( February 12, 2007) Our 'Music Guy' was lucky enough to catch up with singer-songwriter Lisa Palleschi at her Long Island home.

Album Info

Music Guy: Hi Lisa, thanks for giving us the time. You must be very excited with your first album release!

Lisa Palleschi: I'm very excited! It's been a long process but everything's coming together now.

MG: What are your plans now that the CD is out there?

LP: We're starting to gig out now. We've been doing a lot of morning shows, and we're doing a Wal-Mart tour.

MG: That's very cool. Many people get to see you and hear you, they see you later and say "Oh, I saw her, " or "I met her!".

LP: Exactly.

MG: I read that some of your influences were Pat Benatar and Nancy Wilson from Heart.

LP: Yeah, I love them both.

MG: I can hear a little of each of them in your voice.

LP: Thank you. That's a compliment!

MG: Have you ever seen either of them live?

LP: no...

MG: You're a bit younger than me.

LP: I'm not as young as you think! I tried to see Benatar when she has performed out here. She is from the Island and she has done a lot of shows, but the timing never worked out.

MG: So you are a "singer-songwriter". You have control over what you're saying and how you present it.

LP: Yes. Exactly.

MG: You really didn't give much thought to songwriting until after you were in college?

LP: No, I never wanted to be a songwriter. I started singing when I was twelve and that's all I ever wanted to do. I always thought that I'd be able to sing other people's music, which I'm kind of doing right now. Songwriting didn't come into play until I was at school and people suggested that if I really wanted to do this singing thing, I really needed to start writing my own songs, and I always "yeah yeah yeahed" them. Then I came across this songwriting class at Berkeley and I took it and enjoyed it a lot. That's how it started. It wasn't one person or event, but everyone was constantly in my ear.

MG: When writing which comes first for you, the music or the lyrics?

LP: The same time... actually no, it depends on the song. Usually we start musically and add the lyrics in, but they are usually lyrics I've had that I've written in my journal. I guess it is easier for me to start with the music.

MG: Before you thought of your journal writing as songs, did you write poetically or lyrically?

LP: It's usually intended to be written as songs when I write stuff.

MG: They tell me you love being on stage.

LP: Yeah. I love being on stage. That's where I'm most comfortable.

MG: They say people are most afraid of spiders and talking on stage...

LP: I don't like talking on stage. Not so much. I love the signing part.

MG: You said you started to sing when you were twelve. Did you see something or hear someone that made you say "I want to do that!"?

LP: I always liked signing, but I got a solo back in middle school choir. It was "After All" by Peter Cetera and Cher. They held auditions, I didn't tell anybody about it, but I got it. That night, I was up there and I sang. My parents were in the audience, and they were kind of dumbfounded. They wondered where did that come from? I never told them I had an interest in signing at all. After that night I asked them if I could take voice lessons and they said yes. It all started from there.

MG: Do you have any musical talents beyond signing?

LP: I can play the piano, but not great. I can get by.

MG: When did you finish recording the album?

LP: We finished it in New York in April, 2006.

MG: So it's finally here, months later. That must have been a long build-up of anticipation.

LP: Yes. It's been a long process. A slow process. Everyone tells me that's the way it works. But now I'm excited! It came out originally in October, but we switched companies so it's going to be re-released in April. The Wal-Mart tour will start then, for a few months.

MG: How did you meet up with your band?

LP: We actually all went to Berkeley. They're all a little older than me. I didn't know them at the time. When I came to New York, they recorded with me on my first demo.

MG: I read you were classmates with John Mayer. Did you know him?

LP: I had one class with him. He was only at Berkeley for a semester or two. He left, but that worked out for him. We did have one class together. We had some mutual friends too.

MG: Anyone you see on stage really impress you?

LP: My first concert ever was Debbie Gibson. I loved Celine Dion. I recently saw U2.

MG: You have the music thing going on. Have you had any odd jobs that you've gone through?

LP: In high school, I worked with a DJ. I was one of those people who tried to get you up dancing.

MG: Watch much TV?

LP: oh. Lost. Love that show.

MG: You have a myspace page, like every musician, singer, comedian and actor has to have. Do you go online often?

LP: I definitely do. I plan to start writing in my blog. I need to be a little more proactive in that.

MG: PopCultureMadness has a page too, but we haven't done anything with it. At this moment, Tom is our only friend. Would you like to be our first real friend?

LP: Sure.

MG: Thanks for your time. Good luck with the tour and thanks for being our first myspace friend!

LP: Thanks for calling!

Lisa Palleschi's Released