“I wrote ‘Shut Me Up’ about feeling silenced,” she said. “A lot was going on in my life at the time both professionally and personally where I felt like I wasn’t able to speak. So, I wanted to scream a little. The song is about being loud when the world is telling you to be quiet.”
Regarding her music and songwriting inspirations, she said, “My music is a journal. Sometimes my emotions are so strong that I need to take them out of my head and put them somewhere else. Songwriting allows me to make something useful and beautiful out of the negative emotions, and in doing so, I take away their power. As I like to say, ‘Make your tragedies a work of art’.”
During the quarantine, Hanna has been surprisingly productive. “I think to any artist, being locked inside with seemingly endless free time and excess frustration is a recipe for creativity. My last EP, BAD KARMA, wouldn’t exist otherwise. It also pushed me creatively to imagine music videos in a world with limited resources and a mountain of restrictions,” she said.
“On a more personal level, it’s really helped me adjust my values and realize who and what means most to me,” she said. “When your interactions are limited, you learn where to direct your energy. I’ve also had to get really real with myself and face a lot of the anxieties that I usually avoid by keeping myself busy. It had to get a lot worse before it got better, but I think I’ve finally adjusted. As much as I miss the old normal, this new normal has served me well.”
On being an entertainer in the digital age, she said, “It feels scary. Marvelous. Powerful. Powerless. Before the digital age, you had to make it because someone gave you a break. Now, you give yourself your own break. No one else has to believe in you, you just have to believe hard enough in yourself and work your ass off. On the flip side, that means everyone can do it, which means more (infinite) competition.”
“There are millions upon millions of people fighting for attention, so that puts a lot of weight on you to hold it. Traditional celebrities have more ability to disappear for a bit while they work on their projects- digital creators have to constantly produce to stay on top of the ever-changing algorithms. As with everything, there are pros and cons, but I for one am very grateful to the platforms for allowing me to live an otherwise unattainable dream,” she elaborated.
She listed Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco, Blackbear, and Miley Cyrus as her dream collaboration choice in music. “Brendon inspired me so heavily from 15 to now. He’s the perfect blend of rock, punk, and pop… and his vocals are a dream. His longevity and constant reinvention sonically are inspirational,” she said.
“Also, Blackbear. He’s one of those artists where I could sing every word on every song for at least two albums. I love how much fun he’s having lately with his music,” she said. “I would also love to sing with Miley Cyrus. I love her attitude and everything she stands for. She’s always struck me as an honest artist, and she’s truly never been afraid to be herself. Especially with this new classic rock era she’s hitting us with? Come on now.”
For young and aspiring artists, she said, “Be prepared to be let down… a lot. The space is highly competitive and while it looks glamorous on the outside, it’s a lot of work and even more rejection. You’re going to love your projects with your whole heart and it’s going to hurt like hell when others don’t. But remember, you have to find your people. You’re not creating for the people who don’t like it, you’re creating for the people who do. Finding them takes time. Be patient. Tough times don’t last, tough people do.”
On her definition of the word success, she responded, “This year has really changed my idea of success almost completely. If you had asked me last year, I would probably ramble on about charts or recognition or total financial freedom. All that stuff is cool, for sure… but there’s a lot more to cultivating happiness than that. Success, to me, is balance. Having money or “fame” very rarely makes people truly happy.”
“Having love and friendships and relaxing in your own way does. It’s important to grind in your career, but I found that I also needed to grind in my interpersonal relationships. When I was my most ‘successful,’ I was the most lonely and lost. My vision of success now still involves financial comfort and excelling in my career, but it also involves having meaningful, long-lasting friendships,” she elaborated.
“Success involves stretching and meditation. It involves spending (not wasting) an entire weekend doing absolutely nothing. It involves filling my partner with love, cuddling with my kittens, and making my house a home. It’s okay if I don’t take over the world, I just want to create my own,” she said.
She remarked about “Shut Me Up,” “Most people experience the feeling of not being able to speak their truth. You’re ghosted in a relationship. You’re a woman who’s constantly spoken over by men. You’re gay/trans/bisexual and can’t express it openly. You’re black in a predominantly non-black environment. You’re depressed and feel like a burden every time you try to express it. I want this song to inspire you to scream it out when they’re telling you to shut up. You owe it to yourself.”
“Shut Me Up” is available on digital service providers by clicking here.
