We chatted to Brianna McGeehan about her story and how she came to get to where she is as she releases her newest single ‘The Roses’. Dive in below and stream the new track on Spotify!
Tell us about yourself as an artist?
Art is life! I started playing piano at age 5. Picked up the violin when I was 9 and also fell absolutely in love with singing that year. Started playing guitar at age 16. I am a life-long musician. As a kid I also loved writing. I didn’t sit down and write my first complete song until I was about 23 but I wrote poetry and short stories before that. It took me a minute to put it all together. Honestly, I try to be an artist in all the ways, all of the time. I believe it’s the artists that are here to reshape the world into what it could and should be. As an artist I am anti-fascist, anti-racist, anti- capitalist, anti-colonial oh geez I could go on. I am pro- LOVE. Pro-bringing back the village. Pro saving the earth and creating a world that is truly equitable and safe for all people. I do work in my community (I’m currently the chair of the planning commission for my city) as well as creating works of art. It’s all a part of the same soup for me.
What got you into music?
Music runs in my blood. My dad is a musician/composer and my great Grandfather was a master dancer and played fiddle and flute at the Irish dances in Philadelphia. I don’t feel like I ever had to get into music, it was always just there. It’s been my constant companion for as long as I can remember. By the time I was ten, I played piano, violin, and sang in two different choirs. I do remember the moment I knew I would be a musician. The Portland Symphonic Girls Choir came to my school (in a suburb of Portland) to sing for my school choir, I had never heard such beautiful harmonies in a live setting. I joined the choir some weeks later and I guess the rest is history.
How would you describe your sound?
I like to think of my sound as art pop…there are some electronic sounds and beats, but also acoustic instruments, and lush vocals (I have Wayyyy too much fun producing backing vocals, it’s my favorite at the moment). I also like to think of it as Anti-Americana…riffing of the anti-folk movement out of NYC but also it has a nice ring to it at the moment.
What is your favourite venue to play?
House show’s for sure! I love to engage with the audience and I love the vibe. Recently I played a show in a Zen Buddhist center and that was super sweet as well. The end of the show turned into questions and requests and we had the best time.
Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Honestly I just really want to hang out with Enya in her castle, with her cats, and sing with her. That would be the most amazing thing ever. A girl can dream.
OK and in addition to that I would love to collaborate with Maggie Rogers. That would be the coolest.
What is your creative process, and do you think it differs from others?
My process put simply, is to get out of the way, let the art come through. I think a lot of artists have a similar process. As Allen Ginsberg said “First thought best thought”. You have to let get out of the way or lose yourself a little to make good art. I practiced Buddhism for a decade and that also definitely informs my process. I am very careful about the kind of energy I bring to my songwriting. If I ever feel “stuck” I simply step away. I will sometimes contemplate a song or question I have about a song I am writing for days and eventually without fail, what I need comes to me and I am able to move forward with the song. I will write the bulk of a song often very quickly but will then take many days to finish it.
What is special about this song to you?
This song is a very personal story about the loss of a friend. It’s also about those moments in life when you need to let the past go and move forward, but when you are discarding what must be left behind, sometimes you also let go of some goodness too.
