Published on March 11th, 2021 | by Dr. Jerry Doby

Introducing Rising Artist Emma Negrete

One of L.A.’s best-kept secrets, Emma Negrete, who originally hails from the comfy Midwest hub of Des Moines, started performing when she was 7 years old, spending subsequent years participating in choirs and ensembles with a wide variety of genres. She studied opera during high school and went on to study vocal performance in the jazz conservatory at the Chicago College of Performing Arts, while doing gigs around Chicago with her band. The experience inspired her to pursue music full time and finally make a move to LA.

Negrete is a purveyor of soulful pop. Influenced by the likes of Stevie Wonder, Ella Fitzgerald, Stevie Nicks, Beyonce and Lauryn Hill. Emma possesses an informed and powerful voice with an economical style and a unique talent for note bending, well evident in the six songs featured on her forthcoming debut EP Breaking Down the Algorithm, dropping February 12, 2021 on Business Records.

Emma’s traveled a lot of hard roads, even spending a year abroad in China, where she was greatly humbled and forced to face her darkest truths in a world of isolation… the real quarantine. Through her music she expresses her moments of clarity and the process of gaining back the control of her own mind. Negrete often writes about the people, observations, self-realizations, culture, and struggles she experienced while living overseas, hence, “Lost In Translation.”

In her own words “I write at my best when I am very passionate about particular philosophies that stem from self realizations and a change in perspective. I find that if I have purposeful lyrics first, everything else will fall into place.” Negrete’s biggest mission in the world is to share that changing your entire mindset for the better does exist and for people to feel the same amount of selfless love for themselves that she has found. It doesn’t come naturally for most people, it’s a muscle you have to exercise every day.

Emma Negrete “Lost In Translation” and the EP Breaking Down the Algorithm is available on Cassette, CD, Vinyl, Digital, and all Streaming platforms.

For more information, visit: https://linktr.ee/Emmanegrete

We also caught up with Emma and got her to weigh in on a few things

From the outside looking in who is Emma Negrete?

Honestly, right at this very moment, that’s a hard question to answer because I don’t really know as I am in such a pivotal time in my life. I truly believe that people will perceive you by the energy you give off and everyone projects anyway therefore its hard for me to put a pin on what the outside perspective may be. I could tell you that I’m a 25 year old singer- songwriter based in Los Angeles, California who grew up in Des Moines, Iowa and maybe that’s all I am looking from the outside in but, as my projects unfold I think the world will get a better grasp on who I am. So to give a proper answer, from the outside looking in, Emma Negrete is a growing artist.

What brought you to the music business?

I have been doing music my whole life, primarily as a singer and really set my heart out on making a career out of it ever since I could remember. I studied jazz at the Chicago College of Performing Arts Conservatory, started writing my own songs and made the jump to LA. I took a residency gig singing cover music at EDM nightclubs in Shenzhen, China. I decided that wasn’t the life for me regardless of where in the world it was. From there, I started writing more and more songs and putting in the work it would take to start living the life I wanted to live which started with getting my mind and health right. During that process and diving into the business side, I learned that it takes so much more than just being a good singer. There are so many amazing singers out there that “should” be on the radio but there is a reason they are not. There’s a world’s difference between someone who writes songs and someone who does not. I didn’t have much to say for the longest time but after so many trial and errors, I found a clearer sense of direction for my place in the music business.

Tell us about your current project?

My current project “Algorithms” will be my debut EP album. Through this album I share many dark emotions and my process of finding the strength to come out on the other side of them. The concept is called “Algorithms” because throughout many experiences of traveling, loving, and meeting many different people of many different cultures, I found that there are algorithms to everything, most importantly, self. Several of the songs off this album talk about figuring out your own personal algorithm and how they function with other people’s. I also touch on the topic of not getting stuck or controlled by society, media, expectations, and fears that are all part of the overall “algorithm” we live in. The album’s cover art is a photo with strings attached to me. The concept plays off of the idea of a puppet breaking free from the puppeteer.

What does it mean for you?

I have grown and learned so much as a person during the process of writing these songs. As I come up with the visual concepts I continue to find meaning in ways that I didn’t expect to. Even though I felt a specific way when I wrote them, I am just now starting to truly understand the lessons I learned as I try to explain them to other people and see how other people perceive them. This project to me feels a bit apocalyptic in the sense where the world as I know it is coming to an end.

Do you have a specific creative process?

I really don’t have one specific way about creating something because for me, that’s where the writer’s block starts. I will write aimlessly about particular topics that are unclear to me until I come to some sense of clarity that is worth creating a whole song about then, once I have the lyrics down, the melody is almost always what comes last because that is something that comes more naturally to me.

What’s the most satisfying about making music for you?

“Music is my therapy”— every artist ever.. but it is truly what keeps me on top of my mental health and gives me a reason to spend all of my time and effort into being the best version of myself. When you write a song that pinpoints something that has held you as a prisoner of your own mind, there is not a more freeing feeling and superpower in the world because you now have something to show for it too.

What do you want listeners to get from your music?

I want listeners to feel the sense of urgency to get on top of their well-being, mental health, and to gain the confidence to be honest 100% of the time because that’s what will lead you to the life you want and deserve to live. No matter what your truth is, there is light in it. I want people to at least once in their lifetime to feel the amount of self love/awareness that I have found in the darkest parts of my life by being honest with myself.

What’s been the funniest WTF moment in your career thus far?

I would say the funniest WTF moment in my career thus far would be not only having a whole glam team put oil on my butt for a hot and steamy scene in my music video, but then having the team and my best friend wipe the dirt off my butt after rolling around on the ground. Something about that just didn’t feel right lol.

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About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.