Viana Valentine Talks About Performing Live And Her Exciting Debut Album ‘Fever Dream’

We can’t choose a favorite song from her!

Pop artist Viana Valentine is a singer-songwriter that you need to know. Today, she released her debut album titled ‘Fever Dream’. And spoiler alert: Every song from it deserves a spot in your favorite playlist.

We had the amazing honor of talking with Viana about songwriting, Wolf Hollow, and more!

When did you first realize that you wanted to pursue a career in music?

V: “I don’t know if I ever fully had a realization as much as I just really never thought of doing anything else. I sort of fell into being in bands and singing a lot after coming from a musical family. My mom is an incredible singer and my great grandfather actually spent his whole life as a gigging musician, so music is in my blood. Truthfully, I was insanely shy when I was younger and I didn’t really love performing. But as I got older I realized how freeing being on stage is, and how connecting with people through music is what makes me feel like I’m truly doing what I was meant to do. Taking steps in the direction of being a professional musician gave me confidence, purpose and connection in a way I don’t think I would have found anywhere else.”

Tell us more about your debut album ‘Fever Dream’.

V: “There’s so much to tell! But, I’ll keep it short and sweet. This is my first real collection of songs as a solo artist which is SO exciting. I really wanted it to show different sides of my personality and to feel like a conversation with whoever is listening. The lyrics are personal, a lot of the songs started off with me sitting at my piano just processing things that have happened to me. The songs range from talking about falling in love, to feeling worthy of love, to loss and dealing with depression. I recorded all of Fever Dream in my house with my producer Greg, aside from recording drums at Two Worlds Recording. Fever Dream is a snapshot of the last couple of years of my life, and I hope that people can relate to some of the stories I tell.”

What is your songwriting process usually like?

V: “As strange as it sounds, something that I’ve learned lately is that my best songs come from the times that I’m not really trying to write a song. I’ll be on a hike with my pup and a melody will come into my head. Or I’ll be grabbing coffee with a friend and having an in depth conversation, and something that one of us says will spark a lyric idea. Then typically I either jot down some notes in my phone or hum a melody into my voice notes (which always cracks me up because I always sound like a lunatic trying to hum a guitar or bass line and explain to future me what this pocket of inspiration is feeling like before I lose the thought). After that I sit at my piano and piece everything together the best I can and eventually bring the song to my producer Greg to build into a full track. I do believe in the balance between hard work and inspiration as an artist. You can’t just expect ideas to always flow into your head and never have those nights where you sit at the piano for hours and nothing comes of it, but I do think that opening yourself up and experiencing life can help with sparks of inspiration that eventually lead to songs.”

If you had to choose, what is your favorite song off of the album and why?

V: “Oooooooo which child is the favorite? What a question! I love them all for different reasons, obviously. And I think my favorite one to listen to changes as I spend time away from the album and then go back to it. Right now, I would say Evergreen is one of my favorites because it’s so simple and so personal, talking about how to embrace change and find beauty in the different seasons of your life which is something I’m constantly working through. There’s really no fluff to the song, it’s super straight forward, but there’s something that I really love about that. After that I would say it’s a tie between Fever Dream and Would You Love Me.”

We love the videos of you performing! What do you love the most about performing live?

V: “Thank you!! I love the connection to people, hands down. I love seeing people lose themselves in a moment. Our lives are so busy and there’s so much that we have to worry about from day to day. Being able to share just a snippet of time with someone and see them dance with their friends, laugh, cry, chug a beer or whatever, is truly an honor. I can’t tell you how many people have come up to me after a show and said “I really needed that, thank you.” And I’m like, hell yeah I needed it too!”

If you could collab on stage with any music artist, who would it be?

V: “I would love to harmonize with Boy Genius, write a song with Maggie Rogers, head bang with Hayley Williams.”

Let’s talk about Wolf Hollow! What made you want to help preserve wolves in the wild?

V: “Yes! My wolfy friends! I’ve always been a huge animal lover, but I went to see a presentation at Wolf Hollow back in 2016, and I fell in love with the animals and the people that worked there, spreading information about such a misunderstood species. My best friend Katie (and makeup artist shoutout @KatieGraceMUA) started volunteering there and I followed suit about a year later. I’ve been there for 5 years now! I help care for the wolves, do presentations and also run their social media and communications. We need wolves in our natural world for so many reasons and they’ve always had such a rough go at it with negative and wrongful stereotypes and stigmas defining them. Wolves’ protections are always at the edge of being taken away, and they need people to speak up on their behalf. That’s something I will do for the rest of my life for sure. Please come and see and learn about the wolves at Wolf Hollow, we’re open on weekends in Ipswich, Massachusetts!”

Where can we follow your amazing journey?

V: “You can find me on Spotify – Viana Valentine | Instagram @vianavalentine | Tiktok @vianavalentine Facebook | Viana Valentine Youtube – @ValentineViana.”

Stream ‘Fever Dream’, available now on all music platforms!

Photo Credits: Maurisa Mackey

Je’Kayla Crawford– Founder and Director– Je’Kayla has been a journalist for years and decided to start a publication of her own, New Scene. When not helping her team and working on the monthly issues, you can find her watching a movie on Netflix or baking using a viral Tasty recipe.