INTERVIEW: AVERY RAQUEL : RISING SUPERSTAR FOR THE SOUL
If you have never been to an open mic or any other type of live music event held in smaller spaces, such as cafes, then it's easy for you to assume that a lot of the performers are not the most skilled or experienced. The reality is that a significant number of the artists sharing their music (or poetry) in those spaces have performed more times than we can imagine and are some of the best we'll ever have the chance to see. It is also possible that those singer-songwriters have performed in front of a bigger audience the week prior or will perform in a larger room the following month. That is the case for Avery Raquel, who has performed in front of bigger audiences before and after the night I discovered her. What can I say? It was another lovely evening at Big Thursdays (an amazing event hosted by Avery Jane a local artist whom I also got the chance to interview), where I was lucky enough to fall in love with someone's singing voice and words. When hearing Avery perform her unreleased song "The Letter", I just knew I needed to learn more about her and her art. Therefore, I did what I do best: I reached out, came up with the most compelling questions possible, and had a wholesome chat with a rising superstar. From reflecting on the pros and cons of performing in front of smaller vs larger crowds to the duality of caring about having a social media presence while remaining true to oneself, please enjoy my conversation with Toronto-based singer-songwriter Avery Raquel.
When I saw you perform at Big Thursdays (back in March), you shared a deeply personal song called "The Letter". If I'm not mistaken you weren't sure you were ever going to release it. Have given it any more thought?
I am definitely going to release it. It’s in the works right now; production wise. It will probably be out in the fall. There is another release coming right before it. I think it’s one of my favourite songs that I ever wrote. A lot of people really connect with it when I do it live. Maybe it’s because of the story, maybe it’s because they enjoy what they’re hearing. Many many people have said that they deeply relate to this song from either perspective. I can’t wait for it to be heard!
For those who haven't seen you perform "The Letter" before, can you share the story behind the song?
The story behind it is an interesting one that I enjoy telling live. But to sum it up, a friend of mine who I met in Spain when I was studying for my masters there, had confessed some interest in me, and I unfortunately made the choice to turn away from it, but of course cared about the friendship deeply. Before leaving to go home in the final week, he handed me a handwritten letter. I wasn’t really able to respond in the moment so I wrote this song when I moved home (kind of for myself) but as a response to that letter. And that’s the gist.
Are there any other songs you wrote and have been unsure of releasing (and you ended up releasing them or ended up keeping them to yourself forever)? Does that happen a lot?
Not too often but I do have a huge roster of songs that I have written (just like in a vault) and they’re pretty much untouched. I think I would like to release all of them at some point. It takes time. They’re quick for me to write but the creative process after the fact is a lot more time consuming (and costs money). I definitely have a couple songs though that I just keep to myself that no one has really heard besides my parents and my closest friends. It's usually songs about family or really delicate things to me. Those songs stay in my little diary.
Having songs that are so deeply personal, how do you manage to perform them again and again?
There are songs when I started writing them, I was sitting down sobbing and it’s literally a therapy session. I kind of separate myself from what I wrote when I perform. When I perform, I really like to find that place where I was when I wrote the song just because it helps the audience connect. There are some cases where if the song is deeply personal to me, I’ll dissociate a little bit just to save myself from crying. There is one song where I occasionally zone in and get a little too locked in. I’m like: “What will I have for breakfast tomorrow?” In my head, I’m dissociating. There is a little bit of that. I think that’s kind of the beauty of writing deeply personal songs, if I can feel a certain way while performing it, I know the audience will feel a certain way hearing it. I really like that connection.
You said you sometimes dissociate while performing, was that something you were able to do early on or did you have to tell yourself to do it?
I probably had to tell myself to do it. I started out in theater and doing child acting so a lot of what I did performance wise was me not being myself. I think that helps a little bit where I’m like: “Right now, I’m playing the role of performer. Let me take myself out of it a little bit while allowing people to still stay in it.” Subconsciously half of it, the other half, I’m aware.
In your Instagram bio, it says your music is music that's good for the soul. What artist, band, album or song has been good for your soul lately?
I really love Olivia Dean. I have been listening to her most recent full-length album a ton just because it’s inspiring for me musically and also, lyrically relatable. “Girl, you just get it.” The other artist is Lizzy McAlpine. I listen to the older album. I’m probably her #1 listener. I listened to it so many times. Her songs are so conversational. “Yes! Just tell me how to feel!” Her songs are kind of depressing. Maybe, I’m a little bit of a masochist in a positive way; it makes me feel something. She’s such a great writer. I really gravitate towards her and Olivia Dean.
Are you the type of person who will listen to sad music when you’re sad?
I’ll write sad music when I’m sad. Listen to sad music when I’m sad. I’ll listen to sad music when I’m happy. I just love sad music. As a writer, I have always said it’s easier to write sad music which isn’t entirely true. When I’m happy, happy words will come out of me but even when I’m happy, I can always be able to write a sad song. I think of a past experience, something one of my friends is going through, something I saw on a tv show. I am guilty of listening to sad music when I’m sad.
Having released 2 albums and 1 EP, what do you prefer releasing? Do you think it's easier to attract people with shorter projects?
My last full-length was released in 2022. Part of the reason behind it was during covid, I had so many songs. In May of 2020, I did a songwriting challenge for myself during which I wrote 3 or 4 songs a week for the month. That ended up being pretty much the whole album. I wanted to release all of them so might as well. That’s kind of why I did that. People had more time on their hands during covid. Our attention spans are not great these days, including my own. I think shorter releases are really digestible. I don’t know if the rules have changed but 6 songs or more is an album (or more than 25 minutes). The lines are kind of blurred. I could put out a 6-song project and still call it an EP. I think that’s still digestible. Shorter releases are definitely for the win these days.
Would you say you feel the same way as a listener? Do you prefer listening to an EP over a full-length album?
I like a full-length album. Give me everything that you’ve got! Maybe that’s just the artist in me. Most musicians that I talk to prefer a full-length over an EP. I know as an artist in terms of release strategy, EPs are better because you can withhold information (kind of) and have more of a release strategy. For the whole Spotify debacle, you can pitch 1 song every time you release. If you release an EP of 5 songs and you release 4 songs as singles, the last song enters the EP (still technically a single) and you can pitch all of those for playlists. There is a strategy behind it. It makes sense to do that these days. Either way, I like a full-length album.
I always use Apple Music so I can read the lyrics along. I feel like it honors the hard work the artist put into everything. I remember Adele wanted to abolish the shuffle function on Spotify because she wanted people to listen to her album in order. I can appreciate it. Time was put into curating that.
Will your latest single "Hard to Stay" be part of an EP or a full-length?
I think it will be an EP. I will aim to release another single in late June-early July and another one in late August to mid September. Then, I will release a couple more songs. Finally, I will drop the whole project. I have a lot of stuff sitting, waiting to happen.
Being from Toronto and having performed in Montreal more than once, what is the best memory you've made here so far?
I’m starting to build a bunch of memories. I go to Montreal once a month. I just did Growve a couple weeks ago and that was so much fun. I had a blast! People loved it! The next time I go I will have another memory. Big Thursdays is a really fun one. I love Avery Jane. She’s such a talented musician, singer, songwriter. What she’s doing for independent artists is so cool. Connecting with her has been wonderful. I’m just hoping to continue to build more memories as time goes on.
Speaking of Big Thursdays, would you say it’s more intimidating to perform in front of smaller audiences or a bigger audience?
I used to be intimidated by the small audiences. I used to really prefer performing in front of people I don’t know. It’s still the case. With small audiences, I feel like I can really get my point across when I’m performing. I can almost talk one on one with people. Big Thursdays was really cool because when I had something to say, I was able to see everyone in the room. I really love having that connection to people.
Also, I think it’s more valuable as a listener to be like: “She was addressing us.” I really like that. I love performing in front of big crowds just because I perform in a way that the audience gives me energy. If they are providing me with high energy “Woo, this is a party!” “Yeah it is! Let me give it back to you!” There are pros and cons to both but the intimate thing is really cool.
How is your relationship with follower count on social media? Does it affect you at all?
I would probably be lying to myself if I said I didn’t care. I would love not to care. Social media grinds my gears for sure. 60% of my career is riding on social media. It is a tool and I have to think of it that way. It’s a marketing tool. It’s another strategy to get myself out there. If I think about it like that, it softens it up a little bit. I’m going to live my life the way I live my life and keep on posting the way I post. If something cool happens, great! I had a New Year's resolution which was to post every day on Tik Tok. I had been doing it until the end of April. I was doing really well. I started from nothing. I had to create a new account. My last account got shadow banned because I was posting too many videos of my cat. My cat got Tik Tok famous. I don’t want to let that go to his head. He got 6 million views on Tik Tok standing on his two legs and people love that. “We want more!” “I’m a singer though.” “We don’t care.”
I started a new account and started posting music content. It was flopping. I managed to build it up and gain 2000 followers in 3 to 4 months which is not bad. I’ll take that. If I keep doing that for the rest of the year, it will keep growing. I definitely care. I would love a social media presence but there is pressure coming with that. Also, there is a lot of toxicity online which I would love to avoid. At shows, when I’m performing in front of people, I say: “It’s super free to follow someone online. It takes 2 seconds. If you like what you hear, just press a button.”
What about streaming numbers?
This is going to sound bad but I always go into releases with low expectations so if something good does happen, I’m like: “Yay!” My most recent song was released 2 weeks ago. It got over 4200 streams. I’m pretty proud of that.
*Please note: My cat appeared at the exact moment.
I’ll probably make 0 dollars from that. Numbers look nice but it will always be kind of a cycle where it’s like: “I won’t be listening to your music unless it looks like you have a lot of streams.” Then, I won’t get a lot of streams unless people listen to my music. It will just continue to do that. Social media is the same way. “I don’t want to follow you because you don’t have that many followers.” I can’t have followers until you follow me.” It will never end.
I noticed you have music videos and live performances on your YouTube channel. How do you enjoy shooting music videos?
I really like it! It’s like an extension of the creative process. I work with a really great videographer. Her name is Kate Harisson. She's based in Toronto. She has great ideas and I love connecting with her. We just hang out and shoot the shit. It's really fun. I am also pretty comfortable in front of a camera in terms of recording a music video and acting. I did a lot of acting when I was younger.
Official music video for Avery's song "You"
Is it more nerve wracking to know your performance is being filmed?
I just forget about it. It’s funny because there will be times when I’m in a recording studio, everything is set up, I have rehearsed a million times. The second I press record, I mess it up. “What just happened?” When it’s a live show, it’s work. I’m going to work and have fun with my musicians (or just myself). I just hope for the best.
Lately, I have been reading biographies about musicians I love. I was wondering have you read any biography that made a lasting impact on you?
I haven’t read a lot of biographies but I have watched a lot of biopics on artists. One of my favourites is the Amy Winehouse one. Incredibly devastating. She was just amazing. I have been meaning to watch “Get Back” (The Beatles).
*My cat reppears.
If a biography about your life and career was to come out, would you write it yourself or ask someone else to do it?
I feel like at this point in my career, I know more about myself that someone else would. I think it would be best for me to write it. I know what I have gone through. I know how I got here and all the little nitty-gritties of it all and things people probably don’t even know.
Oh, hi! You are still here? Good! I mean, what's the point of reading only half of an interview? All jokes aside, thank you! I hope this conversation has made you realize how important it is to support smaller artists by following them on social media and streaming their music. Those gestures hold more power than you believe. Remember, it is not because an artist does not have millions and millions of streams that they are not talented, innovative, and worth your attention; it simply means their talent has not been discovered by enough people yet. I have said it before, and I will repeat it as long as I am able to: You never know when you will discover your new favourite band or artist. Go to local shows. Give a chance to smaller artists. Share underrated music with your friends. Read more interviews on this blog (I had to). Trust me, it will be worth it.
Shoutout to my amazing friend Miracle whom helped me come up with a sweet title for this article!
Your favourite interviewer and believer in smaller artists,
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