New Release – Fantasy by Demi Michelle
Heartfelt, charismatic and unique are three words used by reviewers to describe Demi Michelle’s music. She turns her life experiences into songs that touch the hearts of her listeners through captivating storytelling in her lyrics. Her creativity and love for both pop and country music drive her passion for writing meaningful songs with melodies that wrap each song’s message in the warmest hug.
“I wrote ‘Fantasy’ in 2020. This song has had quite the journey. I’m not releasing it until now because I didn’t feel it fit on my album, ‘Dear Diary’, or EP ‘It Is What It Is’. Still, I play ‘Fantasy’ during all of my live shows. It’s rare for me to perform unreleased music, but I loved ‘Fantasy’ so much from the beginning that it became one of the exceptions.”
“I was doing a show in Kirksville, Missouri one time, and after my set, my mom asked me about ‘Fantasy’. She didn’t know it was mine and asked whose song it was. When I told her I wrote it, she was stunned I hadn’t recorded it yet and it became one of her favourite songs of mine. Now that I’m in between projects and need standalone singles, it feels like the perfect time to release it. I can’t express how excited I am to finally share a studio recording of this song after playing it live for so long.”
“Glitter’s on the floor tonight”
“The lyrics of ‘Fantasy’ are very close to my heart. From a craft standpoint, they’re my favourite kind of lyrics, ones that paint a vivid picture through sensory details. I actually did sensory writing, which is one of my favourite songwriting techniques, before writing the lyrics. I had a scene and concept in mind, and I tapped into my senses, writing a bunch of details down. So many of the images that poured out of me during the sensory writing became lyrics. From the first lyric, Glitter’s on the floor tonight, the magical atmosphere of ‘Fantasy’ is established, and it blossoms from there.”
“The lyrics also mean a lot to me because they capture my dreams of falling in love one day and how I imagine finding my special someone as being like a fantasy. Fantasies come from the imagination and blur the line between reality and make believe. I imagine true love as being something that would feel too good to be true.”
“So, writing the lyrics through the lens of a fantasy allowed me to capture this concept through threading vivid imagery, metaphors, and my own feelings together. Especially with love songs, it’s important to write something fresh. ‘Fantasy’ is one of a kind because of the way I approached writing the lyrics, and I hope this song makes listeners feel like they’ve stepped into a fairytale.”
“My favourite memories come from the day I recorded the song. My guitarist, Luke Wood, was home over Christmas break, so he stopped by my ten-hour session to track guitar and bass for a few songs. I remember being super excited to record ‘Fantasy’ since it’s fully acoustic. I feel that this choice really brings out the vulnerability and allows the lyrics to take the spotlight. Luke did a perfect job, and it was such a fun day being back in the studio together a couple months after we attended the Josie Music Awards in Nashville, where I was nominated for two awards.”
“Also, I loved recording vocals for ‘Fantasy’ and my producer, Bob McCutcheon, had the best background vocal idea. I went into the session with some in mind, but he had the idea for me to sing “oohs” behind the second verse and pre-chorus, and at the end of the second and final choruses. I had a blast doing this, and the first time he played the song back to me through my headphones, I got chills. This simple addition gives ‘Fantasy’ a magical backdrop in places, and all around, Bob made the song sound like something out of a fairytale.”
“I don’t record fully acoustic songs often, so when I do, it’s always a special time. I truly loved creating this song with Bob and Luke because it reminded me again how blessed I am for studio days.”
“The cover artwork was inspired by the bridge lyrics. This is a massive deal to me because I’ve said on countless occasions that bridges are my favourite. When my graphic designer, Eddie Davis, asked me if I had any ideas for the artwork, I told him that it’d be amazing if he could create a visual that captures the bridge lyrics. This song is full of imagery, and I feel the bridge illuminates the magical feeling of imagining falling in love as a fantasy.”
“The bridge lyrics say, So, I’ll let this paper lantern go, and make a million wishes as it floats into the sky. Maybe the stars will align for you and I.”
“Eddie designed artwork that brings these lyrics to life in such a gorgeous way, and overall, every artistic choice he made reflects the fantastical tone of the song. I can’t thank him enough for creating my artwork. I love it so much.”
“I hope you enjoyed going behind the scenes of the ‘Fantasy’ magic!”
‘Fantasy’ is out 23rd March.
