Monica Blaire Interview: SXSW 2010

Detroit singer, songwriter, dancer, MC and lover of Krispy Kreme Monica Blaire has spent time both behind the scenes and in the spotlight. She's been trained in many forms of dance including ballet, tap and jazz, and she has a penchant for the retro futuristic. Her influences are eclectic, and they shine bright on tracks like her grand cover of Madonna's "Material Girl". Spinner borrowed a little of her time to gain a little pre-SXSW insight and even try to get a little peek at what she has planned.

Describe your sound in your own words.

It's really more funky and eclectic. It's really bottom-heavy. It's very Detroit. It's got a lot of those drums and really bassy. But, at the same time I'm willing to play whatever over it... I pull from every resource. So for me, it's kind of like my music sounds like it's rooted in that deep Detroit thump. It sounds more like the sum of my experiences than a musical genre.

How has growing up in Detroit influenced your sound?

Probably a better question would be how could you grow up in Detroit and not be influenced by it. The thing about Detroit that's so awesome is that... It's kind of like where the sidewalk ends. I feel like Detroit has an only child kind of a vibe, where we have to play by ourselves. It created an island dynamic where there's a lot of newness in this area where people are really willing to experiment. The great part about Detroit is that there are all these people who are musically inclined that I don't think people from this area really understand what they're getting. I mean, you can hop from bar-to-bar-to-bar and pay five dollars and see some of the most amazing musicians you've ever seen in your life. So, I'm really influenced because the bar is set so high here. It really makes me step up and give everything I can and be the best artist that I can be.
How did you get into music?

I've always actually sang and been musically inclined. The woman that my mom chose for my godmother, her name is Ortheia Barnes, and she is legendary in the city. She's a singer, had a club, and is just really a wonderful musical presence in the city. So, I kind of grew up in that atmosphere. My mom was really diligent about making sure I had those outlets to express myself in the ways that I needed to. So, it's kind of something I've always done, but as I got a little older I realized maybe this is something I should think about taking seriously.

What are your musical influences?

Any classical music. I studied that for a long time, so I'm really motivated by that too. Of course the big voices, the Arethas, the Pattis, the Chakas. Then, I listen to a lot of Michael Franks. I listen to a lot of stuff you wouldn't necessarily hear in my music, but that kind of inspires me to step outside the box a little bit. I'm a huge White Stripes fan. I listen to a lot of rock. I listen to a lot of Nirvana, just a lot of good music. I think there's a common theme in good music, so I try to stick to that.

What is your biggest vice?

My biggest vice?... Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. I probably have added an additional small person to my body weight from Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

What would be in your festival survival kit?

A bottle of Bacardi. I'd bring my computer, and I don't go anywhere without my iPhone. Some sort of snack, hopefully Krispy Kreme, if they could make it. Then, business cards for networking. Lip gloss. My glasses because a lot of times I'll leave them random places and then I can't see. So, definitely my glasses, even though I don't wear them on stage.

Who was your first celebrity crush?

My first? Hmm... Kris Kross.

Which one?

The one with the braids.

What is your musical guilty pleasure?

I'm a huge, huge, huge O.D.B. fan. And, I guess that's not a guilty pleasure. If I had to say surface and maybe a little devoid of substance, would be Britney Spears.

I read that you've done some choreographing and styling for other artists. Tell me about that.

For the first production company when I was really getting into this, I did a lot of choreography and just worked for them as far as developing the other artists that were on their roster. And, I actually grew up as a dancer. I studied African dance for a large part of my life, hip hop, ballet, tap, jazz. And, dancing is a huge part of my show.

I also see that you've written for other artists.

Yeah, I've had some awesome opportunities. I've written for a few gospel artists, and pretty much anything you hear me sing, like the joints I did with Neil Parish on my album, I've written. I'm a huge believer in writing your own stuff. I feel like I'm the only person who can really express where I'm at. And, everything on the first project I put out, I wrote every single song.

When you come for SXSW, will you have a full band?

You know what, that's still in the works. I probably won't have a full band. At minimum, we'll definitely have tracks. I'm very motivated by drums. I'm a rhythmic kind of person. I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that I dance and I used to MC. So, for me the melody should stay present, but it's not necessarily the first thing I'm thinking about... I'll probably throw a couple extra surprises in there that I won't give away.

The "Material Girl" cover you did has a very grand sound to it. What made you choose that song?

I think "Material Girl" when you really break it down and listen to the lyrics, it's almost like the parody and the tragedy of our lives. You spend a lot of time consumed by things, and it's really important to me to show a different aspect of that song, and I felt like a could have done a poppy remix of it. But, I felt like it really wouldn't have done the lyrics justice. Just the idea of how surface that sentiment is. We wanted to make it really big, really stringy, very operatic and almost dramatic. We wanted to create a magnifying effect on what's actually being said in that song.

Why the "Back to the Future" graphics?

The creative ideas around Silent Riot and the people I work with spiral out of control often. I always loved the movie and thought the concept was cool. And, I was just sitting around and thought, wouldn't it be cool for me to do this whole album where I do these 80s and 90s songs that really motivated me to want to do what I do and create a completely different experience with them, like travel back but have a futuristic edge, and we were like, "Back to the Future"! So, we went and found this DeLorean community here in Michigan and actually went and shot with a DeLorean. It was all really cool.

William Mills is a contributor from Seed.com. Learn how you can contribute here.