HELLO CALICA & DANIEL! SO GLAD YOU’RE HERE! LET’S START, CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF?
Calica: I’m a singer/songwriter and producer from Miami, I’m 24 years old, and I love cats. In my free time, when I’m not working on new music, I love to paint and go to the beach. There are so many great things to do in nature that are just outside of LA, it’s a great way to get out of my own head and reinvigorate my creative process.
Daniel: I’m a songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist, and recording artist from Chicago. Like Sofia, I’m constantly working on new music, but I also really like outer space. I can tell you way too many facts about the internal composition of Saturn and its rings, or I could talk all day about time dilation and its relationship to gravity. I’m a bit obsessive, so when I decide I dig something, I get way too into it.
TELL US ABOUT HOW YOU STARTED MAKING MUSIC?
Calica: I actually started writing music about three years ago, and fell in love with production as an art form when I saw my friends in SMLE work on the things that I was singing over.
Daniel: I had my first big cut at 17 when I co-wrote and co-produced Louis the Child’s “It’s Strange (feat. K. Flay).” Since then I’ve discovered I had a knack for developing up and coming artists, and I absolutely love the idea of using my skills to create a sonic world for my artists to live in.
WHO INSPIRES YOUR PLAYING STYLE? WHICH ARTISTS CAN WE REFER TO?
Calica & Daniel: On our EP, Kevin Parker, James Blake, and Kanye really inspired the production side, while songwriters like Lily Allen, Nicole Miglis of Hundred Waters, and the Japanese House took us to where we wanted to go lyrically.
WHAT IS YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS LIKE? HOW DO YOU START WRITING A MUSIC PIECE? HOW DO YOU BEGIN YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS?
Daniel: Usually, it started with a chord progression or soundscape, and then I would put the microphone in front of Sofia and she would improvise vocal melodies over that.
Calica: Once we found pieces in my improvisations that we really liked, we stitched them together and wrote lyrics that followed that road map. It was a really cool and beautiful process.
LASTLY, WHAT ARE YOUR MUSIC GOALS FOR THIS YEAR, AND HOW ARE YOU WORKING TOWARD ACHIEVING THEM?
Calica: I cannot wait to play live shows again. Until then I’ll be releasing lots of new music, and continuing to try to reach more people through social distanced ways of communication like TikTok.
Daniel: I’ll be putting out an album this year, starting with a few singles in the spring. Other than that, I’ll be locking myself in my studio and working with new artists every day. That’s really where I’m happiest: in front of some speakers, making something new.
ANYTHING ELSE YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH OUR READERS?
Calica & Daniel: We know it’s been a trying time for everyone, but we would just like to encourage people to stay socially distanced and get the vaccine if you have the opportunity. We’re all in this together, and it’s going to take all of us to get through this.
LASTLY, WHERE CAN PEOPLE FIND YOU ONLINE?
Calica: @calicamusic for all social media, and @itscalica for TikTok
Daniel: @danloump for Instagram, Daniel Loumpouridis on SoundCloud, and danielloumpouridis.com for new release info.
