Exclusive Interview with MIIST

The dynamic new single, produced and co-written by Grammy and Emmy winner Narada Michael Walden (Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin), comes on the heels of Miist’s breakout first single “Remember Me Again,” which hit No. 7 on iTunes, and is set to be included on her upcoming debut album, The Songs From the Living Room. Check out the exclusive interview below:

1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?

MIIST: I was originally from China, lived in Canada for 7 years, now I’m living in the US. I didn’t start writing songs until a little over 2 years ago. A friend insisted I had the ability to play by ear and to write music, which I found to be a very scary thought and my mind treated it as a “threat” that I fought for a long time. Eventually, one day I decided to prove him wrong and end this conversation once and for all, but it turns out the joke was on me, I wrote 3 songs that day.

2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?

MIIST: 100% Self-taught. I wrote my first songs on piano, guitar and ukulele. I taught myself how to play my songs in a very simple way and to sing along. However, since I was self-taught, I was struggling to believe that I was really creating something worth listening to. Turns out I’ve been dealing with “imposter syndrome”. Constantly stressed out about being discovered that I’m not really good at this. At one point it was so bad, it started affecting my health. I finally started to learn how to deal with it by acknowledging that it is my own critic talking to me. I’ve learned to talk back to those negative thoughts and I’ve seen improvements. In speaking to other musicians this seems to be fairly common.

3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘MIIST?

MIIST: I think the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s story telling kind of songs have a great influence on me. I also recently noticed that my music writing ability is so new, that it’s like a sponge right now, constantly absorbing new styles including everything that I listen to. It’s not like my music is going to change dramatically, but there are some current elements that I’m now incorporating due to my mind ‘hearing’ new ideas. I came up with my name ‘Miist’ while on a road trip with my family. I had this random thought, that I want a single word artist name. So we started brain storming in a half joking way. I told my family I want my music to be refreshing just for a moment but not always in people’s face. I wanted people to be able to listen to my songs and feel whatever emotion I am singing about but then be able to move on with their day. My husband said, ‘you’re like mist then’. To make it more unique we added 2 ‘i’s. So “Miist”. I love my name!

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?

MIIST: The story telling and the authenticity in my voice. I miss that from the music from the last few decades, so even though it might not be popular now, I will keep doing it. I want to be able to touch peoples hearts by my stories. I want my songs to be catchy and fun but it is important that they say something. “Meaningful music for a difficult world.” Is my mantra.

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?

MIIST: I’ve only been writing songs for a little over 2 years, but I’ve already seen at least 3 stages of developments. For the first a year and a half, I was pretty much on my own, writing songs however they came out. My songs were mostly story telling songs with a beautiful melody with rarely used chord progression. It was important at that stage I explore what I could do with music without much/any “rules”. The songs were beautiful, but not necessarily memorable. Then I met Narada (Michael Walden), he introduced beat, pop, dance, funk, R&B, Disco… to my song writing. I started to write music with a hook in my mind, and I became more “considerate” to my listener. What I mean by that is, I started to simplify my melody so the listeners can easily remember it, and I started to emphasize the hook of the song, so not only can they remember the melody, they can also easily sing along. Right now, I’m at a stage that I have started to think of other people’s needs and customize songs for certain people or in certain style of other artists. The common theme however is always a beautiful melody and a story with meaning.

6. 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?

MIIST: I personally started writing songs as a form of self-therapy to help myself deal with emotions and traumas, so I’m a true believer of the healing power of music. A lot of the problems caused by people are actually indirect results from the trauma they suffered from or their parents suffered from. It will take time but I would love my music to provide hope and help heal people one by one. I also believe that music is a talent that’s from our creator, so one of my goals with my music is to make sure I use this talent and use this talent in a way that’s going to praise God. And this goes with healing power of music. I want end my songs in hopeful ways that could give people hope, I believe it is a way to show appreciation of this talent I’m given.

7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?

MIIST: By the time a song is finished with melody and lyrics, I’ve already felt the fulfillment that’s worth the effort, because I know I’ve told another story that I wanted to tell. The enjoyment I receive from the song after this point is a bonus, from singing it every time, performing it to a small group of friends, hearing that they genuinely like it… However, the best reward that gives me the most feeling of fulfillment or achievement is always from either the facial expression, tears or telling me which part of life this song remind them of, the moment of connection.

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?

MIIST: I mostly write in two different ways. The first way is completely story driven. It’s almost like how actors and actresses get into a character. I allow myself to live the story as the main character, act out what the character would do either literally or in my head, feel the emotion and the transition of the emotion, and let the emotion write the story in the form of melody. Another way I write mostly after I met Narada, is beat driven. I listen to the beat Narada sent me and see what story I feel. As I listen to the beats, soon enough I start to hear melodies and see the story in my eyes like a movie. That is also how I usually collaborate with Narada. I look forward to collab with other artists too. I’m eager to see what other music come out of me.

9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?

MIIST: Physically, I was very sick, diagnosed with liver cancer and had major surgery when I was 28 years old. That was pretty intense, but I would say the trauma from being abandoned by a parent is more difficult for me to endure and have affected me my whole life until now. Both these stories I’ve written into my songs, again help me coping as self-therapy, also to make peace with them. I wrote about death in a song Kiss Me Like the Rain. It’s the last love letter to my husband when I’m dying. My thought about the abandonment issue was written in the song Let Me Please be the Promise You Wanted. I wish I was the promise my dad wanted to keep, so he wouldn’t leave.

10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?

MIIST: I’m very proud that people who are willing to actually listen to my songs and the stories in them like them, that I view as successful. Some musicians I met, after they listen to my music they want to work with me or introduce me to other fellow musicians, that I’m also proud of and grateful for, and I also view that as successful. I also view every one of these positive response as a connection being made, and that’s the most important goal in music make.