Interview With Diana Rein - June, 2007
By: Dennis M. Kelly
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DK:
Thanks Diana for taking the time with me today!
DR: You got it! I am very happy to be able to sit
down and talk about everything that is up and coming!
DK:
There is a lot of BUZZ around you these days and it
is all good!
DR: Wow! That’s music to my ears!
DK:
First, you have your CD release party coming up very
soon at Joe’s Bar in Chicago. And second, you’ll be
opening for the John Corbett band who, for those that
don’t know played “Aiden” in HBO’s Sex in the City.
How does this activity and positive vibe in your music
career make you feel?
DR: It has been nothing short of inspiring. I took
a break for about a year to find the perfect Producer
for my album, to finally get some of my songs recorded,
to mix the album and master it and finally package
it. Now that I have the product in hand, I have been
so open to getting it out there and finding any avenues
that I can to reach people with my music. I am keeping
the channels open and opportunities keep appearing.
It has been really wonderful.
DK:
What have been the hardest challenges you’ve went
through and what challenges do you see ahead of you
still?
DR: The hardest challenges that I have faced? I could
go on and on!! (laughs)
One of those would be finding a producer that really
held the same vision as I did for my music. Someone
that allowed me to record my music the way that I
envisioned it, someone who really supported my artistic
sense and wanted me to succeed my way. I found that
person in Ted Wulfers, who is an amazing solo artist
himself. So he understood what it meant to help me
out and not hurt me by completely changing my music
to fit his needs. He didn’t have any ulterior motives
with my album. He just wanted it to sound good and
he wanted me to be happy.
Now that I have the album, the biggest challenge that
I am facing is distribution and getting my music out
there. I am a one woman show right now. I would really
welcome getting a team together to help with the business
side of things, but they have to be the right person,
with the right energy. Otherwise, I am happy to be
doing all of the little things myself since it is
my business essentially. It is really rewarding when
you work so hard at something yourself and start seeing
results. At the same time, it is really rewarding
when you find people that are willing to help you
out because they believe in you. What more could an
artist ask for?
DK: Do you do anything to help you stay focused
on the tasks ahead of you to always be productive
with your time?
DR: I can get a little scatter brained sometimes.
I can definitely be a procrastinator. But a couple
of things that have helped me are to workout regularly
in order to clear my head. I stay away from the TV
as much as possible because I can definitely get sucked
in and waste hours in front of the tube. I am nuts
about wanting people to know that I am serious about
my career so I don’t sit on things for very long.
I get things done fast otherwise they nag at me. For
example, if someone writes me an email, I have to
keep the ball rolling and get back to them ASAP because
I am anxious to get stuff moving. Gotta make the most
of my time. I think that if you are passionate about
something, you don’t mind doing everything it takes
to make it happen.
DK: Tell me a little bit about the album itself,
how do you feel about it overall?
DR: The album, “The Back Room”, is a collaborative
work between me and my Producer Ted Wulfers. I used
to do shows with him and one day I was talking to
him about the difficulties that I was having finding
a Producer to record my songs the way that I envisioned
them. He suggested that we lay down some tracks. We
started recording songs in my home studio and Ted
and I played most of the instruments. We brought in
our drummer, Jeff Kelly, towards the end to add drums
to all of the tunes. During the mixing stage, we had
Van Christie of Pulseblack Records to make that happen.
During the mastering stage we had Dan Stout over at
Colossal mastering work on that. This album is a dream
come true to me. Everyone that was involved put such
a great touch to it. The name of the album actually
came from The Back Room that is on Rush Street here
in Chicago. When I was about 9 years old, I went there
with my parents and was brought up onstage to do a
blues improv with two blues singers. That was the
first time that I received a standing ovation and
my parents were in awe that I had just sung the blues
with veterans when I was just a little kid. I have
video of that event and I am hoping to get it up on
the website soon. That was where it all began and
I am fortunate to have that on celluloid!
DK: How long did it take you to produce the album?
DR: In total from the first track that we laid down
to the packaging of the album, it took one year. It
took awhile because of schedules, etc. But I think
it worked out just perfectly because I may not have
been ready until now. Everything worked out just perfectly.
DK: The songs themselves, what do they mean to you
personally?
DR: The first song that I ever wrote is “Goodbye”.
I used to live in Los Angeles and was pursuing acting
out there. After awhile, I got tired of the scene
out there and wanted to come back home. I was also
involved in a relationship for years out there that
I wouldn’t call “healthy”. I had to take a step back
and get away from that destructive relationship. You
think its love and you have a false sense of it being
passionate, but it’s more like a drug that keeps you
there and makes you die a little inside with each
passing day. When I moved back home, I started singing
all of the time and then picked up the guitar again
and the songs came flowing out about that particular
relationship. It was definitely therapy for me to
create something beautiful out of something that was
destroying my joy. Most of the songs on the album
deal with love and love lost and learning to regain
freedom and embrace independence. I know that a lot
of people, women and men, can relate to that subject.
There are a few songs on there that are very positive
about love, true love and that was influenced by my
current relationship. There is hope!!
DK:
One of your biggest influences was Stevie Ray Vaughan,
how did his influence affect the way you play guitar?
DR: God, he inspires me so much. I first saw his DVD
that was Live From Austin in 2003. Up to that point,
I was all about the acoustic guitar. But after seeing
that show, I bought my first electric and started
learning Pride N’ Joy and started focusing more on
playing solo guitar. I have a good ear for it and
I absolutely love it. I know that I have a long way
to go in playing solo guitar, but it’s what I absolutely
love. I always joke and say that I am going to be
the first guitar playin’, blues grandma!! Buddy Guy,
who I absolutely adore, is 70 years old and rocking
out!! That’s gonna be me!
DK:
Where did music begin with you in your life?
DR: I was born in Romania and my father was a music
teacher out there and my aunt was a famous singer
there. My parents have told me that I wouldn’t fall
asleep in my crib unless they turned the radio on
so that I could fall asleep to music. The Bee Gees
were my favorite, I am told. I came to America when
I was three years old. I always remember having a
tape recorder to record myself singing my own made
up songs. I had a song called “Yellow Baby” where
I just kept repeating the words “Yellow Baby” in all
sorts of styles and melody lines. It was just so fun
for me! I remember the first records that I ever owned,
actually my sister owned them and I would listen to
them and sing and dance along. They were Whitney Houston,
Stevie Wonder, Madonna, and Michael Jackson. We also
loved Prince. I would always record songs that I loved
from the radio onto tape and just sing them all day
long.
DK:
Did you take any lessons for guitar or singing at
all?
DR: I took a few voice lessons when I was in high
school and I am currently taking lessons with a wonderful
voice teacher by the name of Tamara Anderson. I think
that it is so important to know your instrument and
to be mindful of how it works and how to manage it,
with a rigorous voice schedule, it’s important to
know when to use it and when to lay low and to be
able to feel it out. I used to play piano when I was
younger and I wrote a few compositions on the piano
but I didn’t take it seriously. I would love to get
back into playing the keys. But the true songwriting
didn’t start until I picked up the guitar for some
reason. Melodies just jumped out at me when I picked
up the guitar. I was self taught in rhythm guitar.
It was only after I saw Stevie Ray Vaughan and wanted
to learn solo guitar that I looked for help from a
teacher. But at the current moment, I am not taking
guitar lessons. I think there is a lot of value in
learning from a teacher, but I am at the point where
I need to be listening more and playing from my soul.
DK:
Were there any other bands that you’ve performed or
worked with?
DR: After moving back to Chicago, I was singing backup
for a country artist named Mark Lonsway. I always
collaborated on some acoustic shows with Ted Wulfers.
I was involved in a band called Triple Threat a year
back. It was a great experience because that was the
first time that I played the guitar and also sang
in a band situation.
DK:
What is your insider’s opinion on Chicago as a music
city?
DR: The more and more that I am trying to infiltrate
the scene and the more that I read about other’s experiences
with Chicago, the more I realize that this is the
place to be. Especially for independent singer/songwriters,
there are so many places to play out here and there
are so many opportunities for getting exposure. I
am just getting started in finding out what a gem
of a city this is for music. It’s so easy to think
that another city is going to provide you with more
opportunity, but there is so much to be had here,
it is worth seeking out. Plus, the Midwest Chicago
folks are the best!
DK:
In order to give our readers more of a better idea
of who you are as a person, here are a few more personal
questions. Besides music, what else occupies your
days?
DR: I have been working as a headshot photographer
during the day which is really awesome seeing as I
had a past in acting and really respect actors. It’s
been really rewarding to help others achieve their
goals.
DK:
Do you read many books or watch movies much?
DR: I only go to the movies once in awhile when there
is a big film opening like “300”, “Spiderman”, “Superman”,
“Batman”. God, that’s a lot of “mans!!” Anyway, I
tend to get antsy if I have to sit in front of the
TV for a long time because I always feel like that
is time that I can be playing or practicing. I usually
have to just set time for the movies and make sure
that I have practiced for the day before I can feel
comfortable lounging and relaxing. I have read a bunch
of books lately on the Law of Attraction. I jumped
on “The Secret” bandwagon, even though I know that
those principles have been around for ages. I try
to live my life in a positive way because I know that
there is no progression in negative energy unless
you use it to create. I love reading about metaphysical
topics and about the music industry, like famous band
bios and reference books about how the industry works.
DK:
What are your views on the world as it is right now?
DR: Wow. That’s a loaded question. My heart goes out
to the soldiers who are fighting for us. My heart
feels an emptiness for politics in general. My heart
yearns for humanity and for the good in people to
lift us out from under this cloud of hopelessness.
I keep hoping that the positive energy that I put
out will be contagious and will be absorbed by everyone
around me so that other people around those people
will start feeling the positivity until we have an
uplifting world to live in. I am a very compassionate
person and that’s why I tend to stay away from politics
because I feel that it is so power driven, I can’t
relate.
I am just learning how to be more green and to help
out with the situation that we are facing now with
global warming. There are basic things that we can
do that start in the home. Recycle; be mindful of
the amount of water we use, use natural cleaners in
the home instead of harsh chemical products that not
only affect our lungs but the environment. Buy organic
foods, eat natural, whole foods, turn off appliances
when we are not home and unplug them. Use bags made
of material instead of using paper or plastic bags
because even the paper bags require that we cut down
millions of trees a year. It’s a learning process
to change our ways, but if it can help our children
and their children, I think it’s worth it.
DK: And now back to your music, do you have anything
else you’d like our readers to know about your music
and your album?
DR: My album was a recording in time. I will
always be evolving and growing and I would hope that
my creative expression is welcome and appreciated
and used in a good way to inspire others.
DK:
Any other final thoughts to share?
DR: I almost stopped thinking about pursuing music
when I came across a friend who works at a hospital
with children. She told me that she played my songs
for the kids at the hospital and they would always
ask her to play my songs again because they enjoyed
them so much and said that “I had a pretty voice.”
That brought me to tears and I knew that I had to
keep going because it was only then that I realized
that I could touch people and connect with people
through this medium. Music is my life and music will
help me to share my love with others. It fills my
heart!
DK: Thank you very much again and we look forward to attending your show at Joe’s on June 1st! You can learn more about Diana Rein at: www.dianarein.com