Eliane Justice Visits Section 36 Music!

Section 36 Music had another visitor! Eliane Justice is a wonderful artist, whose recent single "slipped away" is one you need to listen to. I was so excitied she was willing to visit with us to discuss the single, her musical influences, and more!

So, let's see what happens when Eliane Justice visits Section 36 Music!

I am a huge fan of your recent single, “slipped away”. What can you tell me about it?

Thank you so much! ‘slipped away”  is about coming back to your hometown after moving out for the first time. It captures the feeling of briefly exploring the wider world, only to come back to the familiar place where you effortlessly slip back into your old self and fall back into the town’s way of life. I wrote it when I came back home to Norway after my freshman year in Boston. I grew so much within that year with relationships, friendships, how to deal with long distance, finding my people and translating my personality into a different language. Although I love home it was crazy to go back because I had changed so much but everything was the same. 

How would you say it differs from your previous release, “Colors in You”?

“colors in you” was always in my head as an intro song for an EP or something but I had been holding on to it for a while and wanted to work on it with my band from back home. When I was figuring out what songs to record over the summer I thought it would be cool if it changed keys in the end to a different song and that's when I connected it to “slipped away”. "Colors in You" is about the ways we continue to see the beauty and vibrancy in those we love, even as they change. I wrote this song almost a year ago, right after moving into my first apartment in Boston. At the time, I was thinking a lot about relationships and family. Growing up, I remember my farfar (grandfather) as a very active and cheerful guy, always approaching life with humor and love. In his last couple of years, Parkinson’s had taken complete control over his body, so he couldn’t express his playfulness or tell his silly jokes. But I still saw the colors in him even though he couldn't express them. Both songs have the same instruments but “colors in you” has more of a soft build and a more flowy/reflective feel, while in “slipped away”  the whole band comes in at once and has more of an emotional and distant vibe.

You’re currently attending Berklee College of Music. What made Berklee the right choice for you?

I was born in Nashville but moved to Lillehammer, Norway when I was six months old. My mom is American, and my dad is Norwegian, so we often traveled to the States to visit her side of the family. Growing up in a small town, I always knew I wanted to pursue music, but I also wanted to connect with my American roots. When I started researching music schools, Berklee stood out to me for its reputation and diverse environment. It felt like the perfect place to grow both musically and personally, so I applied, and here I am!

Who or what would you consider your biggest musical influences?

Such a hard question. I think having some country roots and listening to Chris Stapleton and Tyler Childers really influenced the Americana twang in my voice but Eva Cassidy, Beth Hart, The Lumineers, Hozier, John Mayer and The Paper Kites are constantly blasting in my headphones. 

What do you enjoy most about performing in front of a live audience?

What I enjoy most about performing live is the incredible energy of playing my music with a group of talented, amazing people who also happen to be some of my closest friends. There’s something so special about connecting with an audience through music—it’s a powerful, emotional experience. I love being able to be vulnerable, share the stories behind my songs, and invite people into those moments with me. It's just an awesome time and I really want to have a show with all my new music!

What are your immediate music goals?

Write as much as possible, record and release! This is my last year at Berklee so I'm trying to focus on gathering as much information as possible, writing, recording and maybe having a couple of shows here and there. It would be so awesome to release an EP for next fall. I’m also into content creating so maybe making music videos/clips/TikTok’s etc. where I use my songs. 

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I can't wait to see her work towards those accomplishments!

As always, I want to thank Eliane for visiting with us, and for sending along the pictures to accompany the interview.

I'm sure you’ll all want to follow her and see what she has going on. I would follow her on Instagram, and Spotify to make sure you don't miss a thing. 

Thanks again Eliane, and good luck reaching your goals!