Exclusive Interview with Lisa Goldin

A fearless artist with one vision; writing music to touch heartbeats, lighting up the room. As a songwriter, twelve songs are aired internationally on radio & TV. Goldin’s journey establishes her in the UK, South Africa & UAE with a fortress of fans. Performances touring London, Ibiza, Dubai & Asia have led to sharing stages with Ed Sheeran, Jessie J, Scouting For Girls & Barbara Tucker. Goldin is a bright light creating a difference in the name of music. Check out the exclusive interview below:

1. Your roots can often shape your journey. Can you share a story or moment from your early life that had a significant impact on your path into music?

Lisa Goldin: From a really young age I just loved being on stage. When I moved to the UK I landed a singing-waitress job at the Naked Turtle in East Sheen. One night whilst performing I met Frank Griffith, a top-tier jazz player, who lectured at Brunel University. He encouraged me to to study there and my application led to an unconditional offer. Backtrack…I’d sent out my first demo “Syon Lane” to record labels, and was called into Universal Music, however when I was told I had five minutes to prove myself, I froze and was quietly ushered out the door. One of the reasons was because I had accompaniment on the record, but couldn’t sing and play my songs at the meeting (I was not asked to prepare playing live, and was a complete nervous-newbie). Anyway…I vowed to hop back on piano, restudy and learn how to play piano and sing together simultaneously. At Brunel University that is what I concentrated on. The end of the first year our project was to form a covers band, which I instead played my originals, saying the songs were by a famous South African, haha! We got a first for our performance :>

1) Listen, learn and grow.

2) Let no-one hold you back.

3) Do your own thing!

2. Did your musical journey begin with formal training, or was it more of a personal exploration? How has that shaped your unique approach to your craft?

Lisa Goldin: It was a combination of both. School choirs which trained my voice, stage performances concentrating on acting and a bit of dancing, as well as piano lessons. My school teacher was awesome, Mrs Ruth Engela, writing her own scripts for the Eisteddfod instead of the same-same regurgitated ones, and we won hands-down! She taught me to dive deep into the material and hone in my artistry from a young age. I do vocal and piano warm-ups before every performance religiously!

3. Who were some of the most influential figures in your early musical life, and how did they inspire your sound? Also, what’s the story behind choosing the name ‘Lisa Goldin’?

Lisa Goldin: Barbra Streisand, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Madonna, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Eva Cassidy, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross…I was the typical sing-all-day-into-my-hairbrush youngen. We had a balcony overlooking the park; the trees (and any innocent people walking by!) were my audience :> “Goldin” is my sister and brothers’ surname; the South African record label requested a name more English, and I wanted mine to be part of my family. I had actually used “Lisa Goldin” just after school, but changed it back when living in the UK, having the fun of spelling “Lisa Theunissen”! My albums “HerStory” and “Who Are You, Again?” are found under my maiden name too :>

4. What do you believe sets your music apart? How would you describe your sound to someone discovering you for the first time, and what emotions or experiences do you hope to evoke in your listeners?

Lisa Goldin: I used to say I sounded like smoky, bluesey chocolate…but that’s changed haha! This is a tough question to answer! Guess, best way to describe it, is that when I write, I’ve already heard the melody playing on repeat in my head. When it comes to genres, I am led by pop, soul, bit of dance, big belters, film soundtracks and musical theatre. Also have a couple of rules that if it sounds like similar to what someone else has already composed or if the landing or hook comes across as too predictable; to ditch the idea and start from scratch. A recent interview labelled my genre as musical-theatre-pop, which I thought was apt! To be honest I am just Goldin…hahaha! Sorry, I had to…because ‘just be yourself’ and hope the right people love you for it! In fairness don’t like putting too much on anyone before they listen. Don’t get me wrong, am super-keen for everyone to hear it, but also understand because music is so personal that it’s all about what the listener draws from it. “In theory”, I hope my songs touch someone’s heart, heals heart-wrenching-ache, gives someone the strength to keep going, faith staying true to their own core and I brighten someone’s day!

5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as POP?

Lisa Goldin: It’s all in the rehearsal. The more you practice, the more you embody the song, and it is the same process when writing music; write, write, and write better. My best friend, Gem, was the one into rock, and tried very hard educating me. When the time came I had to learn “Sweet Child ‘O Mine”. I was in Singapore and took Guns ‘n Roses on a very long run (playing the song non-stop whilst running is one of the ways I learn music). It’s now one of my favourites to perform, even created a stripped down piano version! Thanks Gem :> However, as I definitely love the pop, musical theatre and cinematic forms more, these infectious hooks will forever be my obession. I am fascinated how one phrase can connect in such a way, that people would be singing it at the top of their lungs driving home, for decades :> If I can create something that special, that means so much to someone, that would be everything. So, I keep striving.

6. Music often transcends entertainment. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – 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?

Lisa Goldin: Touch them souls, baby! This is the most powerful medium to connect to the masses in a way that it is not dictating. Music is like church to me and performance is the delivery of the message. My songwriting includes overcoming hardship, rejection, dysfunctional families, unrequited love, unfair dismissals, the life I couldn’t live of 9-5 and wrote about war once, I think. And then…there’s that great, gushy love that is so close to home, because love does make this crazy, lil world go around…I love sharing story-teller songs. Singing these songs that mean so much to me is my world, because the audience can feel that energy and it creates a movement of magic in the air…(and I love chatting to my audience in between songs naturally, haha!) “Kept In A Locket” touches on many themes for instance; finding your tribe, letting go of someone, unexpected love finding the one, losing yourself, finding your way, dating today…I am glad GoldinFans shared how this song related to them! I am here as an artist to make a difference on our planet in the best way possible, and that is exactly what I wanna do everday. Let me know how I am doing?!

7. Do you feel the rewards of your musical career match the energy and passion you invest in it, or are there different kinds of fulfillment you’re still seeking?

Lisa Goldin: Performance is really rewarding, because I love being with my GoldinFans, seeing them in person feel out the song. I also haven’t accomplished the right level of traction yet with radio, film, TV and broadcasting – so would be inaccurate to say at this very moment. Finding that you do need to be on top of your game as a singer-songwriter checking your royalties, which is ongoing.

Part of the reason I built my own goldinlisa.com/GoldinShop for fans to access my music directly with the launch of the third album “Something I Used To Wear”. My bank manager says, “concentrate working on getting this show on the road”…! I must say, the beauty of it all is the more I write and share my songs, the more encouragement there is. Just gotta work on it daily…and understand it’s not an overnighter…

8. Can you walk us through your creative process? From the first spark of an idea to the finished track, what’s the most essential part of your process, and how do collaboration or external influences shape your work?

Lisa Goldin: It’s like a movie in my mind, but instead it’s music, that plays over and over, until it pops lyrically onto paper and in notes onto my piano :> Then I will write, rewrite, and rewrite until I feel I’m ready to do a voicenote recording. I distinctly remember the day I wrote “Just Right (Goldilocks Theme)”. I sat with the song for a day and was still hummimg it the next, feeling she had a lil something, something! I didn’t change this song in studio keeping it acoustic. When hitting studio with “Something I Used To Wear”, there was a full symphony in my head, which then needed translating. My producer, Stoyan Stoyanov, works incredibly fast, and I had to control not wanting to express every, single idea at once! The trumpets and ‘lalalalalahs’ were hilarious to add, as they emphasise the circus-relationship effect I was in. If you have ever seen the film “August Rush” – this is me! With all these ideas swinging merrily around, I do believe you have to let the song breathe, you have to let it tell the story; with clarity and build each layer slowly. I think of the listener all the time when producing, because the first note, the first lyric is your chance to be heard…so let the song shine as a standstill, and then allow your earworm to grow and take someone on a journey for them to embrace it as their own. Often use references in studio, but it is more for the theme of the song that strikes a similar connection, than the sound – I really do try to create my signature sound each time I put out a record. Establishing your identity is what fans gravitate towards, because…well…birds of a feather! Collabs…I listen intently to my peers…because I wanna hear what I am not. Sometimes it’s an influence and sometimes not…really depends what the feedback is. For “Hope” we were thinking of layering my voice, but Stoyan’s idea of having the Vox Chamber Choir from South Africa instead, gave the song real chutzpah, giving this song her charm.

9. What’s been the most challenging hurdle in either your personal life or music career, and how has it shaped you as an artist?

Lisa Goldin: Always been a go-getter throughout any setbacks, adversity and no-you’re-not-the-one(s). This album, though…geeewiz…it was not easy to release. There’s so much heartbreak and breakthroughs from personal to my career that it embodies. I think releasing the eight singles first was almost like therapy, to process what I had been through from 2011-2021. The interviews for this album, have brought all these emotions back, but, I honestly feel resilient and wiser now. And I mean that as a whole. The most elevating moment is letting it go, for it to be for audience now, my GoldinFans. And for me, I can go write a whole new chapter of this beautiful life, called mine :>

10. On the flip side, what moment or achievement in your career so far has made you feel the proudest, and why? And let’s talk about your latest release and future plans.

Lisa Goldin: The greatest milestone was taking back the copyright for all of my music, from a label that shelved them. These songs are featured on this album, and thriving – despite being terrified I would fail. My third album “Something I Used To Wear” is one I am proud of. My plan is to perform these songs in concert finally and hopefully sync them too. Since 2020; “Hope”, “Three Days”, “Something I Used To Wear”, “Kept In A Locket”, “Like That”, “Tell Me”, “HeartBeat” and the leading single “How Love Can Start” have aired on radio and TV – little me did this. I honestly hope I can do more with these songs and the new ones I am writing to reach the right ears…what a dream come true that will be!