Divine is thrilled to welcome talented Singer Songwriter Liz Asaro to the website today. Liz is a New York based singer, who’s getting ready for the launch of her brand new exciting rock-edged pop single, ‘1000 Years’
Her music is a unique mix of genres, which falls in the category of modern/alternative rock. The sound of the single has been likened to that of the Irish 90’s band, The Cranberries, with a strong guitar loop, thick bass line and driving beat and smooth rock vocals.
We caught up with her recently and asked some cheeky questions to get her know a bit better before we leapt into the serious stuff.
Welcome to Divine Magazine, Liz. It’s great to have you with us. We tend to use some silly questions as ice breakers for the article, so here are yours 😊
Do you have a cherished childhood teddy-bear?
Honestly, my mom made me a pink chicken and three yellow chicks out of old towels, and those are my most cherished stuffed animals from my childhood!
What’s your favorite pizza topping?
Pepperoni
If you could breed two animals together to defy the laws of nature what new animal would you create?
A lion and an elephant. My two favorite animals. Beautiful, wise, graceful, powerful kings.
If you could learn any language fluently what would it be?
Italian
Have you ever owned a goldfish?
I have three now, I didn’t really want them. My friend though it would be funny to take my kids to the goldfish booth at the carnival and now we’ve got these fish.
If you could have any feature from an animal, what would you want?
It would be cool to be able to fly at this point, traffic in NYC has gotten unbearable really.
Now to delve into the world of Liz Asaro and her music.
You’re currently working on your debut album with a bunch of uber talented people in the industry such as Gerry Leonard (guitar) and Sterling Campbell (drums). Who else are you working with and what led you to choose these people to collaborate with?
I met Gerry through a producer named Wayne Sheehy, who I co-wrote 1000 Years with. They both were from the Dublin music scene. He asked Gerry to play on my record and he agreed. Soon after Gerry tracked I needed a drummer. I made a list of my ideal drummers, even if I didn’t know them, and Sterling was on it. Coincidentally, we were at the same event a week later. I asked Sterling to play on my track and he agreed! I’m honestly so blessed. They are incredible players and amazing people, who have given me so much support, guidance and above all, friendship. I was also fortunate to have my friend Tim Lefebvre play bass. He is a college friend who I recently reconnected with, and he happily jumped I as well. He is an extraordinary player and all around great person, who also happened to play with Bowie on Blackstar. I regularly play with Blondie guitarist Tommy Kessler, who is also my MD. I am very fortunate to be surrounded by these guys!
It’s a tough industry to break into. Have you any words of wisdom for potential artists to give them hope that perhaps one day they can break into the genre too?
I find that you just have to be in it. I mean, go to gigs, talk to players, ask people to sit down and write with you, take lessons, collaborate, and then support. Then you have to do the best work you can do and learn the basics of the business/contract side. You can easily get taken advantage of if you don’t know the basics. And have as much fun as you possibly can!!!
You’re a mom as well as a music artist – what do your family think about your music career?
They are extremely supportive and enthusiastic about it. I am lucky. It’s tough when I have to take time away from them, but they know I am following my passion and we believe in that concept in our family, so we all support one another.
What have you found the toughest thing in being an artist and traveling to gigs to make music? Any funny anecdotes you’d like to share with us?
The toughest thing is being away from my kids. I have only played shows in NYC so far, so I don’t have any road trip stories. I mean there was the time that my cover band travelled to Rochester to play a gig and our bass player almost flipped the van, but other than that…stay tuned!
Tell us when we can expect your new album to be released and a little bit about what we might find in it. We understand your single, ‘1000 Years’ was released on June 21st.
I’m planning a fall release for the EP, and yes 1000 Years will be out in late June, and another single shortly after. This record will incorporate a lot of what I love about music; real instruments, edgy guitar, distinct ethereal vocals, atmospheric sounds and cool percussive elements. I hope people can relate to a little bit of their own journey in the lyrics, and in the emotion that the instruments evoke.
How do you feel about the internet in the music business – are there pros and cons for you?
The pros are that artists have many ways to reach audiences themselves and control content, messages and the image they want to get across. The cons are that due to streaming, the artists make no money from record sales. Also, there is so much coming at you, it’s hard to stop clicking from one thing to the next. I hope people will one day appreciate an entire body of work again. There are still lots of artists that work on albums and there is a story and a journey in them.
Are there any changes you’d like to see to the music industry to allow musicians to make music and be able to sustain their careers?
Well yeah, I wish people would see the value in music. They’ll pay five dollars for a cup of coffee, but they won’t pay 99 cents for a song they’ll have forever? Does music really mean that little to people? It’s something we need to all remember and remind people without whining.
Wise words indeed, these last ones. Authors have been saying the same thing for years too. Being creative takes time, sweat and passion and artists of any kind need to be appreciated for what they put in to create the final pieces they do.
Thanks for visiting us, Liz. Please come back soon and let us know what else you’re busy with!
Questions about Liz and her work can be directed to
Big Machine Agency® 76 Great Titchfield Street, London, W1W 7QP
Big Machine Agency, LLC®
11 E 47th St, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10017
Phone: 646-657-0248 *** NEW NUMBER
Mobile: +1 646.427.5476
Email: brad@bigmachineagency.com
