An alumni of Berklee College of Music, Max Embers journey started at the tender age of six as a result of his fascination for piano. A singer as well as a songwriter, Embers has performed with Grammy award winners and multi-platinum artists. When it comes to music and artistry, his aim is to create “intimate songs” that would help his audience feel “less lonely and more understood”.
Max has released his debut single “Lying”, a soulful track that talks about different stages of love. The soulful cut features smooth vocals atop an upbeat and current production.
CelebMix talked to Max about his journey, his particular choice of soulful pop to narrate his stories, “Lying” and much more. Check out the complete interview below:
Hi Max! Can you please introduce yourself to our readers?
Hey Celeb Mix! My name is Max Embers and I’m a songwriter and artist from Germany, currently living in LA. I just released my debut single “Lying” and have been working on a lot of new music that I’m excited to share with you!
We read that your musical journey started with a piano. We would like to know more.
When I grew up we had an old white Yamaha upright in our living room that used to be my dad’s. On my 6th birthday (after I’d been begging them for months) my parents told me that I could start taking piano lessons and my dad said that one day when I’d move out the Yamaha would be mine to take with me. And so all throughout my childhood, I played classical piano until I started to write pop songs. Since I ended up moving to the United States after high school, the logistics of taking that old piano with me would’ve been a little too complicated, unfortunately, but I still play it every time I go home :)
You are both a singer and a songwriter. So, how do you perceive your art as a creator and a vocalist?
Even though I used to see myself as a writer first and a singer second, nowadays both are equally important to me. In my opinion, creating meaningful songs is just as challenging as performing them well and really transporting the message with your voice.
Luckily I get to do both, and it’s honestly my favorite thing in the world to spend a whole day in the studio, write a song from start to finish and then really get into the vocal production, making the lead vocal perfect and completely geeking out over the most excessive background harmonies… I’m sort of a nerd when it comes to that!
Congratulations for “Lying”! Please tell our readers a bit about the single.
“Lying” is a song about my first love, someone who had been in and out of my life for 8 years by the time I wrote the song. We started dating when I was 16 but things didn’t work out back then, and even though our paths kept crossing throughout the years, they never aligned in a way that allowed us to really be together. The song plays with the back and forth within this relationship and it lives in the moment where I realize that no matter how hard I try to stay away from the other person, I will always be drawn to them.
We listened to the track and really loved it. While it does talk about your personal experiences, the single aims to do more than just narrate a personal tale. Please tell us about the creative process behind “Lying”.
I think the song is sort of a commentary on love in general. I clearly made tons of mistakes in this relationship, wasn’t able to figure out what I really wanted and caused a bunch of pain while trying to make up my mind. But there were also a lot of magical moments, and I believe that it’s important to acknowledge both. Nothing is all black and white, nothing is just good or bad and the beautiful thing about love is that it can take you through all the different stages, from the pure state of being in love to desire, joy, fear, anger, sadness, and apathy.
Can we expect a music video soon?
I’m working on a few different projects right now, including some videos, and even though I can’t say too much about it yet but I’m excited to share it all with you soon!
We checked out your YouTube channel and really loved the covers for Charlie Puth and Dua Lipa. Do you plan to release more covers? Also, what’s your favourite song at the moment?
Thanks so much, I’m glad you enjoyed them!! I’ve been putting a couple of shorter cover clips on my Instagram recently (@maxembersmusic), and it’s funny that you’re asking because yesterday I actually got to film a little cover duet with my friend Riley Biederer of my favorite song right now, “Japanese Denim” by Daniel Caesar. You should check it out, it’s a beautiful song!
Lying is a soulful pop. Have you discovered your style or will you be experimenting for more genres and styles in the near future?
Finding your style is a hard task as an artist… It’s taken me years to figure out what I want my sound to be. It’s evolving though, and hopefully always will be! I’ve always loved artists who don’t let their artistry be confined by genre boundaries but instead create a journey within their music that shows how multi-faceted they are as people. If you think about it, no one’s personality is one dimensional and so why should anybody’s music be? I’m excited to keep exploring and experimenting to share all of my different sides through my music.
While we all interpret songs in our own unique way, how would you want people to perceive your music? In other words, what message would you like to convey to the listeners through your music?
An important element of my artistry is to show that everything in life is made up of countless different layers and that everything is about perspective. Ultimately, I just want to bring people together. Make honest, real music and share my unique story in an intimate, genuine way (even if that means to admit how imperfect I am) and create an experience for my listeners that makes them feel a little more understood.
Would you like to share with us your future projects or endeavours?
I’m so thrilled that I am finally getting to share my music! I’ve been working on tons of material and will be releasing a lot of songs throughout the rest of this and beginning of next year (my next single “The Way I See You Now” is on the way!). The goal is to put out an album in the spring of 2019. Just came up with a name for the album a few days ago and got very excited about that… Maybe I can share that with you in our next interview :)
The single is out now and you can stream it on Spotify.
Share your thoughts about the single via tweet @CelebMix.
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