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AMANDA MARKLEY Talks About Loving Imagine Dragons, Her Biggest Inspirations And More!
Posted On 18 Jul 2016
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Photo Credit- Michelle MooreAMANDA MARKLEY is a pop singer/songwriter hailing from Seattle, WA. Following a life-altering spinal injury that caused her to pull back from her passion of horseback riding, Amanda learned to cope by writing her emotions in a journal. Her writing became inspiration for her new passion in music and the lyrics of her first songs. Now, able to ride horses again, Amanda Markley strives to inspire and give others courage to follow their own dreams – a passion you will find intertwined in many of her own lyrics.
Early in her career, Amanda’s original song “Breathe,” was heard by acclaimed songwriter Scott Krippayne, who has penned No.1 hits for Jordin Sparks, Demi Lovato, and Blake Lewis, to name a few. Krippayne was so intrigued by Amanda’s soulful songwriting, he produced her first album, as well as co-wrote a song titled “You and Me” on her debut album, also titled Breathe.
In 2013, Amanda Markley was chosen from Ernie Ball’s Battle of the Bands to play Van’s Warped Tour on the Acoustic Basement stage in Seattle. Markley has also shared the stage with artists such as Aaron Carter, Tyler Ward, William Beckett, and more. Captivated by the local coffee house vibe of the Pacific Northwest, the singer often plays vocally rich and emotionally raw acoustic sets. When not performing in an intimate setting, Amanda commands the stage with a full band and is a regular performer El Corazon, Chop Suey, the Hard Rock Cafe and other iconic venues in the Seattle area.
Markley is currently in the studio working on her upcoming EP. The first single from the EP, “Jealousy” was released in 2015 in a partnership with Cadence & Cause, sending all proceeds of single downloads to the charitable cause of rescuing homeless animals and finding them homes. Chase Manhattan (Night Argent) produced the music video for “Jealousy” which premiered exclusively with PopWrapped. The EP is set to release early 2016 with a slew of new tracks, videos, and more on the way.
This budding songwriter’s music can be heard on Spotify, Pandora, Sirius Radio Coffee Café, Seattle Wave Radio, and more. Follow Amanda Markley on social media (@amarkleymusic) for future announcements and new music soon!
To Keep Up With Amanda Markley Online:
AmandaMarkley.com
Youtube
SoundCloud
Snapchat: amarkleymusic
Learn more about Amanda in the following All Access interview:
How’s 2016 been treating you so far? What were some of the highlights of 2015 for you and your music?
2016 has been great so far! I love sunny summer days, so I have been taking advantage of some relaxation time. A couple of my biggest highlights of 2015 were my show with Tyler Ward, and recording my newest, self-titled EP.
Growing up, did you always want to be a musician? Can you recall your earliest musical memory?
I always had dreams of singing growing up, but never imagined I could pursue them until I was 16 and started learning guitar and writing songs. My earliest musical memory is probably dancing around my room and singing to 90s boybands with my brother and sister. I was (and still am) a huge *NSYNC fan!
Last month, you released your latest self-titled EP. Can you talk about putting that collection together?
It was a long process to get this EP finished, but I am so glad that I can finally share it with the world. This EP has a little bit different feel than my older music, and I’m really happy with how it turned out.
How do you think you’ve grown as an artist over the years? How has your songwriting changed?
I have matured as an artist and as a person throughout the years. Getting experience in the music industry and in life has taught me more about myself as a person and as an artist. I am always trying to be my own person and stay honest to who I am. I feel like my songwriting has become stronger, and it changes when I have new experiences in life to write about.
You’ve had a lot of incredible experiences already in the music industry. What memory sticks out to you the most now?
I have two memories that stick out to me the most. The first was playing the acoustic stage at Warped Tour Seattle. I won a contest to get to play, and I got to have my friend/mentor/songwriter Matt Bacnis perform with me. My second biggest memory is from recently when I got to travel to Nashville to record new music with Will Pugh of Cartel. He is an incredible producer and great person, I can’t wait to show everyone the music we made!
Who are some of your favorite artists? What artists continue to inspire you? Who would you love to work with in the future?
My favorite band is Imagine Dragons. I also love Parachute, OneRepublic, Walk The Moon, and The Summer Set. If I could work with anyone, it would be Ryan Tedder of OneRebublic, he is my songwriting idol.
At the end of the day, what do you hope is the message of your music? What do you hope listeners take away from your songs?
I hope that the message of my music is that you can get through any situation and to never give up on yourself. I always want my songs to be relatable to many different people. We all go through our own hard times in our own lives, but if you stay strong and believe in yourself, you can come out the other side a better version of yourself, and I want to inspire people to do so through my music.
