Since releasing her first EP, “Heartland”, in 2019, singer-songwriter and designer Quon-J has steadily been making her mark in the music industry. We had the chance to talk with her this week over on Instagram Live with our CEO Starr, and delved deeper into her art and what drives her to make music.
Born and raised in Prince George's County Maryland, Quon-J’s connection with music started at a very young age and she would often be found taking vocal lessons or singing in her school’s talent shows. As a child, she had to overcome an illness and art became her saving grace. The arts were a way for her to express herself through writing, painting, poetry, and of course singing. Quon-J’s relationship with the arts pushes her to create awareness for others and stand up for those who can’t speak for themselves.
Recently, Quon-J traveled across the country from Maryland to Los Angeles California where she currently resides in hopes to learn and experience more as an artist. While she admits that she tends to be a perfectionist when it comes to her craft, she tries to remember that artists are often their own worst critics. Moving so far from home has allowed Quon-J to experience a myriad of good and bad things, but she believes that you always need to go through trials and tribulations to grow as a person.
One question from Starr was, “What have you learned as you’ve grown as an artist from when you were young vs now?” Quon-J realized that while she can be hard on herself, she’s learning to appreciate herself and what she’s accomplished in her life so far, but what really keeps her going are the people who tell her that her music helped them get through tough times. When a fan from Turkey sent her a DM and thanked her for making music, Quon-J was so grateful that someone took time out of their day to listen to her songs. Another fan had recognized Quon-J at her workplace, and the singer was so overcome with emotion that she almost cried.
Quon-J revealed that she’s inspired by everyone she meets because everyone carries their own stories with them. She’s inspired by every aspect of love; being in love, giving love, as well as her everyday life. In terms of musical inspirations, she’s looked up to Beyonce ever since she was a young child, along with Nat King Cole, Stevie Wonder, and Harry Belafonte.
Since everyone has a different creative process, Starr wanted to know how long it takes Quon-J to write a song! In her case, a record starts in the studio, and if a track is really good, it takes just 3 to 4 minutes to write and it’ll be recorded within an hour. One viewer asked what her favorite part of the creative process was and she answered, “Definitely going to the studio,” and explained that while she doesn’t write her music in advance, she goes into the studio with a producer wanting a certain kind of beat and works from there. The singer tells that when she’s stuck on her lyrics, she’ll look back at her journal, where she writes down her feelings from the day, and pulls from there.
Starr asked Quon-J, “What is your favorite song and music video you’ve made?” and she paused to think. She answered that amongst her discography, the track off of her 2019 EP “Heartland” called “High Enough” is her favorite. She said that it was so enjoyable to record and that she knew the song was going to do well based on the energy she had while recording it. As for her favorite music video, it was for her song “Right Here”, also a track off of the “Heartland” EP. While it was a rigorous 13-hour shoot with no breaks, Quon-J found it fun to jam-pack everything into one day, and didn’t even realize that she had a midterm exam to take that day!
In exciting news, the singer-songwriter teased an upcoming album that may differ from her usual sound. We can’t wait to hear what she has in store for us!
Quon-J’s latest single, “Strangers…Again” was released this year in January and can be found on Spotify, Apple Music, Youtube, SoundCloud, and various other platforms.
Follow Quon-J on her social media and music platforms!
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