An Interview with LIVVIA On Her Breakout Single ‘Catch A Body’ And Much More!

The rising pop artist LIVVIA partnered with Yahoo! Music to premiere the official music video for her debut single “Catch A Body” featuring Quavo of Atlanta rap trio Migos, which premiered on Complex on January 18th. The video, directed by Jay Martin (Shawn Mendes, Sabrina Carpenter, Nas, Cold War Kids, and more), is an action packed mini feature with LIVVIA portraying a special agent who seeks to eliminate a threat. LIVVIA stars as the female action lead, performing all of her own stunts including fight scenes which incorporate combat training she went through in preparation for the video.

LIVVIA tells Yahoo! Music, “Sometimes when I write a song I visualize what the ideal music video would be. In this case, I immediately envisioned a scene from an action movie — James Bond, John Wick — because of the story within the lyrics.” Watch the video exclusively on Yahoo! Music here.

Within the first week of its release on Jan. 19, “Catch A Body” raced to the top of the streaming charts reaching No. 10 on Spotify’s “Viral 50” U.S. chart and No. 15 on its Global “Viral 50” chart. The song has amassed more than 630K plays and 345k unique listeners on Spotify and has been added to Apple Music’s “Pure Pop” radio in the USA; tastemaker playlists including Spotify’s New Music Friday in the USA, Canada, Germany, France, Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway; Spotify’s Hot Rhythmic and HIIT Pop playlists; Apple Music’s “Breaking Pop” in the USA and “Best of the Week” in France, Germany and Austria; as well as key playlists on Tidal, Deezer and Napster. Further, on LIVVA’s SoundCloud the song has accumulated in excess of 460k plays.

Originally from the Bay area, now primarily living in Los Angeles, LIVVIA is a singer, songwriter, dancer, pianist and guitar player. When she was in her late teens, LIVVIA toured internationally as a solo artist with such artists as Jessie J., Meghan Trainor, The Jonas Brothers, and more. Now, just a few years later, LIVVIA has embraced a more developed sound on her debut single “Catch A Body.” The track is fun, flirty, and a little dangerous. “The fact that Quavo was inspired to jump on this track was a dream,” LIVVIA said. “The first time I heard his feature through the speakers I thought, ‘this is amazing.’ He totally bodied the song.” The infectious pop single is off of her forthcoming EP, which is produced by hit-makers Rock Mafia (Miley Cyrus, Eminem, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, ZEDD, and more) and due out early 2018.  In the meantime, LIVVIA is completing her degree in Economics from the prestigious University of California, Berkeley.

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Learn more about LIVVIA in the following All Access interview:

Thanks for your time! So where does this interview find you? What’s on tap for the rest of your day? 

Thank you for the interview! I’m catching a plane from LA to make it back to school in time for class.

Overall, how do you think 2017 was for you and your career? What are you most excited about for this year? What is one big goal you have for 2018?

I’ve been in the studio focusing on writing, recording, and developing my new sound, but nothing beats finally being able to share what I’ve been working on. In 2018, I hope to reach as many people as possible with my new music. Of course I’m also excited to be graduating from UC Berkeley with a degree in economics this year.

Growing up, did you ever think that this would be the kind of life that you would have? Has music always been a big part of your life? Can you recall your first ever musical experience?  

Being a professional musician, writing and recording my own songs, and sharing my music on tour has been my dream for as long as I can remember. According to my family, I’ve been improvising songs since I was two, whether I was singing about going to the park or about being in a time out!

How do you think growing up in your hometown has influenced your sound and who you are as a musician? How did moving from the Bay Area to Los Angeles change your music? 

I wrote my first songs on the piano in my room overlooking our garden. They were much more singer-songwriter than the music I’m releasing now. Moving to LA and collaborating with different writers and producers allowed me to expand beyond piano and acoustic guitar and exposed me to the pop and urban influences present in my music now.

I understand that as a young teenager, you toured a bunch with artists like Jessie J, Meghan Trainor, The Jonas Brothers and more. What was that like for you? Can you pick an experience or two that really stick out to you from that part of your life? Who do you think you learned the most from during that time?

Touring and performing for hundreds of thousands of people all over the world was even better than I could have imagined. I learned so much watching the artists I toured with and made some incredible friends. My favorite experiences would have to be from the meet and greets. It’s so rewarding to meet people who connect with my music and who tell me that my lyrics have positively impacted their lives in some way. There are so many incredible memories — it would be impossible to narrow down. Playing iconic venues like the O2 arena in London was surreal.

Let’s talk about your newest track, “Catch A Body.” What was the inspiration for it? And what was it like working with Quavo of Migos on it? Have you been surprised at all by the success of it lately? 

Catch A Body happened during a writing session with Rock Mafia. The phrase “Catch A Body” came up, so we started writing lyrics like “you look so good it’s killing me” and created a song around that concept. The fact that Quavo heard the song and loved it and wanted to be a part of it was beyond amazing. He added so many awesome hooks. I love hearing it on the radio! The reception has been better than I could have hoped for! I could not be more grateful to see it on the Top 40 chart.

What was it like filming the music video for it and working with the director Jay Martin? How creatively involved were you with the whole process? What was it like doing all your own stunts for it? 

Sometimes when I write a song I instantly start to visualize what the ideal music video would be. In the case of “Catch A Body,” I immediately pictured a scene from an action movie like James Bond or John Wick. Thanks to Jay, we were able to pull off this ambitious concept! He is incredible and so much fun to work with. The stunts were my favorite part for sure. We had two days of stunt rehearsal. It’s quite a long fight sequence! I had so many bruises by the end of the day. It was definitely worth it though.

How do you think “Catch A Body” compares to the rest of your forthcoming EP? What was it like working with your producers Rock Mafia on it? When will you be putting this collection out? 

I will be releasing more music very soon, and there may be an exciting collab or two. The Rock Mafia team have become some of my best friends. I’m at their studio all the time. They’re perfectionists just like me so I love their process and attention to detail.

What has it been like completing your degree in Economics from University of California all while you are pursuing a busy music career? Has it been challenging to balance it all? When do you think you will be graduating? What made you decide to get that degree?

It definitely gets a little hectic around midterms and finals — especially when they fall near dates I’m supposed to be traveling for meetings, performances, or writing sessions — but I’ve been able to make it work so far. I love both sides of my life so I don’t mind the weekly travel back and forth. I will be graduating this year! I’m pretty amazed it’s actually happening in the midst of such an exciting time in my career. I chose economics because I would like to get my MBA one day and because having a firm grasp of econ is helpful for any career path. Since I’m involved in more than just the artistic side of my music career, it’s already proven useful.

Where do you find that you sing the most these days, in the shower, in the car, in the studio or elsewhere? 

Absolutely everywhere! I sing when I’m getting ready to go in the morning, cooking, walking around the house, and even under my breath walking down the street or through the airport.

Do you have any upcoming shows? Where can people see you perform live next? 

I’ll be performing at a variety of radio shows over the summer. I can’t wait!

We are living through a very trying and politically charged time right now so I am curious how you think being a musician gives you the most joy in life today? How do you think that music is going to reflect these challenging times? 

I think on the flip side of that it’s an inspiring time because people are rallying together to stand up for themselves and others. Musicians have an unusual platform from which to support these efforts, and I so look forward to adding my voice to these causes and others. I hope and expect that music will continue to adapt to the context of the times and that more and more anthems will be written to inspire people and be the soundtrack of their protests, campaigns, and celebrations!

Who are some of your favorite artists or rather, what musicians have continued to inspire you and your music? What musicians would you absolutely still love to work with in the future? 

My taste is very eclectic because we’re so lucky these days to have access to such a variety of music! Coldplay has always been my favorite band. I’m very into Sabrina Claudio at the moment. I love Migos. I love when Stir Fry comes on. There’s a time and place for almost anything, I think. When I’m with friends or getting up in the morning, I want anything I can dance to. Jazz and piano instrumentals when I’m studying or winding down.

At the end of the day, what do you hope your fans take away from your music? 

Whenever I write music, I have a specific message in mind, whether it’s about going after what you want, being grateful for whatever you have — even if it’s just one true friend, or writing an anthem for people who refuse to change themselves to conform to someone else’s idea of who they should be. My ultimate goal as a musician and in life in general is to empower others to believe in themselves, be confident, and be truly happy.