I think the Internet is the greatest invention of all time! Holly contacted me via email a while ago about her new song 'Image' in order to get the message out to more teens that appearance isn't everything and that we need to love ourselves for who we are so we can keep our self-confidence up.
Let's go!
Q: Introduce yourself in nineteen and a half words:
A: Greetings from Auckland, New Zealand – I’m Holly Christina, a 19-year-old singer-songwriter who loves to play guitar.
Q: Did you always want to
become a singer when you were a child?
A: I wanted to either become a professional tennis player or musician.
Q: Show us a picture of your
workspace:
A: This is a picture of St Heliers Bay, about ten minutes walk from where I
live. I enjoy going for walks
along the Waterfront, as it’s very inspirational for songwriting. It’s a good
place to think about all the things I’m working on every day, including
teaching guitar, organising and performing music tours, planning music videos
and also coaching tennis.
Q: What/who inspires you to
write music?
A: Life experiences, people I observe or meet, and just generally
contemplating ideas in my mind.
Q: One of your songs is
called ‘Jane Austen’. What is your favourite Jane Austen book?
A: I enjoy many of her books, but ‘Sense and Sensibility’ (which I believe
was her first published novel in 1811) is perhaps my favourite, as it’s full of
great life lessons and interesting, resonating characters.
Q: Pick a track from your
album. Tell us the story behind it:
A: ‘The Victory’ – the first track from my album ‘interchange’ was written
when I was 16, and was having a bit of a “down day” – so to get some
perspective on things, I compared the perceived hard times that I was facing
(in present day life) to the absolutely terrible harsh times of past wars. So the song is really based on the metaphor
of ‘every day is a battle’ (then and now). I started off with creating the guitar finger-picking tune
and had this quirky idea for the opening line: “it’s 1066 in the morning” (the
Battle of Hastings is a well-known date to the English). Basically, as you can see in the music
video, the song suggests the story of war survivors, as they reflect on the
pain of war. The irony of the
saying ‘lest we forget’ is explored.
The lyrics of this song have many subtle references to past wars and
international memorial dates, and I tried to write uniquely and creatively,
while still maintaining an honouring and quiet reflection of the past.
Q: Tell us more about your tour:
A: I'm currently on my 'Break the Mould' NZ Tour. It's a presentation with five songs and talks, all with a positive message encouraging well-being for students and inspiring them to make good choices. The songs contain lyrics and stories that relate to teenagers, like self-confidence, life choices, peer pressure, career decisions and coping with challenges. So far in 2012, I've been to 8 schools in Auckland, and in the next two months I will also be taking the presentation to some schools in Christchurch and Wellington. I'm really passionate about this Tour, and I'm having a great time going around and singing to so many young people.
Q: What is your favourite place on Earth?
A: I'm currently on my 'Break the Mould' NZ Tour. It's a presentation with five songs and talks, all with a positive message encouraging well-being for students and inspiring them to make good choices. The songs contain lyrics and stories that relate to teenagers, like self-confidence, life choices, peer pressure, career decisions and coping with challenges. So far in 2012, I've been to 8 schools in Auckland, and in the next two months I will also be taking the presentation to some schools in Christchurch and Wellington. I'm really passionate about this Tour, and I'm having a great time going around and singing to so many young people.
Q: What is your favourite place on Earth?
A: Well, this is a bit of an odd response: even though I’ve never been there – I’m going to say
Salzburg, Austria. That’s my dream
place to visit. Ever since I
watched ‘Sound of Music’ as a child, I’ve always loved the idea of it – the
beautiful scenery and old architecture.
Hopefully one day I’ll get there!
Q: Your latest musical
obsession is:
A: I’ve always been a big fan of the composer, Hans Zimmer. I still really love his song ‘Cry’ from
‘The Holiday’ soundtrack!
Q: Five things that make you
smile:
A: Sunshine. Family. My guitar students. Sushi. The beach.
Q: What is your motto in
life?
A: “Break the mould” (one of my song titles)…
Q: If you were stranded on
a desert island with a record player, what 3 albums would you take?
A: Hans Zimmer – ‘The Holiday’ soundtrack
John Mayer – ‘Room for Squares’
George Fenton – ‘Ever After’ soundtrack
Q: Show us a self-portrait
(any materials acceptable):
A: Drawing is certainly not one of my strengths (as you can see), but I
enjoyed having a go at doing this!
Q: One last (silly) question. Do you put your right sock or your left sock on first in the morning? And why?
A: I always put my left sock on first and I'm not quite sure why, but perhaps it's got something to do with the fact that I'm left-handed. Or maybe it's because I had a knee reconstruction on my left knee when I was 15, so I seem to have better balance on my right leg.
Q: Well, thank you so much for taking the time to answer those questions Holly. Good luck!
A: Thanks so much for your support, I really appreciate it!
Q: One last (silly) question. Do you put your right sock or your left sock on first in the morning? And why?
A: I always put my left sock on first and I'm not quite sure why, but perhaps it's got something to do with the fact that I'm left-handed. Or maybe it's because I had a knee reconstruction on my left knee when I was 15, so I seem to have better balance on my right leg.
A: Thanks so much for your support, I really appreciate it!
Check out more from Holly:
