Laura Marano has made her highly anticipated return to music with the release of her brand new single, “Me”. Laura’s fans have patiently waited for new material as the rising star jumped between labels over the past two years. In a way, “Me”, is the first real introduction to who Laura is as an artist. Marano admits, “Me is a song that I wrote a year ago, and the moment the other writers and I finished it, I truly felt that it was special. I had begun diving into this different sound during those few months, and I kept writing songs that I thought were cool, but they were missing something. Me had that something. It was personal, like all the songs that I worked on for this upcoming project, but it wasn’t as moody as some of my other songs. It was about happily going insane over someone, and desperately hoping they feel the same way.” After Marano’s two year hiatus, she reveals that she loves the fact that this first single is called “Me”. Laura shares, “what better way to break to an audience about my new sound and project than to say, “Everyone, this song is Me…both literally and figuratively.” However, I love how fun the actual song is. To me, it’s the perfect introduction of what’s to come, even if some of the other songs are a little moodier.” 

 

With everything that has been going on in Laura’s career over the past year, I strongly believe in the phrase, “everything happens for a reason”. Laura agrees as we discuss how the past two years, and the frustrating things she has had to overcome, influenced the material she was creating. “I constantly am looking and reflecting over the past two years, and I really do feel grateful for everything that has happened, because with the bad came the good, and any pain that I felt these past two years made me grow extensively as an artist and as just a human being. I don’t know if I would have been able to make the music that I am so proud of now, if I didn’t have the frustrations of those couple of years.” During that time, Marano had the opportunity to develop her sound and figure out who she wanted to be as an artist. Laura admits, “I feel like I truly know who I am as an artist, and it is so exhilarating. I pushed myself to find myself as an artist. I found a genre that fit my voice way more, I found more unique ways to say how I was feeling, I found melodies that were cooler. I also found what kind of production I liked on a song, and how to communicate that with producers I worked with. I like my songs to have minimal sounding production –I say sounding, because some songs sound minimal, even if they have a lot going on –because with less overwhelming production, my voice doesn’t have to compete, and can just focus on expressing the feeling of the song. It’s still pop music, which I love, but it feels like it is its own pocket of pop.”

 

One of the most rewarding bonuses of being an independent artist is the freedom to express yourself as an artist. While the past two years were full of a lot of ups and downs for Marano, she was able to pour those experiences and emotions into her writing. “This past year and a half of writing, I actually would bring a journal of everything I had experienced, felt, and wanted to write about to my sessions. I had some entries that were fleshed out song ideas, and then I had some pages that were just feelings and thoughts, and the writers and I would find the song together, which I always really love. Every session is different, and in the past year and a half, I would actually write and record multiple songs a day, so I was really happy I had my journal because it helped focus me on what I wanted to write about.”

 

While Laura has had a lot of creative freedom, working on this new material, she admits that P!NK has been one of her biggest inspirations. “I always say Pink, because I just feel as a songwriter, she has a way of getting so personal and intimate, but still making it relatable to anyone who listens. I tried to really break down the walls that I would have up when I would write, and got really personal in every room I walked in. It was scary, but I’ve never connected with my music like this before.”

 

After Laura signed with two labels and only had the opportunity to release two songs in the past three years (the last song being two years ago), she knew she had to do something different. “If I went with another label, I would have to at least wait four to six months to get a contract finished, and most likely, any label I would sign to would want me to start over with my music, which would mean at least another six to twelve months of not releasing music. It was the right thing to do when I signed with my second label, but I knew how proud and connected I was with this music, and I knew if I went with another label, it would never see the light of day. So, I made a decision, which is definitely scary, but since releasing Me, I’m actually less scared. I’m well aware of the hard work that lies ahead, but I’m really excited about it.”

 

Being an independent artist truly flexes your muscles as far as seeing the industry from a completely different perspective. While going independent came with it’s challenges, Marano reveals, “The hardest part is figuring out when I should play the label executive role and when I should play the artist role. In other words, there are days when I’m solely focused on the business side of things, but there are some days where I have to ignore that side, and just nurture myself as an artist (rehearse, write, etc.). It’s a balancing act for sure, but in some ways, it is way more empowering.”

 

Now that Marano has full control of her career, she is looking forward to putting out music that she is proud of. “For me, it’s all about that beautiful connection that music seems to create. I mean obviously, I want some sort of commercial success to make it sustainable, and I definitely could see myself signing again with the right label. I don’t see myself releasing music independently forever, but who knows? I just want to write and release music for the rest of my life. I’m in it for the long game. There’s this façade that the music industry puts out about overnight instant success. The truth is that it takes so, so long to get people to listen to the art you create. Even though I have some sort of platform, which I am so insanely grateful for, the fact of the matter is a lot of people that know me or follow me don’t know me for my music, and it’s my job to get them excited for that part of my career. It’s my job to let them know that they don’t know me for my music yet, but they will.” Laura admits that her dream is to release a body of work for her fans, revealing that an EP may be on the horizon in the next few months. Either way, the fans can expect to hear a lot more music in 2019 as Marano continues to drop singles.

 

As we lead in to 2019, Laura is approaching the new year with some personal goals. “I think personally, now more than ever, I need to make sure I am managing my time in the best ways possible. I always feel like I can manage my time better, but this year, I have to make sure I find time to do all the things I want to do. It’s so hard, but when I get it right, I feel unstoppable.” 

 

I’ve known Laura for a few years now, and to see her blossom in this new chapter of her career, truly warms my heart. After hearing “Me” for the first time, I knew this was such a freeing moment for her. Thank you for being such an incredible addition to my life, Laura. I can’t wait to see you grow even more than you have over the past three years. The journey is just beginning and I can’t wait to be standing by your side every step of the way. “Zack, you are truly such a beacon of light. Thank you for all your support, and I am so happy to call you my friend.”