Produced by a Girl Artist Interview -
DIANA SMITH
Your Neck Here
Hi! What was the story behind ‘Your Neck Here’?
Lately I’d been frustrated with the normal hookup culture in the US (that’s probably happening elsewhere as well) and I just wasn’t raised around this type of thinking so I find the dating world very difficult to navigate here. I was wanting more guitar and middle eastern sound in my music so I did some research on Lana Lubany’s team and ended up finding Midas on Instagram who is mutuals with her guitarist. I listened to the tracks he had for sale and when I heard this one the words just came out. Not all songs get written this way but every so often I’m trying to type/write as fast as I’m thinking. In short it’s an anti-hookup culture song outlining my zero tolerance policy for it. Like do what you want but don’t bother me if you’re not genuine.
How do you find inspiration for songwriting?
Writing has always been my way of understanding myself in the world around me and working through whatever emotions I’m dealing with at any point in time so that’s what it is for me - self help, therapy, self discovery, whatever you want to call it but it’s definitely a necessity to my livelihood and me constantly trying to be a better person.
What was it like recording in London?
I didn’t record in London, I recorded in my studio in Williamsburg but the beat was made in London by this incredible producer Midas who is crazy skilled.
What’s the most important thing you want your audience to know about you as an artist?
I guess that I care. I think there’s a lot of vanity associated with the performing arts and the starting point for me has always been sharing myself and what I go through so that someone listening/watching feels less alone through that shared experience. I had a very lonely and isolated childhood and that is what got me through, knowing that there were like 8 billion people on the planet (my child brain could not wrap my head around that number lol) and thousands of years of human experience and that I wasn’t the only one to feel this way, I wasn’t the first and I won’t be the last.
Any cool performances of ‘Your Neck Here’ you can share? If so, where was the performance at and what made it an awesome performance?
I played an acoustic version at this basement theatre in the east village that I frequented when I first moved to the city for school. I hadn’t been in 4 years and it was a bit of a full circle moment to see some younger faces just starting out and trying new things because the last time I was there I was that young face in college writing essays backstage in between sets until 2 am and experimenting with my sound and style.
What’s next in your music journey?
There’s a lot I want to do. For now I’m putting out singles and eventually an album. Somewhere in between that I’ll release another music video and have a proper event for it similar to a gallery opening (with a signature cocktail that I am currently in the works of perfecting).