Interview: Madison Deaver
21 year old singer-songwriter Madison Deaver has been performing at fairs, festivals and events since only aged 10, however only fully began writing her own music around 2 years ago. From originally singing covers when she was younger, she always admired those who could write a song from scratch. After getting the hang of it herself, she tells us she’s now “obsessed” and it’s clear from every new release she’s only getting better.
Her latest single ‘That’s What She Said’ releases May 7th and follows a line of previous singles over the last few years. However, this is the first snippet from her debut EP ‘Tongue Tied’ and gives us an exciting taste of what’s to come with a fun uptempo, quirky and catchy feel to it. Madison tells us this felt like the obvious choice as a first single to put out to begin her new era as an artist. Most of Madison’s work is written from personal experience, and this new release is no exception, with lyricism that tells the story of a conflict she experienced that at the time felt incredibly annoying.
Upcoming EP ‘Tongue Tied’ due to release June 4th is Madison’s first real opportunity to voice her opinions freely as an artist after previously feeling nervous to share her experiences, with many of her stories described as well as finally standing up for herself being huge themes in this new EP. This longer release truly feels like a ‘diary’ for her, and we can only expect intimacy and authenticity from it. Virtually putting together this EP has been exciting too, as she collaborated with a UK team for parts of it as well as enjoying her time in the studio and the amazing people she’s been able to work with to put it all together. Although she’s excited for people to hear every one of the new songs on the record, she tells us she thinks ‘Villains’ excites her most due to its uniqueness as the only ballad with an ‘epic’ production.
Since starting to write her own music, Madison tells us that she’s never really stuck to one songwriting method. Sometimes she’ll think of a line or melody out of nowhere and have to write it down or record it immediately, and her phone is absolutely cluttered with unused ideas and random things. Working with other people has also really allowed her to hear other styles and opinions to enhance her own writing in the future as well as break out and do new things in her work. When it comes to the creative processes behind her songs, Madison is involved in most things like the melodies, sounds and rhythms. She’s no engineer and leaves that work to the experts, but still enjoys her time in the studio and building a song from scratch. It’s clear she puts a lot of time into her distinctive sound, and it’s been a part of her since the start of her musical career. She really prioritised finding her sound as soon as she could, feeling it was so much of an artists’ personality that it was important to perfect from the get-go. She tells us, “This EP really is a new version of who I am as a songwriter and a person really. I’ve grown and so my music will too. This EP sound is more mature and the lyrics are more raw and honest.” Her main inspirations have been Hayley Williams, Gwen Stafani and Demi Lovato as over the years their music has continually evolved along with them.
When it comes to her goals, Madison already hit her childhood dream of being a singer as well as adding songwriter along with it too. Now she dreams of being able to play her own headlining tour, and tells us she’s manifesting going on tour with another band too. To keep up with her and the exciting premise of a future tour, go check her out at @madisonsdeaver on her socials and go tag her in your covers, fun videos dancing along to her music, or let her know your thoughts on the new release. ‘That’s What She Said’ releases May 7th along with a music video soon after release. Two more exciting singles are soon to follow from her upcoming EP that will be out in the world June 4th too.
Interview by: Tatiana Whybrow-Price
