LEMY
Is there anything you'd like to share about the work you do/projects you’re involved in/your interests?:
Well, currently I have been working on writing and recording songs and soon I'm going to release them out into the world, most likely by putting them up on SoundCloud or putting music videos up on YouTube.
What is moving you at this moment?
At this moment, hearing other people play songs or sing moves me. I have a good friend who is a great singer and I love when she sings. I like being able to hear other people because it personally brings me closer to them and their music.
Could you describe your writing process?
My writing process usually consists of me writing two parts of a song, separately. For example, I would write a cool guitar part or progression, and then I would put vocals, that I wrote separately, on top.
How do poems and words connect us as human beings?
Poems and words connect us as human beings by helping us relate to each other.
What is the path of love?
The path of love is natural and it depends on the person, the situation, and the time.
Can you remember the first poem, story, or song lyrics you remember falling in love with?
I remember first falling in love with this song by Jet. It was catchy and I remember air guitaring to it and dreaming of being in a band.
Do you think can you describe your earliest memories of writing?
I don't think I can describe my earliest memories of writing but I can say that one day something hit me and made me want to do more music, causing me to eventually write.
If you could give one piece of advice to someone your age who wanted to start writing songs, what would it be?
My advice would be, for them to start by getting into the practice of just writing down whatever they're feeling. Once they're able to write what it is they're feeling (as long as they know how to play an instrument) they'll be able to turn that into a song.
If you could sing a song about anything to anyone, alive or dead, what would the song be about, and who would it be sung to?
I'd play a song for The Beatles. The song would be about life in some way, about life and love and adventure-it would really just be a song about something that anyone can relate to. It actually wouldn't even need to be sung to The Beatles, because they already understand all that stuff, it could really be sung for anyone!
Who would you like to see interviewed next on We The Tender Hearted?
I would like to see Landon Pigg interviewed on We The Tender Hearted.
LEM JAY
Is there anything you'd like to share about the work you do/projects you’re involved in/your interests?:
That it’s hard to makes things alone, even though I do sometimes. I write a lot of words on my phone and turn them into musical ditties that I rarely share with anyone, or with the one person I had the initial thought about. They’re sort of emotional sketches, a way to get things out of my head, things that confuse me or things I question. And sometimes things that inspire me. That said, I prefer to make things with friends. Most of my music projects are with my closest friends. I have a band with Jena Malone called The Shoe. That project is a lot about words. Spontaneous chants and spells that she freestyles and I musically follow her words on my Casio or Wurlitzer electric piano. I also just finished an album with Charlyne Yi, which we wrote the words and music together. It’s another duo that’s half-improvised and half-crafted. I guess with both of these projects (The Shoe and with Charlyne) it’s important that the ideas happen quickly. That the words and the music are made in a pretty spontaneous way. And with the ideas we get excited about, maybe obsess or craft, after the fact, but really not that much. Maybe it’s easier to not obsess too much when you’re writing with someone you know really well. Ha, or maybe not, I’m not sure.
What is moving you at this moment?
Parenting stuff, the thought of propagating herbs and Arvo Pärt.
Could you describe your writing process?
For me it’s mainly about the very very beginning of the process. How to start, or just simply starting. I feel like I’m constantly waiting for something, for motivation, or someone to say “hey let’s make something, I’m coming over!” I know it’s unhealthy, wanting some external motivating force. Once I start though, I usually just throw things up, not worrying about anything, a stream of conscious train that is not that poetic or lyrical. Super plain, almost mundane words and seeing the poetry or music in them. It could be a text or a short conversation. A lot of that stream stays, and then I tweak and craft parts of it, usually the stuff that makes it work better with the music, which usually comes after. After the words.
How do lyrics and words connect us as human beings?
Well, lyrics are art and there’s no better way to connect with someone other than through art/music. It creates invisible glue between people. How bored would we be if there was no poetry? And not poetry only pertaining to words, but with how we think and listen and play and hold each other.
What is the path of love?
Not thinking about the path maybe.
Can you remember the first poem, story, or song lyrics you remember falling in love with?
I think it might have been “If I Could Talk To The Animals” from Doctor Dolittle. Yeah, I wasn’t that cool of a kid. I think I actually knew all the verses to it, and there are a lot, which is funny because it’s hard for me to memorize lyrics now.
Do you think you can describe your earliest memories of writing?
Many junior high style poems, short poems that I thought were super deep, that are now lost, that were written very quickly. Before that, as a younger kid, I used to jam and write corny pop and musical theater-y songs with my brother.
Where do your lyrics come from?
An insignificant or cliché thought usually inspired by a sweet or crazy girl.
Who would you like to see interviewed on We The Tender Hearted?
Charlyne Yi
photographs by Dani Fine