INTERVIEW WITH JAKE MARRA - ‘THE DAY THAT YOU LEFT’ DEBUT
One of Australia’s most exciting new pop artists Jake Marra recently announced his magnetic debut single The Day That You Left, a hard-hitting track that details the wave of emotions that follows a significant loss, and how it feels to be drowning in the swell. This magnetic single is out now and our gal Selin chatted to Jake about his debut, his influences, and what’s up next for the Aussie singer and producer.
Where did it all begin?
“I’m gonna narrow it down to 2010, when I started my first YouTube channel. I started uploading mashups I produced, purely for fun. I hadn’t started officially singing yet but that was my way of dipping my toes into the world of music. In 2015, I produced a mashup of Ariana Grande’s “One Last Time” and Justin Bieber’s “What Do You Mean?” which went viral. I had articles written about me by Billboard, MTV, and Teen Vogue to name a few.
In an interview with Ariana Grande, Ryan Seacrest asked if she’d heard it, to which she replied
“I’m obsessed with it! Whoever did that is a genius”.
After that happened, I started to take myself a lot more seriously as a musician and finally started to believe that I had something to offer. “
What’s your sound like?
“It’s pure pop. Heavy beats, pulsing synths, catchy melodies and stacked harmonies. Everything you’ve come to know and love about pop music over the last 40 years, condensed into a perfect pop package!”
Your debut single, The Day That You Left delves into Robyn and Troye Sivan territory – all whilst creating your own unique, exciting pop sound. Can you tell us a little bit about this single, and the writing processes behind it?
“That’s such a huge compliment, and I’m so glad it translated because Troye Sivan and Robyn are some of my greatest inspirations when it comes to my own music. “The Day That You Left” was a happy accident. I was in the studio with Ben Oldland trying to breathe new life into an old track which I wasn’t happy with. I wasn’t really feeling, so we stopped and started from scratch. He started this bass line that immediately drew me in. It happened so organically, nothing felt forced, we were just two musicians bouncing ideas back and forth and before we knew, we created a full-blown pop banger!”
What would you like people to keep in mind whilst listening to this song?
“The overall theme is ‘Loss’, and I intentionally wrote it in a way that doesn’t detail a single experience specifically. I’ve experienced loss in so many different ways over the years. Friendships falling apart. Love interests walking away. This song captures the feeling of denial that comes after loss. Not being able to move forward, pretending it didn’t happen, replaying old conversations over and over in your head. It’s something most of us can relate to, as much as we wish we couldn’t. When you listen to it, you’re gonna think of your person. Your experience. That’s the beauty of not only this song, but music in general. It can be interpreted in a way that’s unique to each individual.”
If you could collaborate with one artist, who would it be and why?
”My answer to this question changes every day! Haha. Today, I’m gonna go with Troye Sivan. I remember watching Troye grow up on YouTube, coming out, releasing absolute BOPS and going on to be an incredibly strong and vocal member of the LGBTQ+ community. I respect him as an artist and as a human being and I would love to be able to work on a song with him. Channel our queer energies into the ultimate bop!“
What’s in store for the remainder of 2020?
”I think I’m just going to be hiding away and recording a bunch of music. I’ve got a few songs almost finished, one of which I’m hoping to release before the end of the year, and a heap of ideas that I want to explore further. I’m only very early into my musical journey and the creative process is so exciting, I really just want to enjoy it. Be in the moment and not take any of it for granted. “
Where’s the best place to find your music?
“Take your pick! Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes. Wherever you like to enjoy your music, I’ve got you covered!”
Check out ‘The Day That You Left’ and heaps of other amazing Aussie/NZ artists in our very own all-local Spotify playlist now!