Katie Melua - Musician/Singer/Songwriter

By: Dominick A. Miserandino

Katie Melua has an incredibly large underground following in Europe and the UK. Here in the States she is basically starting from scratch. Melua spends some time with us talking about her fans.

DM) The past few years have generated a massive buzz for you. To what do you attribute that?

KM) I know the type of music I make isn’t the mainstream music out for the past five years. I grew up with pop, R&B and hip-hop and that is what is for my generation, but I make music primarily based on melody and lyrics. I ask myself why has it taken off so much lately, obviously particularly in the UK and Europe. It could be the difference in my music that attracts people to it. They don’t often get melody-based artists a lot. I’m not scared of portraying passion in music. The most powerful thing in music is how it can affect your emotions. I ask myself the question about the buzz lately a lot.

DM) I notice even this buzz across the Internet, where pages dedicated to you surpassed many other artists.

KM) My music isn’t easily accessible. We have a lot of trouble getting radio airplay even in our successful markets. I wouldn’t say I’m considered a cool artist. That is why you only see me in the MTV European awards and other “hip” establishments.

DM) Do you think your fans are a different breed of fans and that influences them to create a buzz?

KM) Yes, absolutely. In fact, there was one thing that happened to me on my European tour a few months back. I was doing a meet and greet and I remember meeting one girl who was probably 16 or 17 years old. When you meet fans, sometimes it can be an awkward situation because you don’t know what to talk about. So I tried to make conversation, to make her feel comfortable. I asked, “What music do you listen to” and what struck me is when she said, “I’ve never listened to much music at all, until I listened to your music.” Of course I was surprised as I never met somebody who never really listened to music or has not gotten into one artist or so. Everybody I know has their top five or 10 favorite musicians. I was like, “Oh my god, that is so weird.” Somebody might view that as an uncultured person but I found it quite special that my music touched somebody on an emotional level that never had that connection before.

DM) People seem to attribute the music world as being first you hit fame and fortune and therefore you’re touching lives. It seems as if your fan base is working almost in the different direction.

KM) Definitely. When we started, we had that in mind. There’s nothing I hate more than when music is overplayed. I think it’s a shame for the artist and the music itself. It slightly takes away from it. I always try to keep it that way. My whole view on fame is that I’ve never tried to overexpose myself. I’ve avoided interviews that have to do with images as opposed to the music.

DM) Is that part to do with why you’re at this position in your career? You’re not pushing to be in people’s faces as much as allowing the fans to talk to each other about the music.

KM) Absolutely. In fact, that’s the thing; we haven’t broken in America as much as we have abroad. I’m not coming in here thinking, “We’re the biggest thing in Europe, America you better like it!” I think that’s a really arrogant way to look at it. I look at it and think, “There’s people here and if they like my music, that’s great. I love the idea of going back to the beginning, playing these tiny clubs and winning the audience from scratch. In the UK, I play for five to 10,000 people a night. Here, I have to go back to the roots and tour from scratch, but I enjoy that.

DM) Since there is such a big discrepancy between your fame over in the UK and the States, it sounds as if you enjoy the feeling of getting to build your career up again.

KM) I imagine that lots of artists wouldn’t like the idea of having to go back to scratch but I really enjoy that. You don’t have the anonymity here but you have the capability of going back in time and starting again with a fresh face, and that’s really special. Maybe small things that I wish I hadn’t done in the UK. I haven’t got any regrets, but I can go back in time and not make the same mistake.

DM) What have you learned to do differently?

KM) The great thing is that I’ve had the experience of playing live now. When I first started and things took off in the UK, I don’t think musically I was quite ready for it. When the first album did 1.5 million in six months that was an amazing achievement that made me so happy. I was just out of college and trying to figure out who I was; it’s not that it made it hard and I’m not being sappy. I just don’t think I was good enough for that amount of success. I think that at this stage, I think, I’m at a good level. I think it’s a good time for me in my career.

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