Exposed Vocals just caught an exclusive interview with “MYRNA”

Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?

MYRNA: I was born in the beautiful, small and rainy city Bergen (Norway) where I´ve lived almost all my life. I grew up in a musical family. My father, who´s from The Philippines, used to tour as a guitarist in Asia and Europe before he met my Norwegian mom (also a musician then) and settled down here in Bergen. So becoming an artist has never really been a choice, it´s just as natural as breathing! Music, singing and dancing has always been a part of my every day life and I´ve been performing since I was 7 years old.

Exposed Vocals: How did you come up with that name? What was your inspiration behind it?

MYRNA: Haha, a lot of people ask me what my real name is. That´s why I never got an artist name, my real name seems to be exotic enough. I recently changed it to just «MYRNA» though, because I´ve noticed throughout the years that my whole name «Myrna Braza» seems to be too difficult to remember.

Exposed Vocals: What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?

MYRNA: As an independent and unsigned artist online music sharing is something I depend on to survive. And yes, sometimes I give away my music, for instance every time I release a new music video. Unless I get gazillions of views I don´t get payed for it, but that´s part of the business today. My music is available on online streaming platforms like Spotify, Tidal and so on, where the same principle is applied. Sometimes I give away links for free download of my songs too. I just want to get out there and perform, which is what I do for a living, but I can´t do that without people knowing my music first.

Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?

MYRNA: Be a YES-person. Network. Work hard. Have a great team. Build a fan base. Find your niché. Talent is not enough, so learn as much as you can about the industry. Passion is your fuel. Always treat every gig as if it´s the last. Be professional. Know that someone will love you and someone will hate your music. But please, never be an a-hole, always treat your colleagues and fans with respect. Be an easy going, happy person. Be productive. Be humble. Adjust. Building a career takes time and can be stressful, so try to enjoy the journey and remember to celebrate all the small victories!

Exposed Vocals: Do you ever make mistakes during performances? How do you handle that?

MYRNA: Yes, of course I make mistakes sometimes during performances, but usually I just laugh at it. I make sure that I don´t do the same mistakes twice though.

Exposed Vocals: Do you tour? Anything interesting happen on tour that you think our readers would enjoy hearing about?

MYRNA: I´ve had a mini tour in London which was awesome. 3 days and 3 gigs. That was so much fun! It´s intense but I love it! Last summer I travelled The Philippines for 3 weeks along with my dad and performed in different cities. I´ve performed many places in Norway, but have yet to do a real «tour», which is a dream of mine. Mostly I just try to enjoy every gig and every travel, and try to put in time to be a tourist and explore too. I snap a lot, so anyone curious about life as a Norwegian artist can follow me there (Snapchat: myrnabraza)

Exposed Vocals: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?

MYRNA: I can be inspired anywhere! So I always have my phone (notepad and recorder) close by. I´m a collector of words. One word can inspire me to write an entire song! And if a melody comes sneaking I record it on my phone. My songwriting process is something like this:
⦁ I start jamming a few chords on my piano and go from there. If I´m in the zone I´ll record it on my Mac using Logic. Or:
⦁ I go in the studio with my producer tomtom and jam with him. Or:
⦁ I write the lyrics and compose the melody before even playing a chord. Or:
⦁ Sometimes someone sends me an instrumental and I write something to it.
So I don´t really have a regular songwriting routine, but I never sit and wait for inspiration to hit me, I go and get it, which basically means sitting down and just work, work and work. That´s when the notepad really comes in handy! A lot of magic happens when we start recording and producing the songs in the studio too, so I like to keep an open mind. Sometimes an acoustic ballad can become the coolest uptempo pop song and vice versa.

Exposed Vocals: Do you have a band website? What online platforms do you use to share your music?

MYRNA: Yes, it´s www.myrnabraza.com. That´s where you´ll find an overview of all my upcoming gigs, links to social platforms, videos and music, including a new blog. Mostly I use Facebook (www.facebook.com/myrnabrazaofficial), YouTube (www.youtube.com/mbraza) and Instagram (www.instagram.com/myrnabraza) to share my music, and for my everyday music life, like backstage stuff, studio recordings or other things going on in my life I use Snapchat (myrnabraza).

Exposed Vocals: If you were given half a million dollars and a year off, what would you do? How would you spend it?

MYRNA: I´d share with family. Do more charity. Also, I love to travel, so I´d probably spend time touring and travelling. So basically I´d do what I´m doing right now, only so much more of it and not having to stress about planning budgets and bills so much. Combining travelling and touring is a dream come true!

Exposed Vocals: Any planned studio upgrades? What are you working with now?

MYRNA: Right now I´m focusing on booking more gigs and promoting my new music video «Beautiful». I released my 2nd full-length album «Story Of I» in February, so now I just want to get out there and perform as much as possible! In July I´ll be spending some time songwriting too. I want to release more new music soon.

Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?

MYRNA: I find that music videoes and using social media works best for me. I always try to stay as relevant as possible by being productive and sharing something new.

Exposed Vocals: If you could perform anywhere and with any artists (Dead or Alive) where and who would it be with? Why?

MYRNA: I´d love to perform in the US because I´ve never been there, and somehow it feels like my soulful music would´ve been appreciated there. I´d love to perform with Bruno Mars and his fantastic band because they´re amazing performers who knows how to have a great time on stage!

Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?

MYRNA: I have a few festivals coming up and a couple gigs at private events. Other than that I´ll mostly spend time this summer writing music, book new gigs and recharge my batteries so I´m ready for autumn and upcoming projects and exciting challenges. What I really want to do is tour Norway and perform at more festivals, and will be doing my best to make it happen.

Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?

MYRNA: I´d probably be working with people and animals. I love being surrounded by nature but don´t get to spend so much time in it. I grew up riding horses, so maybe I´d be a rider and have a stable full of beautiful horses. Also, I love teaching and have loads of song students, so maybe I´d be a teacher. I see myself travelling too, never really settling down anywhere, always searching for new adventures. Maybe I´d be an explorer of some sort…

Exposed Vocals: How do you juggle the rest of your responsibilities while trying to stay ahead in your music life?

MYRNA: Well, I don´t have a stop-button. I just keep on going, on and on, and one of my mottos are «bigger and better». When you work for yourself there´s always work to do. I don´t have regular office hours, there´s no 9-5, you don´t hear me complain about Mondays and I don´t make a fuzz about it being a weekend, because to me everyday is a Saturday. I start early and come home late, and I usually eat dinner after 10 pm. Normally I have 1 week off every year, and try spending it by a pool or the sea in a warm, sunny country, like Greece. That is when I go all retard and become suuuper lazy, a huge contrast to my everyday life, but that one week is when I recharge my batteries for the rest of the year. Music is my life, my full time job and a lifestyle. I usually don´t know what my life will be after the next 3 months although I try to plan as much as possible, but that´s the life of most artists I guess. I just wish I was better at keeping my home clean and tidy, lol. I love spending time with family and friends, and also enjoy me-time, so I try to fit that in as much as possible. Being my own boss means I have to be smart about how I spend my time, but it also gives me the freedom to chose what I want to do next. It´s all about finding a balance. One day though, I will find a business partner that can help me with all these tasks so that I can spend more time just being the «artist» that I am…

Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in 2016?

MYRNA: Loads of gigs and more new music! Maybe I´ll write a few more Christmas songs this year too? It´s almost become a tradition now. For daily updates and news they know where to find me 😉