An Inspiring Interview with The Rocker HOPE VISTA on Her Greatest Inspirations, Her Love Of Backstreet Boys and Joan Jett and More!

As a vocalist, rhythm guitarist, songwriter, philanthropist, aspiring style icon, and entertainment blogger, Hope Vista continues to expand and solidify her resume daily. In the realm of a bubblegum pop world, Vista continuously proves that tenacity is the key to becoming a game-changing force to be reckoned with. She is a Dr. Pepper loving, Backstreet Boys fangirl-ing, all black-wearing American paradigm; and one of the last rock-oriented females standing.

At just 22 years old, this story is just beginning. Her hard-hitting single “Wild Girl”, completed at ZK Productions (All Time Low, Cartel, Set It Off, Against The Current, We Are The In Crowd), is an end-of-summer anthem, complete with a pulsing guitar solo and a rugged set of vocals.

With an upcoming EP in the works (also with ZK Productions), Hope maintains a strong presence in both social media and the press. Simply put, Hope Vista is nowhere near being finished; nobody can tell her story better than her. You’re in for a wild ride.

Learn more about this talented performer in the following All Access interview:

First of all, I have to tell you I love your name! Have you ever thought that having that name has affected you as a person?

Thank you! You know it’s funny, I HATED my name growing up. I hated it so much that I was planning to legally change it when I turned 18. I tossed around a bunch of different ideas and looked up what the legal process was to officially change it. Whenever I would say that Vista was my actual middle name, I’d get the most obscure looks thrown at me. It made me really insecure! When I started to piece together my music career, I sort of realized that it was extremely different in a good way; it was something that people could remember and personally identify me with. Now I could never see myself changing it.

Growing up, was music always a big part of your life? Was your family supportive of you pursuing music?

Oh, yeah. I was singing when I was a baby. I remember those moments clearly, too. When it comes to family, I’ll be really honest, I grew up in a pretty broken home. And it never got put together. This year was the first time I truly stood up for myself and grabbed my independence. I don’t really talk about the details of it too much because it’s always going to feel like a fresh wound, but when it came to music my dad was my support. He was what I had for the most part, he WAS music. My parents divorced when I was young, and the aftermath of that never really diminished or lightened up. I’ve always kind of done everything myself because of that, and it does hurt, it completely stings. But at the same time, I’ve found family in my godfather’s amazing family, my friends and my relationship; family doesn’t always have to be blood, and I always try to keep that in mind.

As someone who has also dealt with the loss of my father, I know what that loss feels like and how important it is to do something constructive with those emotions. How do you think this loss has changed you as a person and ultimately how has it changed your music?

I’m sorry to hear that! It’s a lot to take in, and it’s really difficult to explain or describe unless you’ve also personally experienced something similar. It’s changed every aspect of my life in the sense that I have to create a new normal now. I don’t really have one anymore, I don’t have anything similar. I’ve been trying to change my mindset to have a more positive outlook, because I’m a super negative thinker, but it’s tough to find a clear walkway when the ground isn’t familiar. I’m still the same musician, and still the same person, but now it’s more about making choices based on what my dad would say if he was here.

Let’s talk about your single “Wild Girl”. Where did the inspiration for this song come from?

I was with Okan and Louie from the band This Is All Now. We were starting something from scratch, and Louie turned to me and asked what I wanted to write about. My initial answer was that I had no idea, because a co-write was a really new thing to me; I always wrote alone. So I pulled up this one sentence I had typed up as a note in my phone. It was, “you were like a magnet pulling me to you.” That’s all I had, it was just a random thing I thought of one day, and we just decided to expand on it!

Tell us about your forthcoming EP, “Prevail” that will be released next month? What does it feel like to be so close to putting it out?

This is one of the most exciting times of my life so far, solely because of how personal and raw these songs are. The range of topics that I wrote about has a large span, but they’re all true, and I didn’t hold back at all. These were all super strong ideas that I had been working on all summer, but couldn’t seem to finish. The environment at ZK Productions, where I recorded the EP, is completely inspiring. That high comfort level made it super easy to finish out my ideas for each track, but it was also emotionally draining. When I got back home, I wasn’t able to fully function for a few days because of how much energy I put into making this the best it could be. It’s exciting, but it’s also scary; I’m putting myself and a certain sound way, way out there.

How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard it before?

It’s like a power pop-punk crossed with alternative kind of thing. There’s some grunge influences in there, and there’s a 90’s pop influence too; not the sound, more so the energy level. The little description I came up with is, “if you take ’70s Joan Jett, modern day Cody Carson, 2004 Avril Lavigne, ’90s Courtney Love, and a splash of Lynn Gunn, you have me.”

Who are some of your favorite artists? Who would you love to work with one day?

Backstreet Boys! Almost everyone says to me that they wouldn’t expect that answer, but they’re my favorite musical anything of all time. They were just my first musical memory, so I’ve kind of stuck with them throughout my entire life. My other favorites are Linkin Park, The Rolling Stones, Joan Jett, currently Set It Off, Aerosmith, The Eagles, Avril Lavigne, I love PVRIS and The Pretty Reckless. It’d be pretty sick to work with Lynn Gunn, the lead vocalist of PVRIS. That girl is INSANE, she’s insane live.

When you aren’t performing, recording or working on new material, what do you like do for fun?

I don’t have too much down time because I work a full-time job too, in Manhattan, but I love any kind of writing. On the side, I help people with papers for school; I just like doing it. That is work, though. Almost everything I do has something to do with music…. I like clothes. I shop way too much, but putting together outfits is something I really love to do. That and experimenting with makeup. It’s all creative stuff, I like finding different ways to express myself creatively. That’s always fun for me 🙂

What do you hope is the message of your music to listeners? Is there anything in particular you hope they take away from your songs?

My overall hope (haha, I love hope puns) is to be a voice. I want to be a voice to those who are afraid to speak up about anything they’re dealing with. That’s really, really important to me. There’s no reason why any generation should feel like they don’t have an outlet. If I can be a voice to anyone, just write and sing about topics that they aren’t ready to face, that’s a success to me.

Where do you see yourself and your career in the next 10 or even 20 years?

Ah! I’m not sure! I think it’s every musician’s overall goal to still be doing this however many years ahead, and that’s for sure mine, as well. I just want to be able to do what I’m passionate about for a living. That’s the career goal for 10 years, or even 20.

Is there anything else about yourself or your music you would like to share with our readers?

I think it’s really crucial in this technological era to give something new a listen. A female power pop punk/alt. rock solo artist in this day and age? That’s not common, and I always keep that in mind. It’s not something you see everywhere, on the radio or onstage at all. But it is something different, and I strive to bring forward some demand for a sound like this. It’s super common to fear the unknown, but I have my fingers double crossed that people will give my music a try!