Meghann Wright

By Alex Teitz

FEMMUSIC first heard about Meghann Wright because of a project called The City & The Heart taking place in NYC. When we next heard of her she was booked on the 2015 Vans Warped Tour. Wright has a hard edge to her music found in songs like “Cocaine.” She is a singer-songwriter who has been building a following and continues to ramp up. We are honored to present this e-mail interview with Meghann prior to the Vans Warped Tour.

FEMMUSIC: Can you describe your songwriting technique?

MW: Generally I get inspiration while I’m doing something other than trying to write music, usually when I’m just going about my day and singing to myself. If I really like the idea, I’ll take a voice note with my phone and then when I have time I’ll sit down my guitar at my writing station (my laptop, USB mic and monitors) and flesh it out.

FEMMUSIC: Tell me about your approach to music distribution. I see you’ve released a number of EP’s and also made much of your music available for free. What benefits do you see to this approach? What downsides have you faced?

MW: When you’re first starting out you just want to get your music out there and share it with people.

FEMMUSIC:  Tell me about Blacktop Records. It strikes me almost as an artist collective. How did you find them and what do they do for you?

MW: One of the owners of BTR Ben Andress saw me performing a couple of years ago in New York and he liked my music. We became friends and last year he decided he wanted to put out an EP for me on cassette. BTR is like a little family of artists who all just want to help each other create music and art so I guess you’re right about the collective vibe.

FEMMUSIC:  We’ve spoken before about The City & The Heart. I’d like to hear more from you about it. What made you put it together? How have you found the artists? What has been the biggest challenge with it?

MW: When I first set out trying to do a solo project, I made it a point to host and organize open mics and artist jam nights and songwriter circles in New York. I met almost all of the women involved that way and just thought it would be cool to put together a compilation of music that was representative of the community we were building. It all happened pretty organically. Then we got interested in doing more for New York in general and started fundraising initiatives for Safe Horizon, a non-profit organization that benefits victims of domestic violence in NY. The second volume of music comes out June 2015 and I will be collecting any donations I receive for Safe Horizon on Vans Warped Tour.

Editor’s note: For info on Safe Horizon visit http://safehorizon.org

FEMMUSIC:  You’re doing Vans Warped Tour this year. How did you get in? What goals do you have for the tour? Does anything worry you about doing it?

MW:  I think I got offered the tour because I was on the radar of some folks who organize it, mainly because I have been working pretty hard to boost my presence over the last couple of years. My goals for the tour include building a bigger fanbase, sharing my new record with new fans, and just connecting with people all over the country. It’s a wonderful opportunity and I’m very excited!

FEMMUSIC:  Staying on touring, whom would you most like to tour with or collaborate with?

MW:  I love touring, I would tour with anyone in the world. As for collaborating I feel the same way. I love writing with people, I don’t care about genre or background, music is music.

FEMMUSIC: As a woman in the music industry have you been discriminated against?

MW: I’m not sure yet.

FEMMUSIC: What one thing would you like to change about the music industry?

MW: Nothing. I don’t know enough about it yet. I am still very new.

FEMMUSIC: What advice would you give to an artist just starting out?

MW: Just keep trying and working hard at your craft, whatever that might be. It’s also important to connect with other artists and people who work for them. The more people know about your art and you as a person the better. Most importantly, if something makes you happy – if you’re passionate about it – don’t give up!