Exposed Vocals Interviews Nia Purslow

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

 

I was born in the small seaside town of Aberystwyth West Wales, and was brought up in a very small village nearby out in the country. Ever since the age of 4, I can always remember singing and dancing to my mums 80s music collection at home with my sister.

I would always sing in competitions at school from a very young age aswell as secondary school. I knew from very early on that music was my passion in life and that singing was what I wanted to do.

 

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

 

I decided to use my original name Nia Purslow as I like to be myself and show my own individuality. I wouldn’t want to be anyone else but myself. I think Nia is distinctive on all my collaborations and celebrates my Welsh roots.

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

I like the fact people can hear my music online as I want to reach a wider audience. Sharing my music this way is what allows me to be heard globally as well as being a great platform to meet producers and artists alike. However, It’s not easy to make money this way and I have to admit it’s a tough industry to be in. I have to hope that continuing to write my music will help me earn what I deserve in future and I will try to utilize online platforms to enable this in my singing career. I have taken measures to charge for some of my work, and songs I have written have also been signed. For these there are download links available where fans can purchase on iTunes, Beatport and through other download sites such as Spotify. I like to release independently to showcase my talent but hope my true followers will follow and support this journey with me as I move forward with my ongoing projects.

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? 

If I could give any advice on this subject, it would be to firstly focus on your own brand and what type of artist you want to be. Once you have established this you can then submit your music to radio stations that focus on playing that type of genre suitable for you. It is also very important to make sure the demos you send are of high quality, and that there are no glitches or errors in the track. One final bit of advice I would say is to never give up when you get knocked back, the harder you work the more success you will gain in the long run.

 

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

 

I usually get inspiration to write from my own personal experiences or feelings. These can be memories, opinions, emotions that I had or have in that moment, sometimes happy sometimes sad. Listening to other music also can inspire me to write, and I like listening to a variety of genres that are very much out there at the moment. My songwriting process begins with listening to the track I am going to work on, more than once, or even pausing as I go along to get a feel for the instrumental I am going to build on. Once I have heard the melody of the track, this determines what mood and melody I will choose. It will give me a sense of what theme to decide on, i.e. summer, love, music. This also enables me to decide on the title of the track. I usually keep a notepad at hand and jot down all my ideas. I think it’s important to remember also that you don’t have to make every sentence rhyme. I also record my ideas on my voice recorder on my phone, as I don’t want to lose something good I may have come up with. I also need my own space to write in a quiet area, The beauty of songwriting is you can write about anything and everything, there is so much inspiration out there.

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

 

I have a Soundcloud, Twitter and Facebook artist page. Here is my soundcloud link – soundcloud.com/nia-8

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

 

Well if this happened I would certainly take a long relaxing holiday and some much needed me time, probably find some more inspiration to write about!

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

 

I mainly promote my music through word of mouth, or my online artist pages. Twitter, Facebook and Soundcloud are great promotional platforms for my music. Other sites include Beatport, Spotify and Itunes. A lot of my friends and followers are true supporters and share my projects as well.

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

 

Well I have many projects going on at the moment. Two up and coming releases in the hardcore scene, two EDM tracks and one other House/Dubstep track, so watch this space! I am always collaborating with such talented producers and it’s great to cover so many genres which means it never gets boring.

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

 

If I wasn’t making music I would be lost! It is second nature to me.

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

 

I usually try to keep a bit of a schedule and write down what I need to do each day of the week, in order of what tasks need to be done first and so on. This means I don’t miss out anything important. The good thing is that I can keep on top of emails and social media even if I am travelling. I always work around my music, it is my life.

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

They can look forward to some label releases, and many more exciting collaborations with new producers.