Violet Lewis Visits Section 36 Music!

Photo: Natalie Somekh

Section 36 Music has another visitor! Violet Lewis is an incredibly talented singer, coming off the release of her latest single "Don't Say Goodbye". I was so excited she wanted to visit with us and discuss her music, and more. I’m sure you’ll love everything she has to say.

So, let's see what happens when Violet Lewis visits Section 36 Music!

I really enjoyed your recent single “Don’t Say Goodbye”. What was it like putting that together?

Thank you! “Don’t Say Goodbye” is definitely an outlier on the EP in almost every way, and the process of putting it together was no exception. While the other songs were written during the early days of quarantine while I was spending a lot of time thinking in solitude, I wrote “Don’t Say Goodbye” after all of the other songs on the project had already been recorded. The day I wrote it, I just knew I wanted it on this project. I recorded a quick demo and sent it to Zackary Shreves, the producer on this project, and he loved it too. So we got in the studio and just recorded it. I wrote it about my boyfriend, who is also a musician, and he became a big collaborator on the song, writing and arranging parts for drums and tracking some guitar parts.

Do you have any other projects you’re currently working on?

My EP “Loose Lips” is coming out January 7th and I’m so

Photo: Natalie Somekh

excited to finally share it!  I’ll be playing a release show in Los Angeles at The Love Song Bar on the night of its release to celebrate. I’m also currently putting a band together in Boston where I go to school to start playing some shows over there as well.

You’re currently attending Berklee College of Music. What’s the biggest way that’s benefitting your career? 

That’s a really good question. Berklee has a lot of opportunities, but they’re all kind of hidden and you have to dig a little to find them. I joined a club called the A&R Club that has a lot of really great people and networking opportunities, and that’s been one of my favorite parts about Berklee so far. 

Who or what would you consider your biggest musical influences?

I say this all the time, but Elliott Smith’s easily my biggest influence. He did the singer/ songwriter/ guitar thing but in a way that was so inventive, thoughtful, and brilliant. I’m not trying to recreate that- I never could, he was one of a kind. But if there’s someone to look up to, yeah it’s him. Also, I’m lucky to be friends with a lot of talented and badass musicians who inspire me every day too. 

What would you say is your biggest career challenge?

Photo: Natalie Somekh

I don’t actually get asked this question a lot. But as an independent artist, there’s a lot of challenges! The music industry has changed a lot, and with that so has the role and expectations of artists. Instead of just being a singer and songwriter, you have to wear many hats. You have to either be a producer or find a producer you work well with, you need to get promo photos and album art and Spotify canvases, you need to do the work of a marketing team and run pre-save campaigns and reach out to blogs and playlisters and radio stations. You need an active Instagram and TikTok and Twitter and Facebook page and you’re supposed to have a decent following on all of them. You need to pay for a lot of stuff out of pocket. You need to play a bunch of instruments or find people that can play them, depending on what you’re trying to do. You need to book shows and commission flyers and move gear. So at the end of all that, singing and writing songs, the thing that I really love, just becomes a first step, and then I’m hit with all of that.

What are your immediate career goals?

Right now I’m focused on the release of this EP! I’m super excited for everyone to hear it and to share something so precious to me with my listeners. I’m hoping to continue growing my audience in the coming year as I begin new projects and to hopefully play shows if Covid-related circumstances allow me to do so safely. 

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I can't wait for the new release!

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

I know you’ll all want to follow along with Violet to see what she's up to. The best way is to visit her socials like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. They're great ways to keep track of everything she has going on. Of course, you can always find her music on Soundcloud and Spotify.

You can also check out her Section 36 Music page. It's a perfect way to enjoy everything Violet has to offer all in one place.

Thanks again Violet, and good luck reaching your goals!