Born and raised on the island of Kaua’i, singer-songwriter Sierra Blax is an artist that brings a fresh taste of soul, chill-pop & R&B to her music. Being raised on the islands, you’ll find from time to time, Sierra uses her landscape of palm trees and ocean breezes as inspiration for her lyrics and melodies that gives the ear this elated feeling. It is no surprise that she grew up honing her craft through weekly singing lessons with local voice teacher, Debbi Scarpell. It was then when she was introduced to Motown artists and soul music that helped shape her sound she has today.
After high school, she attended the music program at the University of Hawaii and studied vocal performance. She described her experience in music school as difficult and uneasy. “I had to learn how to sing a completely different way than how I was taught – there were moments I really wanted to give up.” Fortunately, for Blax she didn’t.
During these times, Sierra grew inspiration to write songs about the wild experiences she would encounter in her early 20’s. “I wanted to write songs that were unapologetic, fun and audacious; we are so used to female singers sugar coating things, and I wanted to represent that female empowerment in my songwriting.” Blax wants to show people that it’s ok to make mistakes, embrace it and turn it into a comedy and art.
Tell us about your new single. What’s the meaning behind it?
My newest single, “Box of Chocolates” is a love song to one’s higher-self. The meaning behind the song could be interpreted in many ways
but overall it’s underlining message I want people to take away from it is acceptance & love. “Box of Chocolates’ ‘ refers to this facade or object that’s intangible, something that’s not good for you but you want it anyways to fill some kind of void in your life, in this case wanting to experience love but not receiving it. I think we can all agree that when we crave or seek love from someone else, it never really fulfills you in the way it could be if you loved ourselves first. This song is a journey in discovering that love within your own self.
What is the inspiration behind the song lyrics and storytelling?
I wrote this song with my friend Danny Ayer in his grandparents cabin in Lake Arrowhead about a year ago. While we were up in the mountains, we were enraptured by the energy of nature and how it made us feel. Danny himself is such a storyteller, his mind and vocabulary will take you into another world. I think he and I really tapped into this into our imagination and created almost this fairytale concept of love.
You seem to be fusing several musical genres. What inspires your sound?
Yes, I tend to do that. I have a very strong love for pop and R&B music. I love the story telling aspect of pop music and I love the melodic/vocals of R&B music, these two genres kind of mirror my personality as well. I’m inspired by almost all types of sounds and artist who take risk in their music making.
What are some things you do to deal with anxiety and creative blocks?
Sheeesh… this is something I’m sort of dealing with right now. Anxiety is a motherf**ker and it really really does take a strong mind to overcome it. I do feel pressure all the time in this industry to be a certain way and to keep up with the flow of making music as much as possible to keep my traction going. It’s a lot but that’s what I signed up for, and at the end of the day it’s who I am. So far, a few things I’ve learned how to deal with anxiety, number one, is BREATH. As simple as it sounds, finding your breath and tuning into it can help anyone immensely. Also another thing that helps me is being near the ocean and surfing. Water is a healing resource for me!
Where do you see yourself in the near future?
I see myself content and happy. I also see myself working really hard to get what I want. My long term goal with my music is to hopefully generate more fans and get the chance to play more live shows on tour!
Your style is very original and elaborate. How do you take care of your aesthetics?
Thank you! I kind of love that look in between beach wear and glam. Keeping up with my aesthetic can be stressful at times, but I find it so cool and refreshing that I can create an image of who I want to be. It definitely helps that I have great friends that help me with my glam and come up with cool ideas for photoshoots.
What artists are you listening to right now?
Yebba, Amber Mark- I dove deep into watching her music videos lately, and she’s such a badass creative, Snoh Alegra, Daniel Caesar, Jordan Rakei, Jungle, and I also love listening to my friends music Eva Saturn, Tim Rose, Christopher Watson
Where do you think the next game changer will be in the music industry and entertainment scene?
Damn… I really don’t know. It’s an industry that’s constantly changing. I do think that there will be more of a niche for more authentic artists. More artists that people can relate to. It’s really hard to say though with the world still in limbo. One thing I know that will keep on evolving is the way we experience live shows. Who knows what they’ll do next!
