Vali

VALI’s opinion on the importance of self-love shows through the way she carries herself as an artist. Even in her music, she encourages others to take charge of their lives. In her eyes, there’s nothing to gain from looking at situations in a negative light and treating oneself as unworthy. “Sometimes you meet people, and you can tell that they’re judging you or they’re not accepting of you,” Vali explains. “In the past, I had been in relationships where I allowed that to happen. Now, I don’t even let that in my circle. As long as you have that love for yourself and set the bar, then anything and anyone that doesn’t fit it just doesn’t fit it. You have to be able to let those people go,” she admits.

Not long ago, these ideals that Vali stands by turned into the song “Ain’t No Friend of Mine,” a collaboration between herself and producer T-Baby. “We were bouncing thoughts off of each other as far as what we didn’t like—friends who are shady and situations that are shady—but we also focused on the fact that we were gonna rise above it all,” Vali shares. “And that’s why the line, ‘every morning I feel summertime,’ comes in,” she describes.

At first, the meaning of the track was quite literal, but she slowly realized that it wasn’t just about people; it could be applied to situations and events as well. “Even cyberbullying and politics,” Vali lists. “That’s where I ended up taking the record. After performing it so many times, I realized that, more broadly, it’s against all kinds of hate,” she emphasizes.

A prime example would be the entertainment world itself: Vali hopes that artists can see each other as fellow members of the industry rather than as competition, and she believes that recognizing each other as equals would be an important milestone. “If you look at the top musicians in our industry, they’re all black,” Vali references. “I think that says a lot. You know, Beyoncé. It doesn’t get bigger than Beyoncé. What Rihanna has done with the fashion industry. What Viola Davis has done with acting. Unfortunately, I feel like there’s a divide in entertainment because we make it divided. But if you look at the grand picture, everyone is just as talented as everybody else. I think it’s important for us to come together and stop the separating, because that’s all coming from within the industry,” she reflects.

“I THINK THAT IF YOU DON’T LOVE YOURSELF, YOU’LL ALWAYS BE CHASING AFTER PEOPLE WHO DON’T LOVE YOU EITHER. AND THAT’S SOMETHING THAT I HOLD ONTO, BECAUSE YOU ATTRACT WHAT YOU GIVE, YOU KNOW. YOU HAVE TO LOVE YOURSELF. EVEN IF THERE ARE THINGS THAT YOU DON’T LOVE ABOUT YOURSELF, YOU HAVE TO LEARN TO ACCEPT THEM, BECAUSE OTHERWISE NO ONE AROUND YOU IS GOING TO ACCEPT THEM EITHER.”

Finding new meanings in the song, Vali sees “Ain’t No Friend of Mine” as part of a movement in which people can feel empowered to revolt against negativity. Her main goal with music is to help everyone to feel like they’re part of a community and part of something bigger and more positive. “I think music has changed a lot, and that it used to be more a community,” she voices. “A lot of artists used to join together. They

used to do more collaborations with people they actually wanted to do them with, or with people whose movements they believed in. Nowadays, it seems very selfish, as opposed to people coming together and creating a movement within the music. That’s one of my goals: to make a community” she affirms.

In the future, Vali aims to release music that fits under the umbrella of the “Ain’t No Friend of Mine” agenda. With her musical style, she has the room to create sonically fun songs while still addressing important topics at the same time. “As much as we like to turn up and get lit at the club, it’s also nice to have music that you can turn to when you’re going through something,” Vali expounds. “Music has been so therapeutic for me, especially when I connect with an artist and their music uplifts me. Michael Jackson was really good at that—at having a message behind a song that felt so good to listen to,” she mentions.

Coming from a background in classical piano and musical theater performances, it’s no wonder why Vali’s EPs have a theatrical vibe to them. Growing up in a musical family, she loved participating in music, dance, and theater extracurriculars, and the combination of these experiences is what drives her work ethic now. “Doing classical and theater was the training that I needed to have,” she confirms. “The success I’m having now, and even just the discipline required in order to learn and grow as an artist... My mom making me practice for an hour a day before I ate, or going to rehearsals for eight hours a day before a show that was maybe only running for two months... It all built discipline, just like going to school. So, for me, it really all set into each other to get me to where I’m at now,” she points out.

Taking on jazz will be her next musical challenge. “To me, jazz is the hardest because it’s so freeing, and it’s not about structure. Classical music is all about structure, and jazz is more focused on emotions and feelings,” Vali remarks. “I’m learning this piece right now by John Coltrane, called “Giant Steps.” I’ve been playing with the recording, and there’s that scene in La La Land where Ryan Gosling plays a song over and over and over again to get the intro. That has literally been me, every single day. I’ve been trying to capture the rhythm,” she continues.

Vali’s determination and musical discipline contribute to the patience she has for spreading her music around. Understanding that there are so many people to reach, she keeps a positive attitude towards getting her music out there. “That’s the slow grind of it, you know. Once you already have your following, it’s a lot easier to reach the maximum amount of people,” Vali states. “But as you’re growing and building, you just have to keep on the ground. We’ve been running from club to club and meeting all the DJs. I’ve been to every gay club in LA at this point, and we’ve just been hustling. That’s been the hardest part, but the best part too,” she details.

Looking towards the rest of 2017, Vali aspires to play her music as often and to as many people as possible, especially in festival scenes. “People who go to music festivals—for a lot of them, it’s about everybody and the experience, and not as much about individual artists,” Vali expresses. “I think that’s what’s missing in the industry right now. Everyone’s fighting to have more followers, or fighting to be the best and the hottest, when we should be focused on how can we all come together and make the world better through our music.”

INTERVIEW + STORY ELIZABETH LOO

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