Lyss: "Puzzlebox" (Exclusive Interview)
When did you first realize your ability to sing?
Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved singing. I’d always make a point to memorize all of the songs that were on the radio at the time so I could sing in the car, and once I was able to use YouTube, I pulled up lyric videos to sing along to. It wasn’t until I was around 10 years old that I really realized my ability to sing, however, as I started getting larger roles in school shows and began getting accepted to county choirs. Once I realized there were more opportunities to get involved in vocal performance outside of the classroom, I became really passionate about improving my singing. I’d practice for hours in my room to master a difficult song, and once I succeeded I’d immediately move on to the next. Not too long after I began attending private vocal lessons, and my voice improved greatly after that.
What is your music and message all about?
The reason why I’ve become so passionate about creating my own music is because I want to share my creativity and vision with the world. I want to create music that everyone can relate to, and is flexible enough to mean something different to every person. It’s the type of music that on a day where you need something simple, the meaning is simple, and when you’re willing to delve deeper, there’s layers underneath the surface. When people listen to my songs, I want them to hear the passion that I feel when making my music, and it’s my wish that they end up feeling the same.
How would you describe your vocal style?
I tend to categorize my vocal style as a fusion of pop and soul. Since I’ve grown up listening and singing along to plenty of pop artists, my voice has always felt comfortable with pop music and tends towards a pop sound. However, as I’ve gone through vocal training, I’ve found that my voice feels most comfortable in the soul/jazz genre. So of course, as I’ve been creating my own music, I’ve realized that I naturally end up mixing the two genres and create an RnB/fusion sound.
What was the hardest part of making this song?
The hardest part of creating “Puzzlebox” was composing the backing track. Whenever I create music, I have a very clear idea of how the song sounds in my head, but translating it to real sound always gets difficult. This song was no exception, and as the song was nearing its final stages, we had to keep going back and tweaking small things because I could still hear that there was something different than what I had in my head.
What was the most enjoyable part of making this song?
“Puzzlebox” has a very personal meaning to myself, and my aim when writing this song was to get out the negative emotions I’d been bottling up. It’s hard to put your thoughts into words, especially during difficult times, so I decided to stop trying to make it sound cohesive and just wrote down all of what I was feeling in small bursts instead. Once I started doing that, the lyrics and melody came easy. The creation of this part of the song was not only fun, but a big emotional relief to me as well.
What is one feeling you want to leave listeners with?
I touched upon this in one of my earlier answers, but over anything else, I want my listeners to feel passion. Whether this passion is expressed by dancing or crying, I want people to be able to feel so much from my music that they can’t help but do something when listening. If I can achieve that, then I’ll be the happiest person in the world.
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