19-year-old Raveena Aurora, a talented, down-to-earth singer based in Brooklyn, N.Y., just released her debut album, Where We Wander, and I am officially in love with it. Her music, described on her YouTube channel as “folky-pop music to soothe the soul,” is perfect for any chill sesh and totally embodies her mellow and carefree personality. Originally from my hometown, Aurora has been melting my icy heart for years with her floaty melodies, dreamy lyrics, and breathtaking voice. Her EP is available on iTunes and her personal website for download.
The Argus: Your debut album, titled Where We Wander, was released this past Tuesday. Can you tell us a little about the process of making that and how it feels now that it’s finally out?
Raveena Aurora: It started about a year ago during freshman year. I came across my co-songwriter, who’s a friend of a friend of a friend, and we ended up basically living together. We just wrote songs in this tiny little apartment where all these artists just resided—just like six boys and me, with all good vibes and artistic visions flying about. We took a lot of time to just write, and then, from the summer onwards, we started recording demos in Brooklyn. We sent it to this additional production house, and they added some auxiliary production elements and mixed it for us. It was mastered basically just in the fall. So it was a pretty long process. The album was done by December, and then we took two months for ourselves to work on promotion. Now that it’s out, it feels like a weight off my shoulders. It’s been on my mind for about a year, like these five songs consuming so much time and energy. It just feels so good to have it out, and I feel like now I can just work out all the things and start a new direction.
A: What kind of new direction are you going for?
RA: Basically we’re thinking of kind of a different approach to how I’m going to deal with my music career because, really, this EP was a singlehanded effort. No one was as invested in it as I was, and I really want to find people who have as much proactive and hyper-organized energy as I do toward music. So I’m basically trying to find those people because I struggled with that a lot in making this EP. And possibly changing my name from being Raveena Aurora to Raveena and the Auroras.
A: Where do you get inspiration for your songs?
RA: I’m pretty prolific as a songwriter. It’s this combination of gut feeling and me thinking through all the problems I have in my head. It’s just a way for me to process my emotions now.
A: Describe your music in one word to someone who has never heard it.
RA: One word? Can I use a couple, like a connected word with a lot of hyphens? I don’t know, probably, like, pop music with an indie folk sensibility, a little soul mixed in. That’s a lot of words. Folk-pop-soul-music.
A: So, you’re currently a sophomore at NYU Tisch. How do you balance going to school and pursuing your music career?
RA: Well, right now I’m studying part-time, and what I’m studying in school all has to do with music. I’m taking the Tisch core production music business courses, so what I’m learning in school has so much to do with what I’m learning by putting out my music and pursuing that. Going part time has just given me so more time to do what I want to do. Now I’m not stressing out and pulling all-nighters every night trying to manage 18 credits and trying to put out an album.
A: Was deciding to go part-time a hard decision to make?
RA: No, not at all. By last semester, I was dying. It was just way too much. I’m at the point with my music where it takes a good amount of time to make that kind of decision.
A: What is your favorite lyric that you’ve written?
RA: Everyone seems to like this one, but I don’t know, maybe as a joke it’s kind of funny: “If your body wasn’t so damn lyrical, I’d leave you for sure.” It’s from a new song called “Our Secret.”
A: Do you prefer writing or performing and why?
RA: Well, I haven’t had much experience performing, but this week I performed twice for huge audiences. Both shows were fantastic. I’ve always loved writing more because it’s just a part of me, but I’m starting to really love performing. I just felt so at home on stage this week, for some reason. It just affirmed that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.
A: What can people expect at one of your live shows?
RA: It’s very intimate. I’ve noticed that I’ve played loud bars and huge audiences, and I like when I can get the whole crowd to be super silent and super into it and just have a conversation with the audience, like I’m telling them a story and they’re part of the song. It just kind of feels like we’re sitting at home with our guitars and playing around a fireplace to a small crowd of people, even if it’s a huge stage. That’s what I want it to feel like.