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Unsigned518 - Episode 146 - Hailey Renee · Unsigned518

• 0:01
  Speaker A: He was born on a Saturday in 73. He loves far cry music. The 19th jabbing in the dazzle jazz. It's motherfucking Andy Sc. Here it comes. Andy Sc.
• 0:25
  Speaker B: Welcome to unsigned 518. I am here again, just like I was last week in the Jive Hive, doing a podcast while there's a production being set up around me. And I am here with Hayley Renee. How's it going?
• 0:42
  Speaker C: I'm so good. How are you?
• 0:44
  Speaker B: I'm fantastic. And, you know, like I said, there is going to be commotion around us. It's exciting, though, you know, I feel like we're on a TV set.
• 0:55
  Speaker C: Yeah, it's cool.
• 0:56
  Speaker B: So I want to go back and have you kind of tell the people the story of your music, kind of how you started, you know, because everybody has that transition of going from listening to music to playing to writing. So I guess tell the story kind of how you want to tell it.
• 1:16
  Speaker C: Yeah. So music has been in my life for a really long time. I've always loved to sing, even from, like, high school. I was in chorus. I loved that. But I actually only really started getting into making my own music last year, and I really didn't think it was, like, a possibility. I used to go to, like, open mic stuff all the time. The first instrument I learned how to play was the ukulele, so I used to go to open mics. I would play Riptide. Every time I'd play riptide and I'd sing it, and I thought it was, like, the coolest thing ever. I was like a teenager, you know, I just thought it was super cool. But I didn't really start to get serious about it until last year. I had very basic. I got a MacBook a Scarlet Studio setup, and I got, like, the trial version of Logic Pro. And at the time that I started making songs, I thought they were the best thing ever. And now when I listen to them, I'm like, these are awful. And I'm so glad that I took the time to, like, figure out what I was doing for some part, because if I put those out, I'd be so embarrassed.
• 2:19
  Speaker B: But that's the best thing. Or not the best thing about music, but, like, to just do it. It sounds fucking cliche and everything, but you have to just do it. And if you're not at least slightly embarrassed by the earlier stuff, then you're not doing things correctly. You know what I mean? Because you have to grow and you have to start out somewhere.
• 2:38
  Speaker C: Yeah. And for a long time, too. I don't really know notes on the piano, but I can play what sounds good. So for a while, it was just like playing stuff on a piano and making up lyrics to it and recording it, and that was it. And then I kind of started to get into, like, I got a MIDI keyboard and, you know, playing with different sounds and stuff. But it took a while to really find, like, my style, too. That took a while for sure. So I think, like, seeing the growth, even from just a year is, like, super cool in itself.
• 3:17
  Speaker B: And again, you have to, like, put it out there. You have to. You have to, like, not study. I don't want to say failures, because, like, earlier music, like, going back and listening, it's not a failure, but you have to, like, study what you are. I don't know. It's. It's hard to. But you get what I'm saying? Like, you have to study your earlier stuff because that's how you find your style, you know, that's how you grow into. Helps push you along, you know?
• 3:41
  Speaker C: Well, I didn't even know, like, the structure of a song. Like, I didn't know there should be, like, a verse. And of course, I was just doing random, and I'm like, what the fuck is this? That's perfect.
• 3:52
  Speaker B: You know, that's like, how, you know, like, again, it's more about the tenacity to just be like, I gotta get this shit out and then figure out how to piece it together and mold it later. Yeah, I mean, I love that.
• 4:05
  Speaker C: Yeah.
• 4:05
  Speaker B: So the earlier stuff that you're talking about, none of that has been released, right?
• 4:10
  Speaker C: No, and it never will see the light of day.
• 4:12
  Speaker B: I hope there won't be any, like, hidden. Hidden Hailey Renee demo tapes that come out later.
• 4:17
  Speaker C: Those will not be on there.
• 4:20
  Speaker B: So the. As you got into, you know, crafting stuff, like going from, you know, something simple leading up to, like, MIDI stuff and keyboards and writing your own song. When did you feel that? I guess that plateau when you're like, I'm ready to. I'm ready to release, you know. Cause I know you have a couple singles out there that are great, by the way, but, like, when did you make that switch?
• 4:45
  Speaker C: So the first song I put out was Clueless, and I actually discovered that I am more of a singer songwriter than I am with trying to make beats. I made Clueless with All Loops. I'm gonna be so honest, I used all loops for that. Cause, you know, it took time to figure out what I'm good at. And I realized I'm good at writing and singing stuff. I'm not a producer. I'm not a beat maker, you know, it's just. I mean, I made that song all myself, and I am really proud of it. But even, like, the songs I'm doing now are so different from that, even that I'm like, Clueless is, like, my first song, so, you know, it's like my baby, but it. It's. It's definitely, like, a switch in style even now from then. But that song, I think with that one, I just. Once I wrote the chorus, the hook of that song, I was like, it just felt, like, special to me. It felt right. And I just. Usually when I listen to my songs, I'm like, okay, shut this off. I don't want to hear it anymore. I hate it. I don't want to listen to my voice. I don't want to listen to what I wrote. It sounds cringy. Like, get it off. But that song, like, I couldn't stop listening to it, and I was like, if I like it this much, like, maybe other people will. Maybe this is the one. So I was like, let's just put it out and see what happens. I got it. I got to put something out. So, you know.
• 6:07
  Speaker B: Well, you know, being your own toughest critic helps a lot, you know, because it does give you that level of, well, you know, shit. Like, this is good. Put it out. You know, like, even though your other stuff is probably good enough to put it, but you're too tough on it, I guess. So when was Clueless released? How long ago are we talking?
• 6:27
  Speaker C: April. Like, this past April. So. Yeah.
• 6:30
  Speaker B: Yeah. So super. Super. I love. And I love the, you know, being like a. An old dude. Like, I love the access to being able to be like, I want to do this, and you can literally do it yourself.
• 6:44
  Speaker C: I know. That's like, people ask me all the time. They're like, how did you just, like, put out a song? Like, you can just do that? And I'm like, yeah, like, you could do it if you wanted to. It's crazy. Like, anybody could put out music. And I didn't know that either. Like, I thought it was like, you had to be, like, famous. Like, a actual signed. Yeah.
• 7:02
  Speaker B: And that's like, the whole thing of my show is unsigned. Yeah. It's like, no, no. It's a bunch of people that are like, oh, no, I want to do that, too. So I'm gonna.
• 7:10
  Speaker C: Yeah, yeah.
• 7:12
  Speaker B: And I love that. And so it's only been since April. And you have what, is three out now or the third one about to come out.
• 7:20
  Speaker C: I have three out now. Yeah. The next one is coming out October 11th.
• 7:24
  Speaker B: Nice. And we're. We'll hear that later in this episode, right?
• 7:28
  Speaker C: Yes.
• 7:28
  Speaker B: Yeah. All right, so I think we should hear a song. So which one do you want to play first?
• 7:34
  Speaker C: Let's do Never Be like youe. That's my most recent release. This song. I actually. I got the whole piano beat. It's a very slow song. It's like I always say it's the saddest song I've ever written. I've probably written sadder songs since this song. So now I'm kind of lying. But it's a really sad song. I write a lot of, like, heartfelt sad stuff. Cause it comes easy to me. I always write my stuff based off of, like, how I'm truly feeling in the moment. So my songs are very. In that sense. But I got that piano beat from, like, another producer, and I was sitting on it for a while. Like, I really wanted to write something to it, but I didn't know what. And one day I was just sitting there, I was listening to it, and it just kind of, like, came to me. I kind of wrote it about one of my last relationships, actually. And then I didn't actually finish it until my most recent breakup. So it kind of, like, all came together somehow. And it was kind of, like, giving myself closure that I didn't get from the relationship almost. So it's sad, but it helped me a lot with, like, moving forward. So that's kind of like what I want for other people when they listen to it.
• 8:50
  Speaker B: Cool. Let's check out Never Be like youe, Hailey, Renee, and then we'll be right back.
• 8:56
  Speaker D: Wait a second. Did you really mean that? Told all your friends that you're not really into me? Only tell me that you love me that I'm pretty. Cause you know it's something I believe Long to tell me that you're sorry no, it's only. Cause you never want to be lonely Put me right back on the shelf. You know that shit hurt like hell the one thing I can tell myself I'll never want to be like you don't know if I felt too hard or you took it way too far When I look up at the stars no, I never wanna be like you.
• 10:04
  Speaker A: Like you, like you, like you I.
• 10:14
  Speaker D: Never wanna be like you.
• 10:19
  Speaker A: Like you, like you I never wanna be like.
• 10:30
  Speaker D: You so dramatic that's what you tell me Cause you feel guilty but you know Never wanna say Found it funny you up and leave me after saying I never have to worry? Don't you tell me that you're sorry no, it's only? Cause you never wanna be lonely Put me right back on the shelf? You know that shit hurt like hell the one thing I can tell myself I'll never wanna be like you don't know if I felt too hard oh, you took it way too far When I look up at the stars No, I never wanna be like you, like.
• 11:44
  Speaker A: You, like you, like you I never.
• 11:54
  Speaker D: Wanna be like you.
• 11:59
  Speaker A: Like you, like you.
• 12:06
  Speaker D: I never wanna be like you.
• 12:10
  Speaker B: All right, that was Never Be like youe. Haley, Renee. And that is your most recent single. So you've got three out now.
• 12:16
  Speaker C: Yeah.
• 12:17
  Speaker B: And are you thinking about doing an album? Are you working on any more songs?
• 12:22
  Speaker C: Yeah, I'm sitting on, like, 10 songs right now. I. All of my free time is. I'm constantly either rehearsing the songs that I have or I am making new songs constantly. But, yeah, so album is in the works. I don't have a name for the album yet, but it's. I'm really happy with the direction that it's going because I feel like these songs that I've been making most recently are, like, the direction I've really been wanting to go with my music. So it feels, like, really good.
• 12:54
  Speaker B: And when you say you have the 10 songs, are they just written? Are they recorded? Like, where are you at in the. In the stage?
• 13:01
  Speaker C: Yeah. So a good majority of them are nearly finished. They're all. I have demos recorded for all of them. That's kind of how I. That's how I write. Like, when I write songs, I'll find whatever I'm gonna use for my track, whether it's something I made, something I found from somebody else. That's the first thing I do. And then it can be a few ways. I can either find the track that I really like, and then I can look through. I have, like, millions of song lyrics written in my phone. Because I can be, like, at work, and all of a sudden I'm like, oh, my God, this will sound so good in a song. Hold on, everybody. Let me stop doing my job so I can put this in my phone really quick.
• 13:38
  Speaker B: We all do it.
• 13:40
  Speaker C: So sometimes I can pull stuff from there and be like, oh, this would sound really good with this. Other times, it's literally just. I'm sitting there singing different lines into a mic, and I'm like, okay, that sounds okay, but I don't really like it. Okay, that sounds like crap. Let me fucking delete that. And then other times it's like, okay, like, this sounds really good. And I like to write it that way. I think it's fun to kind of. It's like top lining. You're just singing over it and trying out what works. And then you're also just really hearing it and seeing, like, could this be a song? Because, like, for me, if it's not something that's going to stick in my head for, like an extended period of time, if I can't stop thinking about it, okay, I have something good. If I'm like, okay, this is whatever, I'm not going to want to finish it because I know that if I not catching on to it, nobody else is going to.
• 14:25
  Speaker B: Yeah. I'm a big fan of the demo, by the way. It's like having something, even if it's just rudimentary, you know, a drum loop and MIDI bass line or whatever, just like something tangible that you can listen to. Or, you know, at least me personally, like, that's what helps me decide, like you said, if it's going to stick or not. Because, like, I can hear something kind of in my head, but unless there's something tangible, it, you know, it goes away.
• 14:53
  Speaker C: Yeah, right.
• 14:54
  Speaker B: That's me. Anyway.
• 14:55
  Speaker C: Yeah.
• 14:55
  Speaker B: So you have 10 songs working on an album.
• 15:00
  Speaker C: Yes.
• 15:00
  Speaker B: Like, and there's. I'm sure, you know, at this point there's probably not like a release date or even a release window, but it's being worked on. Yeah.
• 15:08
  Speaker C: I would like it to be, like, within the next few months. That would be great. But I'm just so, like, I want everything to be perfect. It takes me forever to get, like, cover photos for, like, artwork. Cause I'm. I literally do like, everything myself. So I'm, like, propping up my phone to take a picture, which really is me taking, like, videos and then trying to take a screenshot from the video. And that for my most recent single that's coming out on the 11th, that one, I think I literally spent, like, just four hours, like, putting on different things, angling the camera different ways, trying to set myself up in different ways just to get that one perfect screenshot for the artwork. So there's a lot that, like, goes into it. And if there's, like, one little thing that I don't like about it, then I'm not gonna use it. So it's like. It's the same with my music. Like, if there's one little word I don't like, or, oh, I don't like the Way I sang that, I don't like the harmonies in this. I don't like the backing vocal. Like, I'll just redo the whole thing. So it just. It takes so much time for me to, like, really get it to where I want it to be.
• 16:17
  Speaker B: And, like, so you're going true DIY with everything from the songwriting to the making of the music to the promotion machine to your own photographer, your own videographer. I mean, I love that. It just. The tenacity and the. Just do it. And again, I almost hate that expression just because of the fucking shoe company. But it is just like you said, you had friends that are like, what, you can just make songs and release them. Yeah, you absolutely can. Everybody can do it.
• 16:57
  Speaker C: I love that.
• 16:59
  Speaker B: So do we want to hear the latest single that by the time this episode, releases, will have come out? It's not out yet, but it will be out. So tell us a little bit about this one.
• 17:13
  Speaker C: So this one is very different from Never Be like you. It's called I'm Not Sorry I wrote this song. So little backstory. I went through a really rough breakup at the beginning of the summer. Like, biggest heartbreak of my life. I'm gonna be so real right now. I was with this person for almost three years, and it was a very unexpected breakup. Like, up and left me. Didn't get much of an explanation. It's still really hard for me because I have. I think I'll always have so much love for this person. But when I wrote this song, I'm not sorry. I was like, in my phase of, like, fuck this person. I'm so angry. I hate her. Like, I was just so upset and mad, and I made the song, and then I was like, I'm never gonna put this out. Cause this is, like. I don't know. It's very sassy. It's very like, fuck you. And I was like, I don't know if I can put something like that out. You know, I sent it to, like, a bunch of my friends, and they were like, haley, you have to put this song out. You have to. I was like, I don't know. I don't know. And then I sang it at my first live performance, and, like, everybody loved it. So I was like, okay, I'm just. I'm gonna put it out. So it took me a while to, like, be okay with putting it out, but now it's become, like, my favorite song that I've ever made. Because it's like, honestly, it's so me. It really is so me. And I think I was afraid of that. Like, I think I was really afraid of, like, just being like, yeah, this is me and this is my song, and this is my attitude and this is my. You know what I mean? But now I'm, like, really excited about it. So. Yeah.
• 19:02
  Speaker B: So let's check out I'm not sorry, Haley Renee. And then we'll be right back to wrap it up.
• 19:09
  Speaker A: I'm not sorry I'm not sorry.
• 19:29
  Speaker D: Been a little while now I think I'm fine over you now had to take some time calling me up cause you wanna rewind I'm good. Cuz you a on my mind come.
• 19:42
  Speaker A: Better off without you you can't deal what you think that I still want you just want to let you know I'm not sorry your eyes don't talk to me cuz when I want you baby.
• 20:04
  Speaker D: Just don't want to let you.
• 20:06
  Speaker A: Know I'm not sorry your lies don't.
• 20:31
  Speaker D: Think it's kind of funny how you play both sides Ego feels good till.
• 20:36
  Speaker A: You realize you lost a good thing.
• 20:39
  Speaker D: Don'T act surprise I just don't wanna.
• 21:08
  Speaker A: Let you know I'm not sorry your eyes don't talk to me and when you figure out you still want me come back I'm not sorry don't talk to me.
• 21:33
  Speaker D: You know.
• 21:38
  Speaker A: I'm sorry.
• 21:43
  Speaker B: All right, so that was. I'm not sorry, Haley Renee. And thank you so much, Haley, for taking time out of your day to come and do this with me. And especially, like, you know, in the middle of. Of the hive when there's a production being set up.
• 21:56
  Speaker C: Oh, my gosh. No. Thank you for having me. This is really cool. Like, I'm so happy to be here.
• 22:00
  Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, it's a. It's a fun place. We really dig it here. But before we go, I just want to give you a chance, like I do with all my guests, to say what I refer to as your gratitude. So microphone is all yours.
• 22:14
  Speaker C: I want to say thank you to my friends and family for supporting my music. And I'm super thankful for all my coworkers. My co workers are like my little family. I love them so much. Yeah, I'm really thankful for the refrigerators, my dad's band, for letting me come up on stage with them all the time and sing. It's a great experience, and I'm super thankful for all the people that I've like, met along the way that have let me send them my songs. Kevin Brandau, Paul Zarvis, Michael Bruce. You guys are all awesome. Yeah. Thank you so much for having me.
• 22:54
  Speaker B: You're very welcome. All right, so she is Hailey Renee. I am Andy scullen. This is unsigned 518 and I'll see you on the road. Unsigned 518 is produced and hosted by me, Andy Scullen. New episodes are available every week wherever you stream podcasts. If you would like to help support the show, please like and subscribe wherever you are listening. Or you could buy me a coffee@buymeacopy.com unsigned 518 if you would like to advertise on the show, send me an email@unsigned518mail.com and to be a guest on the show, reach out to me through Instagram at unsigned518. Take care of one another and I'll see you next week.