Today we’d like to introduce you to Olivia Gold.
Olivia, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I am a singer-songwriter from Los Angeles, CA. I enjoy writing rich melodies paired with dynamic soundscapes reminiscent of Angel Olsen or Cherry Glazerr. My roots as a musician run deep – I am the daughter of acclaimed musician Andrew Gold (“Thank You for Being a Friend,” “Lonely Boy”) and the granddaughter of Academy Award-winning composer Ernest Gold and singer Marni Nixon, the “Ghost Voice of Hollywood”. I recently graduated from Paul McCartney’s Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, where I was inspired by the eclectic and vibrant nature of the music scene. In my time there, I released some early demos and recordings that were played on Mersey Radio and further lived at the local venues. I released my debut single “Mind on Fire” in April 2019, produced by Neil Wogensen of LA rock outfit Valley Queen and recruited local musicians as my band (Mike Delucia of Valley Queen on Drums, Peter Maffei of Cosmo Gold on guitar, and Wogensen playing bass). I have since returned home to sunny Los Angeles, recruiting the same band to record my new single “Careful Girl” which reflects the hopeful and upbeat nature of my transition whilst approaching, with trepidation, the subject of being a woman in a society that doesn’t allow for too much growth.
We’d love to hear more about your music. What do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
This is always a hard question to answer, and that’s because the whole reason I make music is to help me express parts of myself that I cannot do so without music. Let me try to break it down best I can! SO I am a singer-songwriter, I usually start with a melody or a chord progression that best fits whatever is going on in my life that I am trying to work through. (I write very personally as I feel that its the only way to make something truly great, something that bears your soul, vulnerability is everything.) After I have written a rough chord progression with some oohs and aahs of a melody, I like to flip back in my book of lost lyrics, basically to see if there is anything I may have jotted down that will be perfect for these chords. I like to think of lyrics and melody to be puzzle pieces scattered from different stages of my life and sometimes a lyric from three years ago will fit perfectly with a melody I wrote 5 minutes ago, so I think writing down EVERYTHING is crucial.
Sometime a song takes weeks, maybe months to finish, sometimes it comes out in 10 minutes like word vomit. But no matter how long a song takes me to write, the end feeling is always the same, relief and pride.
As far as the message goes, I want people to feel the same way as I do when I can listen to a song and feel as if it’s written about me or what I am going through. I think that when I am experiencing a hard time or if I am having the greatest day of my life, if I can put a song to that feeling or day, it helps me to fully go through that emotion, a form of therapy, so to say.
I want to create music that helps people feel the same, to help them express an emotion or experience. I don’t want to make people happy with my music. I want to make people feel anything, feel sad, mad, maybe frustrated and then walk away understanding themselves better, understanding that emotion to the fullest extent.
The sterotype of a starving artist scares away many potentially talented artists from pursuing art – any advice or thoughts about how to deal with the financial concerns an aspiring artist might be concerned about?
I find this to be something I struggle with a lot mentally, living in LA is not cheap, having to make rent, pay bills as well as squeeze out any drop of creative juice you have left after a day of hard labor, is something I continue to struggle with. I feel with artists when we do anything that pulls us away from our art. It can be extremely frustrating and mentally draining. I think it is important to keep your eye on the prize and find any way you can balance your work and creative life. Little things keep my head above water, bringing a notebook to work, so if I have a moment, I can jot down some lyrics and a song idea. By doing these little things, I feel I am not being taken away from my art. I take back control by keeping myself artistically productive.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
I have one single that was released last year, “Mind on Fire,” which is available on all streaming platforms, as well as iTunes, though my audience mostly likes to find me on Spotify. I am going to be releasing my new single “Careful Girl” on March 20, 2020, again on all major platforms. I also post all links to my music through my Instagram @simscheatcodes and on my music Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/oliviagoldmusic/. I post everything from the promo, my music and where I will be playing live shows, to just my everyday life as a musician in LA! As far as supporting my work goes, just listen to my music and share it with your friends if you enjoy it!
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @simscheatcodes
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/oliviagoldmusic/
Image Credit:
Victoria Gold
Toms One Hour Photo
Mike Cilantro
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