Page 34 - Black Velvet Rock Magazine - Issue 100

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his right here is the best feeling in the world, when I am my strongest, my
‘Tmost vulnerable, my most honest, my most exposed, and my most free,’
wrote Diamante, the half-Mexican, half-Italian singer/songwriter who grew up in
Boston before making her way to L.A. Diamante released her debut full-length
album, ‘Coming In Hot’, last summer and it’s a scorching release. It showcases her
many years of hard work and determination to do what she was born to do – sing
and perform on stage. One listen to the album and you will feel the talent, feel the
passion and, most definitely, feel the magic and empowerment.

o why does this early-20s, turquoise- forgive me anyway, but I still want to say I’m for me, because I had waited practically my
Shaired singer feel vulnerable on sorry’.” entire life to finally write a full-length album.
stage? Well, one imagines that it is because It was quite a challenge for Diamante to I just remember being so, so excited, going
all eyes are on her. Diamante tells Black Vel- say she was sorry in a song. “It’s double dif- into every session, thinking, ‘This is going to
vet, “When I am performing I definitely do ficult for me because it’s difficult for me to be the day that song gets on the album,’ she
feel my strongest, my most empowered. I be vulnerable in the first place, that’s always recounts excitedly. “And writing with some-
feel like a Viking warrior goddess up on been a challenge for me, and it’s also difficult one you don’t know is also a challenge. You
stage, but at the same time I do feel my most for me to admit when I’m in the wrong be- practically have to open up your entire soul
exposed because I’m here singing my heart cause I can be a very proud person. I thought and heart for someone that you don’t even
out, performing unapologetically I guess you it was important to have a song like ‘I’m know. That for me is the most challenging
could say, even though there are all these Sorry’ because you do hear a lot of heartbro- part.”
eyes watching me, dissecting everything I’m ken ballads; ‘You did this to me, this is what She particularly enjoyed writing with
doing, listening to every note that I’m you did wrong,’ but you don’t hear too many Lenny Skolnik and Seann Bowe though, two
singing, but it’s still freeing because when when the person owns up to what they did songwriters that worked under Howard Ben-
you’re a performer that’s the place where wrong and we’ve all been in that position. son. “They’re actually much closer to my age
you feel the most free and that’s where you We’ve all wronged somebody whether it was which I thought was really cool because a lot
know you’re supposed to be. So, yeah, I on purpose or not. I wanted to have that per- of the writers that I worked with were much
guess that’s exactly why. It’s a vulnerable ex- spective.” older and had a lot more experience in song-
perience while still being powerful at the The song saw Diamante feel emotional writing and these were maybe 22/23-year-
same time.” while recording it in the studio. With Howard olds, and I remember having so much fun
It’s something that Diamante has gotten Benson as producer pulling the best out of writing with these guys because they spoke
more and more used to over time. She’s the vocalist and urging her to be vulnerable, my language, you know? And a lot of the
been singing since the age of six, before she says, “I remember the very line he time going into a writing session would be
fully realizing that she wanted to perform at would tell me; ‘Dig deeper, dig deeper. Go like, ‘OK Dia, what are you feeling today?
the age of ten. She even took the lead female there, go there,’ and it really helped.” What’s been going on? Talk to us.’ A lot of
role of Sandy in Grease. Although a shy songs would come out of me just talking to
child, Diamante became empowered when debut album can make or break an them and just hanging out and being
setting foot on stage – and now is using her Aartist or band. It’s like your firstborn; friends.”
voice to empower others. you want it to be perfect, it’s everything Once the songs were written they went
“I think the power of music can unite you’ve always wished for. And when you’re through various levels of quality control, as
people together,” she says. “I think it can signed to a record label they want it to be it were.
empower people, which is the number one perfect too. Diamante took the time to write “The songs themselves went through, I
thing I wanted to do with my album, espe- with 50 or more songwriters in order to come guess you could say, three different trial pe-
cially women. I think music can really help up with the best songs possible for the riods. The first would be, I’d go into the stu-
people find an outlet like it did for me. album. She tells us, “Each was different dio with a bunch of different songwriters for,
Singing has always been my form of expres- every time and each had a different writing let’s say a month, and maybe do 20 or 30
sion, my outlet, because I grew up as a shy process every time. Sometimes we started demos. I would then take these 20 or 30
person, an introvert, and finding music for off with just a simple… most of the time, ac- demos to Howard and we would sit in his
me was a way of kind of deciphering ‘Oh, tually, we started off with a simple idea and I home studio and he would play the first
this is how I’m feeling, I couldn’t put this into would just write to an acoustic guitar or a verse and the first chorus and he would tell
words but this artist did and so now I know piano, and that’s actually the method that I me straight away ‘Yes to this one, no to this
exactly how to go through this process. Now prefer. Other times I would walk in and some- one. This one has potential, it just needs
I know how to look back on this experience one would have a track already made for me work,’ and so we would file them away as
and really understand what hap- ‘Yes’, ‘No’, ‘Maybe’s and then
pened’. And, of course, music “I feel like a Viking warrior goddess up on from the definite ‘Yes’s that he
saves lives. Music can be that really liked he would then send
thing for people where they don’t stage, but at the same time I do feel my most those to my record label, and
know what else to live for and they exposed...” - Diamante then my record label would say
have music. Music can do so ‘Yes, go cut this one,’ ‘No, we
many things.” don’t feel this one,’ ‘Yes, record
While there are some really this one right away.’ What’s
tough songs on ‘Coming In Hot’, such as to write to, which for me is more difficult to also different is that it’s not like I wrote the
‘Bulletproof’, and Diamante’s cover of Lower do. But it was really cool to write with that 12/14 songs that were going to make the
Than Atlantis’s ‘Had Enough’ – chosen be- many people for that long of a time, because album and then recorded them. I was still
cause she’d had enough of the disrespect to- actually I got to grow as a songwriter and writing for the album up until the very end.
wards women - we also hear the more learn all these different tricks and meet all So I was recording and then writing at the
vulnerable ‘I’m Sorry’. With such an apology these different people and so now I know all same time. But as far as the vulnerability fac-
in a song, we ask Diamante if she thinks that these different things, and I listen back to the tor goes, Howard, from day one, when I
music can heal relationships. songs that I was writing at the very begin- started writing, he really pushed me to go
“I do, yeah,” she replies. “I definitely do ning of the process up until the end and it’s there and to be vulnerable and to be really
think that music has the power to ultimately cool to see how much I’ve grown and how honest with my lyrics. He explained to me
do anything it wants just because it’s so much I’ve changed as a songwriter.” how, artists in the past that he’s worked with,
powerful. But a song like ‘I’m Sorry’, that When she first started writing with song- it has always benefitted them when they took
song to me was; ‘I wronged you so bad, past writers she felt a wave of emotions. it to that vulnerable place and when they
the point of no return that you could never “It was daunting but it was also exciting weren’t afraid.”

DIAMANTE