and later made available on YouTube. This is about some of the influences that shaped the way I listen, write, and create. It is also an introduction to Collection 2, where I want to carry those influences forward in a more intentional and fully personal way.

My influences have always been wide ranging. In high school, I mostly listened to System of a Down, Blackmore's Night, Dream Theater, Skunk Anansie and watched movies with strong characters. Later, I became interested in The Velvet Underground, the mythology of the Chelsea Hotel, and in my twenties, the atmospheric sound of Massive Attack and Portishead. Over time, I also started to follow commercial and pop music more closely, paying attention to how songs are written and produced.

Lately, the music that I listen the most is modern blues and soul. I will write more about those influences later. With Collection 2, I want to bring in more those current influences, as I believe my retrospective phase in creating music is over. Pop music will always stay dear to me, because, weirdly, it is the genre I learned to appreciate the last. I believe I won't go in that direction anymore, for now. Also, I won't be limiting myself by publishing demos in a women's voice only.

Music, film, and performance have always been one of the strongest connections in my family. My father first worked as a show host in our family circus Adria, and later moved to stunt work. Because of him, my childhood was filled with music, character, and unusual stories. After the war, he worked for a while as a translator for the American military, which also brought many lively evenings into our home: parties, guitars, and stories shared with some of his friends. I was always somewhere nearby.

After my parents divorced, some Fridays meant going to the cinema with him, where we watched cult films together. It was a small local cinema, and sometimes we had to gather enough people for the screening to happen, which made those evenings even more memorable. Armageddon stayed with me in a special way. I always associate it with him and the fact that he was a big Bruce Willis fan. He performed, played synth and guitar and sang a lot in his younger years.

For my love of the polished sound of French electro pop, its clean production, and melodic clarity, the partial cause is my mother’s stories about the Paris discos she went to in the 80s. She likes different music than I do and doesn't speak English well, but she learned songs by heart, and could sing Janis and Elkie Brooks perfectly with a rasp; with some kind of natural "twang" when singing country. That was always kind of weird. With her I really learned to appreciate country music. I still do, especially new artists.

Those kinds of stories and connections continued throughout my family. My childhood was very colorful, and I realise how lucky I am, with the family I have. My stepfather also, he once ended up in Studio 54 when it was already iconic, though he did not fully realize at the time what kind of place he had walked into. Later, he understood how legendary it was, and he still remembers recognizing Bianca Jagger there.

These days, my uncle often gives me records from his vintage LP collection every time I visit my hometown. He has an incredible ear for samples and echoes from older music; when I played Dan Auerbach’s “Every Chance I Get” at recent family gathering, he instantly recognized the connection to Canned Heat’s “On the Road Again”. Through him, I discovered artists like Cockney Rebel, Steve Hillage, Canned Heat, Rory Gallagher and many others.

This exchange between generations has shaped the way I listen and write. I bring newer music, they bring the vintage references, and somewhere in between, we exchange stories, songs, memories, and influences. Those stories from another time, from before I was even alive, became part of me too. Now, they are often the first to hear the new songs I write, and the stories behind them.

P.S. To my younger brother and his eclectic taste... through him I became more aware of how hip hop uses vintage jazz, soul, and funk samples, giving older records a new life in a different form. One day maybe I dare to do that.