Los Angeles artist and songwriter Drea saw a liquor store and its name inspired her to write a Spanish chorus in her voice notes as she drove. She wrote the verses immediately after she arrived home. The end result would be the dark, pop-banger, “La Paz”, Drea’s first single of 2019 and her first bilingual single. The gritty track, with its impactful chorus and moving verses, deals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and the lingering despair in the aftermath of trauma.
Drea has since followed up the single with an accompanying powerful music video. As the producer, co-director, and choreographer, Drea delivers an impactful message for those dealing with painful experiences. She draws upon her own personal experience of post-traumatic stress disorder and a delivers potent storyline through her compelling dance choreography as well as authentic emotional moments. The moving close of the video leaves the viewer to decide what happens next in the story.
She cites that although neither the song nor the music video gives resolution, she wants the viewer to come away with the realization that “there is a comfort in knowing that we all go through seasons of grief and that feeling of togetherness can help bring us peace“.
Drea is currently working on what she says is the most important single of her career to be released in Spring 2019. After the release, Drea will begin graduate school with the goal of receiving her Ph.D. with a specific focus on gender in policy. She also is involved in the Los Angeles community through her Reclaim Movement and Her Concert Series as well as serving on the board of non-profits Project MuszEd and LadyBug Movement.
I recently interviewed Drea in-depth about “La Paz”, the story behind this deeply personal song, the making of the video, her Reclaim Movement, her latest project For Her Music Concert Series, Project MuszEd, new music, and much more.
Congratulations on your first bilingual single, “La Paz,” and just recently the release of the equally moving music video for it. This impactful song is deeply personal, dealing with your post-traumatic stress disorder. What motivated you to write it? Why did you decide to write the chorus in Spanish?
I didn’t have a set intention to create a bilingual song or a song about PTSD when I began writing. I actually drove by a liquor store named “La Paz,” and started writing the Spanish chorus in my voice notes as I drove. The minute I got home, I wrote the verses. When I wrote “La Paz,” I was definitely in a mindset of wanting to tell powerful stories and start social conversations, so that certainly influenced the content of “La Paz.”
What do you want people to take away from “La Paz,” both the song and music video?
I’ve left a lot up for interpretation in both the song and the video, which was intentional. I wanted “La Paz” to be representative of painful experiences outside my own. We all experience soul-crushing moments of despair, and I think we often feel isolated in those moments. Although I don’t give an obvious resolution in “La Paz” or the video, there is a comfort in knowing that we all go through seasons of grief and that feeling of togetherness can help bring us peace.
Explain the concept of the music video and how you came up with it.
I personally have spent a lot of my darkest moments on the shower floor, and I think this is a pretty common thing that people do. In the privacy and nakedness of taking a shower, I think we are often able to release emotions that we have been fighting to hide from the outside world. I knew I wanted to do a video that used this symbolism as the main performance shot. When I found the rain room, I knew that this expansion of the shower symbol would be perfect for the dance portion I had planned.
The music video, co-directed, produced, and choreographed by you, is incredibly powerful and contains a lot of symbolism. What is the significance of the two different scenes? Why did you shave your head? Why did you use rain? Why did you use the shower? What is the significance of your black outfit in the shower?
I don’t want to explain the video in too much detail, because there is so much I want to leave ambiguous so the viewer can decide what to take from the video. That being said, I feel I can explain a few of my intentions without taking away too much from a viewer’s experience.
As I mentioned above, the shower is a common place where we feel free to experience despair, and the rain room was an extension of that. I envision the rain room and the dancing portion with Richard to be the spiritual counterpart to the physical and solitary experience in the shower.
As for the head shave, I had some practical reasons for shaving my head, but symbolically, it was a bigger deal for me than most people know. Shortly after I was raped, I dyed my hair for the first time in my life. Many survivors experience this need to change their appearance in order to feel safe after their trauma. I am finally at a point in my life where I felt ready to put this season behind me, so shaving off the red hair and going quite literally back to my roots was a big deal for me. Furthermore, we often only see women with shaved heads in media either when they are in mourning or preparing for battle. I believe survivors often balance between these two worlds, and I felt this video was a perfect opportunity to showcase that.
Building on the previous question, why did you include dance in the video? What does the male dancer symbolize? Why are you both wearing white non-descript outfits?
Dance was a huge part of my healing journey as I began to navigate life as a rape survivor. In many ways, words and music failed to express what I was experiencing, but dance was always there. I wanted to include dance in this video because of the powerful emotions dance can help us express, and the healing role movement can play in a traumatized person’s life. I wanted to include Richard in this video because I wanted the meaning of the song and video to extend outside of my personal experience. I wanted to showcase two individuals, side by side, experiencing separate grief, but still sharing that spiritual space of healing. In regards to the outfits, I wanted there to be a contrast between the two scenes (shower and rain room) visually, and I also wanted to be sure the dance moves stood out against the black background. The white outfits also allude to the spiritual element of the video. The chorus, in Spanish, is a desperate plea to God for peace, so spirituality is a big part of this video.
At the emotional close of the video, you and dancer Richard Wang end the dance standing back to back. He looks over his shoulder at you and starts to reach for your hand hesitantly to perhaps comfort you, but surprisingly he pulls back. Why doesn’t he take hold of your hand?
In the original choreography, we were meant to clasp hands as a show of solidarity. However, my videographer and co-director Chris Koehl and I found in the editing that this may confuse viewers and create a romantic storyline that was not intended in this video. Instead, we opted for Richard and me to come back to back as the first and only moment we touch in the video. We become aware that someone is there with us, but we leave it for the viewer to decide what happens next.
Tell us about your experience making such a deeply personal music video.
I actually wasn’t expecting to feel so much as I choreographed and filmed “La Paz.” The single that is due in the spring is actually much more emotional for me on the whole, so I wasn’t expecting to feel that same level of intense emotion for this single. However, it was very cathartic for me to go through the motions of choreographing, planning, and filming this music video. The tears you see on the screen are real.
I told Chris that I may cry on set, and instructed him to keep filming unless I told him to stop. He was able to capture some really moving, authentic shots of my personal breakdown throughout this process, and I’m really content with the result.
How did you find the rain room at FD Photo Studios in downtown LA? What was it like filming in a rain room?
I’ve shot at FD Photo Studios several times now, so I was on their website looking at their offerings for the dance portion. When I saw they had a rain room available, I knew it would be the perfect counterpart to the shower scene I had envisioned. Filming in the rain room was actually a lot more comfortable than I was expecting. The staff kept the room at a balmy 80 degrees and the water was warm for the whole 4-hour shoot, which was amazing. I think it was much more difficult for Chris than it was for Richard and me, but he hung in there!
This is the third single that you have collaborated with DJ Kayja on. How did the opportunity to work with him come about?
Kayja reached out to me on Instagram to collaborate about 5 years ago now, and I ended up writing and singing on his album “Strange Games by the Slice” shortly after. Kayja and I had also been working on a rough track of “Hometown” as I needed a break from the rigorous recording process of my radio pop album “No Vacancy.” When my manager dropped me unexpectedly, I went straight to Kayja to start polishing “Hometown” so I could release the single as a newly independent artist. I wasn’t going to give up, and that song was the perfect representation of that.
You previously released your song “Hometown” in February 2018, followed by “Parachute” in October. Are these songs a preview of a forthcoming album/EP? Why or why not?
I am not planning an album or EP at this point. I think all these songs stand well on their own, and I am happy to let them have their own message and stories.
Tell us more about your For Her Concert Series and your first event. Why did you create it? What do you want to achieve with the series?
I organized my first For Her Concert Series event in May 2018. I have attended many showcases and music events in LA, and I was finding that many of them were organized by men, and sometimes featured only male performers. I never saw a female sound engineer as part of the team and saw mainly male photographers, as well. I wanted to create an event that showcased the talents of women in music on the stage as well as back of house, because female sound engineers and female music photographers deserve credit, too.
Furthermore, I wanted the show to be free and accessible to music lovers of all financial backgrounds, and also to benefit in need through product and monetary donations. At the first event, we raised $200 and 6 13-gallon bags of supplies for homeless women in LA!
In October 2018 you were elected as the youngest board member for LA-based non-profit Project MuszEd. How did the opportunity come about? Explain what the project is and its mission and/or goals.
Through my connection to Women’s International Music Network, I was aware of the work She Rocks Award recipient Charyn Harris was doing as the founder of Project MuszEd but hadn’t had the opportunity to work with her personally. When I heard she was looking to expand her board of directors, it was perfect timing for me. I had been serving on the board of directors for The Ladybugs Movement, which works to provide access to feminine hygiene products for homeless women in Los Angeles, and was looking to expand my outreach. I met with Charyn, and a few months later, I heard that I had been elected onto the board. I am so thrilled to be working with Charyn and Project MuszEd to help increase music education and performance opportunities for underprivileged youth.
You recently applied to graduate programs in public affairs. How is that going? What are your plans once you graduate? Why do public affairs interest you?
I have been accepted to two programs already, and will hear from the remaining four in March! It was a whirlwind of a process, which consisted of traveling to three states outside of California, writing 15 essays, and taking the GRE twice, but I did it! After completing my master’s in public policy/administration, I plan to go on to earn my Ph.D., focusing specifically on gender in policy. I aim to be an expert in the field of gender in policy as well as a professor, writer, and researcher on the topic, working to increase opportunities and equality for women and marginalized groups in our country and abroad.
I hold a bachelor’s in Women and Gender Studies, so paired with my current work with non-profit efforts like The Ladybugs Movement, Project MuszEd, and Reclaim Movement, this is a very natural step for me as I move into this exciting next phase of my life.
As a rape survivor and lifelong dancer, you launched in January 2018 your powerful Reclaim Movement, “an open level dance class working to empower women who are survivors of sexual assault and abuse to reclaim ownership of their bodies through music and movement.” What was this past year like? What were the successes? What are you planning for 2019?
Running Reclaim Movement has been one of the most rewarding and purposeful things I have ever done in my life. I am so pleased to be able to bring women of all ages, abilities, dance backgrounds, and experiences together to share in an empowering community of women. I also love that almost every week I have had a new student experience the class. So far, Reclaim Movement has reached almost 50 women in Los Angeles and Minneapolis, where I’m from. I will continue teaching Reclaim Movement in Los Angeles at least through July of 2019. I plan to continue teaching through grad school, regardless of whether I stay in LA or move to a new place. The need for a class like this is global, and I can’t wait to share it with more women in more places in the near future.
Do you think women artists are being effectively supported in the indie music industry? Why or why not?
I think it’s slowly getting better, but we are certainly still outnumbered, especially when it comes to producers, engineers, and songwriters. We need more women behind the scenes in order to really make a difference in how women are treated, represented, and celebrated in the industry.
What advice do you wish you had been given when you were pursuing a music career?
I think looking back, I would tell my past self to define success in my own way. So many artists take every risk for fame and fortune, for this thing they think they love, and it ends up running our lives. Instead of our art serving our purposes, many of us end up serving our art. The music comes before the artist. I don’t think that’s healthy. I think more artists need to have permission and support to be more than a musician. To have other interests, skills, and talents. To have the freedom to move out of LA, to pursue a new dream, to grow out of the desire for fame without being shamed by the artistic community. There is nothing shameful in moving on from something that is no longer serving you, fulfilling you, or allowing you room to grow. In contrast, it is wise and it is brave to do so.
Music will always be a part of a musician, wherever they go, whatever they end up doing. Moving on is not the same as giving up.
You have another single and video slated for a spring 2019 release. Are you willing to share a teaser about that?
I’m going to keep that mostly under wraps for now, but I will say that I consider this upcoming single to be the most important release of my career.
What other projects, besides new music, do you have planned for 2019?
Once I release this next single and video, my focus will turn to grad school, which will start in August 2019 for me. I may be moving out of LA to start this new chapter of my life, so preparing for this new season will take a lot of my time and energy.
What are your show/performance plans for 2019?
With everything on my plate, I am not prioritizing performing at the moment. That’s not to say I won’t plan a performance, but I also feel these songs are so deeply personal that I’m not entirely interested in performing them live just yet.
Thank you, Drea, for the opportunity to interview you.
Watch the “La Paz” music video:
“La Paz” is available on all digital platforms: song.link/lapaz
You can stream “La Paz” here: https://open.spotify.com/track/2NUzxlBjpIpxgIagZcP6eA
Follow Drea:
Instagram: @dreaxmusic
Facebook: dreaxmusic
Drea’s website: www.dreaxmusic.com
For more information on Reclaim Movement:
Website: www.reclaimmvmt.org
Instagram @reclaimmvmt
Facebook: reclaimmvmt
For more information on the For Her Concert Series:
Instagram: @forherconcertseries
Facebook: forherconcertseries
