A Chat with Ava Rose (21.09.23)
Inspired by artists like Christina Perri, Adele and Sheryl Crow, singer-songwriter Ava Rose traipses various flavours of pop in her masterful melodies. We speak with Ava Rose about her debut album growing pains, tattoos, future plans and much more.
OSR: What does music mean to you and what inspires you to make music?
Ava Rose: Music has been the backbone of my self-expression. When I started taking piano lessons, it became my connection to the one thing I enjoyed most. As I began writing my own songs, it was just a way for me to put emotions to words in a new way. I wrote about different things I’ve dealt with and experiences I’ve been through, and as time has gone on, it feels more like a reflection of not just myself but of those around me as well. When music entered my life in this way, it felt different than anything else had, and that meant something because I am extremely passionate in general. But once music became something I could create, I knew that I found my place.
OSR: You recently released the album growing pains. What can you tell us about it?
Ava Rose: growing pains was a project that kind of built itself. I had written a few songs last summer/fall, fresh out of college, and they happened on their own. It wasn’t even anything I felt at that moment for most of the tracks, it was something that poured out of me that either was left unaddressed or something I didn’t give much thought to.
The project came together naturally, song by song, and at some point, I realized it had to be an album. There was no intended theme, it all fell into place, and growing pains only became the name in the very end. Originally it was going to be named after the final track ‘truth be told’ because it felt like a project full of confessions, but I realized that it was really telling a story of growing into a new version of yourself and what it feels like to discover new parts of yourself. So it became growing pains.
OSR: What were the most exciting and least exciting parts of creating growing pains?
Ava Rose: The most exciting part of it was working with a producer/engineer on it. It was something I had never done, but I had found Christian Clark from previous interactions, he’s someone who makes music very similar to mine and was looking for some clientele, so it was a perfect fit. He transformed my songs in ways I couldn’t even imagine and brought elements to tracks in ways I wouldn’t have even thought of. The project wouldn’t be even half as good without him.
On the other end of that, the least exciting part was trying to fill in the final spots. Like I said, this album wasn’t planned, and I was sort of releasing songs as I went. I even wrote a few while the rest were being worked on and it was a process to try and solidify which songs would make the cut. This was the first project I cut probably 5 or 6 songs from that just weren’t fitting the mold the way I wanted them to. It was a worthwhile process, I’m extremely happy with where things ended up, but it was not my favorite thing to be cutting out tracks I previously liked, but that’s the creative process.
OSR: In your press release you mention the album is a journey from post-college to “the real world” – what is the most important lesson you’ve learned since entering the adult world?
Ava Rose: I love this question! The big answer to that is that real life isn’t what we think it is. Walking out of college into the “real world” we often hold these assumptions that everybody knows what they’re doing and has a grip on what everything is supposed to be like, but the reality is that no one really knows. We’re all doing what we can with what we’ve got and that’s all there is to it. Being in your early 20’s you think that you’re so alone in this transitional phase, but we all go through it. We all have been (or even currently are) in that position before. It’s a learning experience and it takes time to discover who you are in the grand scheme of it all, and that’s okay. Good things take time, and finding the next version of yourself is a good thing.
OSR: What do you miss about being a student and a child?
Ava Rose: I honestly miss the lack of limits. When you’re a kid you think you can do anything, and that goes away as you start to understand the world. We become bound by our own beliefs and those that have been pressed upon us and lose that sense of wonderment and I genuinely miss that. Granted, life must go on, and we can’t be delusional like that for our whole lives and expect to grow. But it is a simpler time.
OSR: Do you believe growing pains is a good representation of your sound and your personality?
Ava Rose: Absolutely. I think growing pains is the most me I’ve sounded yet and is a great reflection of who I am underneath. For the people who know me, I’m the one to make humor of things and joke around more than I’m ever serious. I’ve never been great with real conversations and addressing those more emotional topics in conversation. In that way, the music is in complete misalignment with my personality. But for the people who know me well, this is completely on-brand. I’m a deep person, I am more emotional than logical and I love those one-on-one heart-to-hearts. You just have to break the surface to get to the kinds of things that match up with everything growing pains reflects about me.
OSR: If you come across a new listener, what song from growing pains would you recommend they listen to?
Ava Rose: I think either ‘concave (once more)’ or ‘wanted posters’ would be the best reflection of who I am as an artist and the music I want to continue to make. I don’t want to stay too slow too much, and I like the songwriting in both of those. If you’re a sucker for strings like I am though, ‘living alone’ is my best recommendation.
OSR: Random question: would the world be a better or worse place if superheroes existed?
Ava Rose: I have no idea. I think it could lead to more chaos but it also could resolve some issues. There are a lot of follow-up questions with this, I have no clue!
OSR: What is your opinion on tattoos?
Ava Rose: I think meaningful tattoos are great. I want to get one myself sometime. I think they can be great reflections of a person at times and they can be a way to hold onto something meaningful forever.
OSR: What future plans do you have as a musician?
Ava Rose: Next, I want to do some singles. I’ve got a few tracks that just need to make their way to production and will probably be in early 2024. There’s a variety within those and I don’t think I’m ready for another big project like this one. Before then I might do some acoustic or stripped versions of a few songs from growing pains, but that’s yet to be solidified. I want to continue pushing out more music and telling more stories as much as I can.
OSR: Do you have any message for our readers?
Ava Rose: If you’re passionate about something, follow it. If you want to try something out, try it. You don’t have to commit to anything forever, so give your greatest dreams a real shot while you can. All in all, don’t forget that you’re just going through the human experience. We’ve all been there, so don’t lose sight of what’s to come.
Many thanks to Ava Rose for speaking with us! Find out more about Ava Rose on her Instagram and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
