Premiere: Disco Queen MAYA LUCIA Makes Us Groove with “ur ruining it !”

 

☆ BY KAITLYN CAMPBELL ☆

 
 

STRAP IN GIRLIES AND HOLD ON TIGHT- MAYA LUCIA is here. Providing saucy vocals and groovy instrumentals that will make your head spin, the rising midwestern starlet captures your attention in “ur ruining it !” From Gwen Stefani to The Ramones, MAYA LUCIA’s depth of musical knowledge is clear in her work and her raw talent cannot be denied.

MAYA LUCIA grew up like every suburban kid, with a low budget arts program and a dream. Her dad would bring home a new CD every day during her childhood, and she and her sister would run around the house learning to count music to the tunes. Throughout her career, MAYA LUCIA is what one might call a musical nomad rotating between living on the Atlantic and Pacific coast cultivating her unique surf-rock sound. She currently resides in Minneapolis and is planning to drop her EP in 2022 riding the momentum of her fall success on tour.

Layered with good vibes and heartwarming shots of friends, the music video for “ur ruining it !”, tells the fantasy of the forgotten summer of 2020 where instead of binging tv shows in lockdown we partied with our friends til sundown. Directed by Jack Campise, the music video was also a way for their friend group to throw a huge homecoming gig for MAYA and reunite after time apart. Read below to learn more about her favorite parts of the video, the inspiration behind the song and who's really ruining it. 

LUNA: First of all, I’m obsessed with your vocal styling, it’s so unique! How did you find your authentic voice?

MAYA LUCIA: It’s funny, because sometimes I go back and listen to my voice memos, like the old old stuff, and I can hear my voice trying to do the British accent thing. My own voice came from letting go of  things I thought weren’t authentically who I was. My authenticity means everything to me as an artist, it’s something I really had to fight for.

LUNA: How did you create your stage presence? 

MAYA LUCIA: I’ve always been really into performing. When I was younger, I either wanted to be an actress, a singer, or a contestant on American Idol. What you want to see when you see a performer live is an experience. I want you to see I have fun doing what I do. I want people to dance with my band and notice the positive energy around them. 

LUNA: What’s your relationship like with everyone in your band? Does having a long history with your bandmates contribute to the quality of your music?

MAYA LUCIA: Of course! We actually all fell into each other accidentally. I went to school in Boston and my drummer, Samuel, was friends with my best friend. Samuel has been there since the beginning. I evolved my music so there’d be more space for him to play wwith. Molly, our lead guitarist, was a mutual friend of ours who filled in on our shows. James, my bassist, was also a mutual friend who filled in and now produces and mixes everything. Everyone is incredibly talented and pushes each other. We contribute and shape the sounds of the song together. 

LUNA: Congrats on “ur ruining it !” It’s a bop, as we all know, what’s the inspiration behind the song?

MAYA LUCIA: It started around 2019, which feels like forever ago; I had just moved from LA back to Boston, and I was caught in similar situations with people I was investing too much time and mental energy into. They wouldn’t meet my standards of effort, so I would confide in my friends and then they would do a complete 180 and be nice and charming, so I’d go back to my friends to update them on the change and they’d be pissed. By being an emotional rollercoaster in my life they were ruining any chance of them getting along with my friends or getting with me. They were ruining it.

LUNA: I know that a big takeaway from the song is to know your value and self worth. Do you find in the age of streaming that it’s hard as an artist to know your worth? 

MAYA LUCIA: Definitely. Not seeing the numbers match up especially on apps like TikTok can be so discouraging. It makes you ask: what am I not doing right? What about my music isn’t good enough that this can’t be my full-time job? During the beginning of quarantine, I struggled with not seeing my friends and not doing live   just looking at the analytics daily. I got into a negative headspace and shut down. I’ve learned since then to practice kindness to myself, which is harder than it seems. 

LUNA: Quarantine felt so isolating at times. Something I loved about the music video was it centered around a reunion of friends after a long time apart. Was that the concept for the video? 

MAYA LUCIA: Jack and I decided we really like the 70s theme, and I really wanted dancing to be an element in it. We drew inspiration from Boogie Nights and wanted to incorporate shots from the movie in the video. I usually give Jack very blanket statements and he’s good at providing vision and perspective. We work very well together, because of his ability to listen and let me have creative control.

LUNA: Was there a special moment that you’re most excited for people to see when they watch the video?

MAYA LUCIA: There’s this party scene when we’re all in the backyard together and we end up getting into a circle and dancing. There’s this shot of my two friends Paolo and Massura wrestling and swinging each other around. It really shows that we’re friends and everyone had so much fun making this. 

LUNA: As we come into 2022, is there anything you’re excited about?

MAYA LUCIA: We’re working on an EP that’s coming out in 2022. Plus, we’ll be out on tour and hopefully making our way around the festival circuit. Our fall tour was a blast and I’m excited to go back out on the road.

LUNA: Lastly, if “ur ruining it !” was a holiday side dish what would it be?

MAYA LUCIA: She’s a dessert! She’s some kind of cake, not a pie because cakes are special. She’s like a bougie dessert that opera patrons would eat.

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