Q: I love the storytelling and soundscape in “Camouflage,” can you tell me the inspiration behind the song?
Viktoria Vera: “Camouflage” started in the studio working with my producer, Dan Searl. We decided to sit down and write a song late at night about how I feel and how other people feel during the pandemic. He pulled up some drums and began playing that piano riff that is the song. The main idea came very quickly and we were digging it instantly. We had also been discussing featuring Jackson Whalan on a track and since everyone was in quarantine it seemed like a great idea to use this song as an opportunity to collaborate. I wanted to write a song about the physical and metaphysical experience of wearing a mask and striving to be yourself in a word where we have different responsibilities and duties. As adults in our lives we are balancing our personal representation of our identity. That’s really the main soul of this track in a nutshell.
Q: Tell us more about this collaboration with Jackson Whalan. What’s the creative process like?
Vera: Jackson Whalan is such a creative and easy to work with person, he brought a fresh rap energy to the song, once Dan made the beat, I came up with the words and melody. I knew that I would love to feature the rapper who has intelligent new ideas for rap verse and that is why I choose Jackson. He matched perfectly to the idea and my vision for this song and opened up in an honest and vulnerable manner that not all rappers have the maturity for.
Q: What do you love the most about making music?
Vera: I love freedom that music provides me. It is a great artistic vessel to create multimedia experiences for my listeners. It is an inspirational medium because of it’s linguistic and expressive storytelling-like nature. I may be listening to music all day and get so much inspiration from listening to modern or even older music.
Q: Can you tell us more about your artistic journey as a musician?
Vera: I fell in love with singing and music from a young age. I have always loved performing too. I started performing in Poland, when I was 15 years old since then I started writing my own songs as well that gave me a lot of confidence as a young person. I have been always really sensitive and watch people actions carefully so I can put down my emotions on the piece of paper. The arts are important today as ever. With so many people struggling with mental illness, healthy activities and habits like playing or listening to music are valuable.
Q: Are there any challenges you’ve faced and how did you overcome them?
Vera: I think the biggest challenge for me was pandemic and not seeing my family for almost 3 years. When I moved to US from Poland it was tough to not see them. I felt really stressed and confused about my journey and contemplated at times if I made a right decision. However, I know that because of my choices I am really happy and I am lucky to do this by profession and have my passions as my job. We all have to make sacrifices at times, im looking forward to my career as an Artist and Musician.
Q: If you could collaborate with any person in the music industry, what would be the three names that come to your mind?
Vera: I have a lot of really talented artists that I love and I think there so many amazing creative people in a music industry but definitely I would love to collaborate with Amy Winehouse, Tony Bennett or Jorja Smith. Jorja is definitely one of my biggest inspirations and it would be a huge honor for me to sing with her on the same stage.
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