Laurence DaNova is back with “This Island”
Ottawa, ON-based artist Laurence DaNova has unveiled the new single, “This Island.” The worsening war on Gaza in 2021 inspired the new single, which finds the artist creating a sonic place of refuge from the chaos of the world.
Heavily influenced by 80s and 90s pop, along with soul and trip-hop, “This Island” is a dreamy, chaotic, and dynamic search for a sense of peace. It’s a reminder that we are all human and want the same thing at the end of the day. “This Island” is an enthralling yet intimate song that creates a space for listeners to reflect.
Listen to “This Island” below and learn more about Laurence DaNova via our Five Questions With segment.
Care to introduce yourself to our readers?
My name is Laurence DaNova, and I’m a singer from Ottawa. What’s unique about my music is that I’ve drawn a lot of inspiration from travelling and molded my song production to fit the essence of the places I’ve been. I would describe my music as being alternative pop with soul and worldbeat influences. I also use lots of 80s and 90s music as instrumental references.
Tell us a bit about your most recent release.
The melody for the song popped into my head randomly when I was shopping at Walmart. I recorded it a couple of days later in my basement underneath a bed sheet draped over a bookcase. Because the song is about an Island, I felt it would be fitting to have bongos. I also made the choice of having very reverby synths and instrumentals in general because I wanted the song to sound dreamlike but also juxtaposed with a very busy and jarring beat to signify the chaos the song is also about. Having said all this, though, the song definitely has the “Laurence sound” that my other songs have: heavily influenced by the 80’s/90’s and a concoction of pop, soul, and trip-hop. My favourite lyrics from the song are “I wonder if my Island needs God anyway”– it’s a powerful line and needs no interpretation.
Since my last song release, I have had more confidence in writing and producing music. I’ve always been happy with how my music has turned out once I’ve finished a song, but I also had a lot of fear during the process of creating a song that things wouldn’t turn out the way I wanted. I’ve been able to relinquish that fear by allowing myself to feel pride in my previous work (I have a hard time being prideful even when I’ve done something great) and by creating more often. When you do what you love all the time, it becomes easier. This song has taught me to be more hopeful and patient. From trudging through the peak of the pandemic when I wrote the song, to the many months it took to produce it to perfection and to have more hope for the state of our world in general by really realizing its lyrics.
Where do you tend to pull inspiration from when writing?
When I write music, I pull from my real-life experiences. I’ll write about situations exactly as they unfolded, or sometimes I’ll write in a symbolic way- it really just depends on what I want to share and what I feel the listener will resonate with.
What inspired my song “This Island,” in particular, was a feeling of wanting to find peace from all the chaos in the world. I imagined being on a beautiful island far away from all this chaos. I was motivated to write about a lot of world issues as a form of therapy because, at the time, I was deeply affected by all the depressing stories I’d see and hear on the news and on social media. I wrote the lyrics in 2021 when the war on Gaza was getting worse- I guess you can say this was the catalyst. I want to remind the listener that we are all human and want the same thing at the end of the day- so I guess, ultimately, the listener should feel a sense of peace after listening to and reflecting on the song and its lyrics.
Do you have any upcoming shows or festivals you’d like to tell us about?
Not at the moment, I’ve been focused on writing and recording, but when I do, I will let everyone know right away!
What’s your goal for the remainder of 2022?
My goal for the remainder of 2022 is to make more headway on some songs I’ve already started production so I’ll have them ready for the new year! I have lots of ideas that I can’t wait to sonically materialize.
Connect with Laurence DaNova:
Instagram