An Interview With The Rising Singer-Songwriter JENA ROSE About Her Recent Summer Tour, Making New Music and More!

Photo Credit – Michael Letterlough

Pop artist and singer/songwriter Jena Rose recently released her newest song “Lost At Sea.”

The 16-year old wrote the original track and is dedicating it to her late grandmother, and honoring her by using her painting as the artwork.

Jena speaks about how she poured herself into creating this song saying,“I wrote this [song] for anyone who is feeling lost and feels like the world is not on their side. It’s important to remember there’s always someone by your side – family, friends, teachers… Everyone feels this way sometimes and I know that my family was lost when my grandmother passed away. That is why I want to dedicate this song to my late grandmother by using one of her [painting] as the artwork for it. ​

Spending most of this year touring the US, Jena recently wrapped the “Taking You” tour with pop collective Why Don’t We and the High School Nation tour with Plain White T’s. She also hit the road this summer with AJR and R5! This follows a performance alongside Hollywood Records recording artist Sabrina Carpenter on “The De-Tour” in Jena’s hometown of Dallas, TX.

Getting back to her songwriting roots, Jena has been working one-on-one in the studio on new music with Grammy nominated writer and producer Druski (Tori Kelly, Zendaya). The creativity has been flowing, and the sound she’s been working on is feeling more authentic than ever to who she is as an artist. Jena has recently began posting a few experimental tracks such as “Count Me Out” and “Far From Here” on her Soundcloud and will be putting up more as she continues working in the studio this summer.

For more information on Jena Rose visit:

http://www.jenarosemusic.com

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Spotify | Soundcloud

Learn more about Jena Rose in the following All Access interview:

Thanks for your time! How has 2017 been treating you so far? Musically, did you approach this year any differently then you did last year? 

• 2017 has been amazing so far! Musically, there has been a huge change. I feel like I strayed from who I am as a true artist, so this year my focus is finding myself, songwriting and my sound.

Where does this interview find you today? Is there music playing in the background? If so, what is it? What kind of music do you listen to when you are working? What music gets you instantly out of a bad mood?

• I am currently listening to the new Lorde album while doing this interview. I listen to so many different types of music and I love finding cool, different new songs and artists. When I’m working, I listen to whatever music emulates the mood. Any time I’m in a bad mood a really upbeat, fun music instantly gets smiling again.

Growing up, have you always wanted to be a musician? Can you recall your earliest musical memory?

• I started taking piano lessons when I was five years old because my brother did and I was jealous. At nine years old, I started taking voice lessons and I knew that music is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I remember going on road trips with my family when I was really young and singing along to Carol King songs. Listening to her was so inspiring and had a huge impact on my songwriting.

If you weren’t a musician today, what else could you see yourself doing?

• If wasn’t a musician today, I would love to do something that involves music or be a real estate agent. I love looking at houses and I feel like that would be a fun job!

I always like to ask artists about where they came from and how that city or town has influenced them as an artist now. So how do you think your hometown of Plano has shaped who you are as a musician and the art that you create?

• Growing up in the Dallas area, I was fortunate to be around incredible musicians in a very supportive live music community. It has inspired me to stay authentic to who I am as an artist. 

Let’s talk about your newest song, “Lost At Sea.” I read that it is dedicated to your late grandmother and her painting is the artwork for it. Can you talk about why you chose to dedicate it to her? What was the original inspiration for this track?

• I chose to dedicate this song to her because my family went through a hard time when she passed away and I wanted to honor her memory. When I wrote this song, I thought about how everyone feels lost sometimes and I wanted communicate that feeling in the song.

I understand that you spent most of this year touring the US with your Taking You tour with the group Why Don’t We. What was that experience like for you? How different was it then the High School Nation tour with Plain White T’s?

• Touring with Why Don’t We was such an amazing experience and I learned a lot.  On the Taking You tour, I got to connect with Why Don’t We’s fans and performed at indoor venues. On the High School Nation tour, it was a little different because I performed at different high schools around the U.S. Both experiences were so much fun!

How excited are you to be joining AJR on tour this summer? Have you been able to meet them yet? Do you still get nervous before you go on stage? If so, what calms you down and gets you ready for the crowd?

• I am so excited to be joining AJR on tour this summer!! They are so talented! I have not met them yet but look forward to meeting them on tour. I do still get nervous right before I go on stage, because the feeling of knowing you’re about to step out there in front of everyone is nerve racking. Before I walk on stage, I take deep breaths and then I get super pumped.

You will also be opening for Sabrina Carpenter on her tour on July 26^th? Have you gotten to meet her yet? What’s been the coolest touring experience so far for you? What’s been your favorite venue and crowd?

• I haven’t gotten to meet Sabrina but I have heard that she is so sweet! The Taking You Tour was probably the coolest touring experience I’ve had so far. I’ll remember it forever! My favorite venue and crowd I’ve performed at so far is White Oak in Houston opening for R5.

Are you currently new writing songs?

• Yes! I have been writing new songs constantly lately. It’s one of my favorite things to do and I can’t wait to share this new music with the world.

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

• Sara Bareilles, Rachel Yamagata, Leona Lewis, Sia, and Taylor Swift have inspired my music and songwriting style. I would love to work with Sia, Ed Sheehan, and Max Martin in the future.

What do you hope is the message of your music? What do you hope people continue to take away from your songs?

• I hope that the message of my music is very relatable. My goal is to be the voice that some don’t have. Hearing that one of my songs inspired someone is the best feeling in the world. I hope people continue to feel all types of emotions by listening to my songs and that I can help them through hard times.

What advice would you give to someone just getting started on this music path? Or even to someone young that is thinking of becoming a musician one day?

• Advice I would give to someone just getting started in music is to learn as much as you can and continue to, because there’s always more to learn. Know who you are as an artist so that nobody can tell you who to be. It’s important that you are doing music that you love, because if you’re not happy what’s the point? Music should always make you happy so do what feels most true to yourself.

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

• I’d like readers to know that I have a lot of new music coming very soon and I can’t wait to share it with them!