A 16-year-old singer/songwriter named Kaiyah Mercedes writes with a poetic influence and focuses on telling stories and emotions. She only began creating music in 2020 when she began teaching herself the guitar and piano. Since then, she has created over 100 songs. Since the beginning of 2022, Kaiyah has released four singles. Her first single, โAfter Summer Ends,โ which has amassed over 30,000 streams, was followed by โI Donโt Know Who You Are Anymore,โ which spent three weeks in the AMRAP top 10 metro charts, and โNew Yearโs Resolutions,โ which was accompanied by a music video that has amassed over 20,000 views in less than a month.
The 25th of August saw the release of โThe Days We Remember,โ Kaiyahโs last single of the year before the release of her debut album. Kaiyah is preparing for bigger things and much more music with over 90,000 streams on Spotify alone. The song โThe Days We Remember,โ which is driven by acoustic guitar and soothing vocals, is jam-packed with five story-filled verses and the simple repeating line โThese are the days we remember,โ which makes it easy to lose yourself in the feeling of summer days. It sounds like Taylor Swift and Mazzy Star are jamming on the beach because the song is poetic and personal. Check out the song and the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?
KAIYAH MERCEDES: I started properly getting into music and making music when I was 13. Living in Melbourne, I was stuck in lockdown almost continuously for two years so I spent all of that time teaching myself piano and guitar and writing songs. Iโd always had such a love for words and music that when I turned 13, I just wanted to be able to create my own music. I felt like I had so much to say and songwriting was my creative outlet โ it always will be a way for me to work through my emotions I think.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
KAIYAH MERCEDES: I had formal piano and guitar lessons for a short while when I was 10, and had another short stint of classical piano lessons when I was 11 but nothing really stuck and I found myself losing my love for playing instruments when learning through lessons and the theory side of music. I found it so freeing and creative when I was able to teach myself because I was able to learn what I wanted, when I wanted. I also had a couple of months of guitar lessons after two years of teaching myself which just helped me polish the skills I had taught myself which was helpful. Iโll always be learning and trying to become better at my instruments because I am far from being a pro.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name โKAIYAH MERCEDESโ?
KAIYAH MERCEDES: The first musicians I ever remember loving are P!NK and Foo Fighters. I have been obsessed with them for literally as long as I can remember. I have found and loved so many artists since then (Taylor Swift, Louis Tomlinson, Dodie, Beebadoobie, Cigarettes After Sex) and with the music my parents play around the house, Iโve grown up with a huge range of influence and inspiration. As for the name, Kaiyah is my legal name and Mercedes is my middle name. I felt like the name just had a ring to it, plus itโs pretty cool being named after a car (my family loves cars).
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
KAIYAH MERCEDES: I think the main thing I want my listeners to connect with in my music is the feeling of being understood by another person, even when you think that what youโre feeling is unspeakable. I am not afraid of putting my everything into my lyrics. Iโm not scared of putting too much of myself into the music I show the world, because the best artists I know and the songs I love the most are tangible pieces of the artists soul. It is the most wonderful thing to hear another person sing about a feeling you have been too scared to talk about because it is the understanding and comfort that we all crave. That is why we create music. I donโt really know how to describe my sound to be honest. When listening to my produced songs, each song has its own charm and character that is unlike the one before, and I actually find it incredibly difficult to define my music. My music is whatever the listener would like it to be I think.
KAIYAH MERCEDES:
When I first taught myself piano I was learning covers of some of my favourite songs by people like Louis Tomlinson, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, etc. When trying to get a feel for an instrument, itโs always best to learn tried and tested pieces, because ultimately, modern music is just what hundreds of years of music has become. The music made today would not exist without its predecessors. But, when I started learning guitar (I knew piano quite well at that point) I instantly jumped into writing songs. I wrote my first song on the guitar only a day after picking it up for the first time. I realised pretty quickly that, although I loved singing other peoples songs, my voice better suited the melodies I created on my own. I also just really love the creativity and freedom of bending your voice over your own words and getting to make whatever you want. Folk just came to me more naturally, probably as it suited my storytelling nature. I never forced myself to write in one genre, and I also will never stop myself if I wanted to write in another genre. Music is fluid and ever changing, and I hope to create a wide range of music one day.
6. Whatโs your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles โ and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?
KAIYAH MERCEDES:
think music is so incredibly important in society as a whole โ whether that is political, social, etc. Some of the biggest artists in the world have done an incredible job of confronting major political issues (such as homophobia, racism, sexism) in their music. But, we also have to applaud the thousands of smaller musicians who make songs that speak to minorities. Ultimately, pop culture and media are some of the biggest influences in the world, and so of course I try to use that to create change through my own work. I have so many songs that are nuanced with deeper meanings and opinions. I hope to one day write a song that can really make a change, but for now I am doing everything I can to use my platform for good.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfilment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
KAIYAH MERCEDES:
Yes yes yes. Even if I only 10 people listened to my music and that was it, I would be completely fulfilled. I was fulfilled even when my music was just me in my room with an instrument and a notebook. As with any career, I am always looking to the future and I am always trying to grow as an artist and do more, but I could imagine no better thing than creating music. The work I put into it is all worth it to me.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
KAIYAH MERCEDES:
I always write songs alone, and the process is always different. I have actually always thought about how I might answer this question and it took me months of reflection to really figure out. Generally, I start with a random lyric. Whether itโs one I had just written down on my phone or one I just came up with (and sometimes I even come up with a whole section out of nowhere). Then I try to get some basic chords which I play around with later to come up with different sounds and instrumental melodies. From there, a good song will just flow, and the lyrics wont be hard to come up with. Itโs the songs that are difficult and painstaking that I know wonโt turn out well in the end. Sometimes the songs take 15 mins to write, and sometimes 2 hours. Itโs always different which is what makes it so fun.
9. What has been the most difficult thing youโve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
KAIYAH MERCEDES:
Itโs been pretty difficult recording songs in the studio to be honest. I absolutely love it, donโt get me wrong, but itโs so hard to look at your own work sometimes and not feel like youโre being measured up to everyone else. It is so difficult to try and let go of your songs instead of spending months trying to perfect the smallest details. Itโs been hard to learn that the imperfections of music are sometimes the most beautiful things, but Iโm slowly getting there.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
KAIYAH MERCEDES: I think the thing Iโm most proud of is my most recent music video for my song The Days We Remember. There are so many things that have blown my mind about my music career so far, but each time I watch that music video, I get emotional and I canโt help the smile that comes on my face. Being able to involve my friends and family in the work I produce is just so amazing, and I am so thankful that they are willing to do things like shoot a music video on a beach in the wind and cold for 6 hours with me. Yeah, I think thatโs what Iโm proudest of, but zooming out a little bit, Iโm proud of everything Iโve achieved so far and I am forever grateful that Iโve been able to experience everything that I have being only 16 years old.
KEEP IN TOUCH:
FACEBOOKย |ย INSTAGRAMย |ย TWITTERย |ย SPOTIFYย |ย WEBSITEย |ย YOUTUBE
