KAYA STEWART | Shares New Single CALIFORNIA | We Talk Nashville & New Music
“We have her pegged as the next big thing” – Teen Vogue
“Salty with serious pipes. Stewart is likely heir to the Lorde throne” – Marie Claire
“Rising pop starlet.” – BlackBook
Kaya Stewart made a big impact with her breakthrough single ‘In Love With A Boy’. Reaching 6.5 million streams, the track set the first chapter of her career in motion as she went on to release her self-titled debut album and become the youngest female artist to perform on the infamous Warped Tour.
Now Kaya is back with an edgier alt-pop sound, which she expressed in her latest single ‘California’. Having been premiered by BlackBook, the track’s profile is now boosted with a new version featuring Childish Major, the rapper who released his debut album ‘Dirt Road Diamond’ last year and who has previously collaborated with J. Cole.
Blending Kaya’s expressive vocal delivery with punchy synths and an unhurried, sunstroke beat, ‘California’ sounds like an evocative love letter to The Golden State. Yet one listen to Kaya’s lyrics gives a darker impression, a timeless coming-of-age story in which love goes array. The track is then elevated courtesy of Childish Major, who weaves his taut rhymes around Kaya’s sweetly soulful vocal harmonies.
Kaya wrote the song in Nashville with neo-soul talent and former Warp Records artist Jamie Lidell
The song is released alongside an official video that shows Kaya performing the song in everyday locations in Los Angeles. It represents an extension of the song’s meaning. California is blessed by sun and glamour making it a magnetic appeal for people with big dreams. But for many, the reality is that it doesn’t necessarily change your circumstances.
Born in London but raised in Los Angeles, Kaya Stewart grew up surrounded by music. In her earlier years, her father former Eurythmics frontman and producer extraordinaire Dave Stewart was a major influence. Kaya was writing songs by the age of six and had made her impression on Los Angeles’ live music scene by her early teens.
Now she’s constantly exploring and redefining what it means to be a pop artist in today’s world - especially one which is currently filled with so much uncertainty.
Kaya, thank you for chatting with X-Ray Magazine. Similar to a good wine pairing, could you recommend a selection of three songs we should be listening to?
Yes!! I’m constantly listening and finding new music so picking three is hard but…
Hell N Back - Bakar
Tears Dry On Their Own - Amy Winehouse
Fool For You - Snoh Aalerga
We enjoyed your track ‘California’, it’s been soothing our lockdown blues. What’s your process? Do you think of your audience when you’re writing or recording your tracks? What they might need or want to hear? Or is it personal and based on your tastes and experiences alone?
I wrote California super fast…which I always think is a sign of a good song. I was staying in Nashville, making my album, and had so much pent up emotion. The song just started pouring out of me! In the past, I always thought “How am I going to play this live? Are people going to like it?”. For this record, it was so personal to me I didn’t really have that in mind.“I felt like California was going to be the answer to all my problems at that time in my life, it was going to be the move that changed everything for me. But the song turned into a metaphor for that moment in your life where you think, ‘If I could just fix this, I’d get my life in order.’ It’s about having to face what’s going on and being able to accept what your real problems are.”
You wrote ‘California’ in Nashville. There is something incredibly magical about that city. Do you think that being detached from California allowed a more objective viewpoint and in turn, helped with the song development and lyrics?
Yes! Nashville is a second home to me. As much as I love to travel there is always apart of me that misses my little apartment in California. I think being in Nashville gave me that different perspective.
Was there something different in the way this song was created due to working with Jamie Lidell?
Absolutely! I and Jamie clicked the moment we met!! We’ve created such a unique sound. When we write, it’s hard to write anything that doesn’t sound totally like us!
Do you take time to reflect on a song’s subject matter after you’ve released it or do you disconnect from a song when it’s done and move on?
I feel as I look back on my music they take a new meaning. I’ve always written about real things going on in my life. It sometimes feels like looking back at a scrapbook and bringing up all those emotions again.
‘California’ is elevated by Childish Major’s verse. What drew you to work with him and did you converse about what you wanted or just let him fly, trusting that he understood your vision?
I love Childish’s music!! I was so excited when we connected and totally trusted what he would come up with! He adds such a cool piece to this song.
When and if writer's block hits, what artist or musician do you turn to for inspiration and why? Being constantly submerged in music can sometimes make it quite hard to see the wood for the trees. Is there anyplace you gravitate toward that inspires you?
Whenever I’m in a writer’s block I start watching old performance videos!! Gwen Stefani in No Doubt are my favorite. I’ve always been so inspired by preforming live. It gets me excited and motivated to keep writing!
How has lockdown during this ordeal affected your writing? Did you go hard and write more than you ever have or did you take the time to relax a little and let the songs just come your way when they wanted to?
Not going to lie…. I wrote NOTHING for myself! For some reason, I was inspired to keep writing for others which is something I haven’t done in a while. In a way, it was kind of a nice break.
We dare say that most people have picked up a new skill or hobby since March. Either that or they completed Netflix. Did you learn anything new, binge on Netflix, or a bit of both?
Definitely watched a lot of Netflix but also have gotten pretty good at cooking! I’ve always loved it but being in quarantine in my apartment has got me baking at all hours of the day and night… I’ve gotten really good at sprucing up top ramen.
What is your lyric writing process? Do the lyrics come to you first or is it a lot of humming syllables and scrolling through phone notes for the perfect fit that starts the ball rolling?
Melodies have always come to me first! Lyrics are always the tiny details I like to spend time on. Usually, I’ll listen to a beat or sit down at my piano, voice note a melody, and then turn everything off (the quieter the better) and write the lyrics. It’s a weird process but it works for me!
Do you have one song that you could call your soundtrack-to-life song? A song that you go back to over and over again whether you feel sad, happy, in love, out of love and every feeling in between. A song that’s just always got your back?
I could never pick one… but right now it’s definitely Start Me Up by the Rolling Stones.
What’s next for Kaya Stewart?! Do you have more music coming out? Can we catch you on a Live stream or at a socially distanced gig?
Yes, lots of new music!!!! I’m so excited for the world to finally hear what I’ve spent so much time on :) I just did a Livestream through twitch with Bands in Town that was super fun! So definitely more of that…