Part 1

Name: Raphaella Mazaheri-Asadi aka Raphaella

Nationality: Persian-British
Occupation: Singer, songwriter, producer
Current Release: Raphaella's "Enough", a collaboration with Freedo, is out now.
Recommendations: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and On The Nature’ of Daylight by Max Richter.

[Read our Max Richter interview]

If you enjoyed this interview with Raphaella and would like to stay up to date with her work, visit her on Instagram.



When did you start writing/producing/playing music and what or who were your early passions and influences? What was it about music and/or sound that drew you to it?

I first started learning classical violin when I was 6 and then the piano when I was 7. So I always remember learning to read music almost at the same time as learning to read so I feel it’s always been a part of me.

I remember when I was 9 I wrote my first song after I saw a homeless person and understood its meaning for the first time. I remember I sung it in my room and prayed to God that he’d be sent it somehow. I think music has always felt like that to me - something that's powerful and magical, whether it makes sense or not.

My heritage also massively influenced my love of music. I’m half Persian so grew up listening to Persian music with its incredible rich quarter tones and timbres and on my mum’s side my Scottish and English grandfather was an avid record collector from French Chansons to Jazz.

I remember I would just get transported to other worlds, mesmerised sitting there, taking it all in.

When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening and how does it influence your approach to creativity?

When I listen to music that moves me, I just feel. It’s almost like it’s my soul that’s listening and connecting and my heart genuinely feels like it wants to just soar out of my chest. It’s hard to articulate the feeling with words, but it feels like things just make sense.

Something happens when I listen to music sometimes, where it’s like my brain is processing more than just the words and lyrics - there may not even be any lyrics, but somehow deep human questions in my mind seem to settle and be at peace. I get the same feeling whenever I watch a sunset or sunrise. Almost like my active consciousness with words is switched off and I go to this place made entirely of ‘feeling’.

I think that’s the magic in music, and I always try to chase that feeling and that point when writing. I freestyle to totally switch my conscious mind off, and genuinely feel like the melodies aren’t from me, but come from somewhere spiritual and I’m just here to sing them.

That’s actually how I write every song.

How would you describe your development as an artist in terms of interests and challenges, searching for a personal voice, as well as breakthroughs?

This is actually a question I ask myself daily! I think as artists sometimes we’re so painfully aware of our own selves and critical which causes us to over-analyse ourselves. My sound actually started very leftfield and experimental - producing music like James Blake and Boniver with my EP ‘Imagine’, and that’s still an incredibly important part of my sound as an artist - I always try to search for the left and exciting.



I always say in the studio NOTHING is too weird. But, as the industry evolved and dance music started to take over, I found myself put in dance writing sessions and accidentally landed on some amazing records both in the House and DnB world - my earliest being ‘Pull me under’ with Dimension, ‘Last Time’ with Rudimental, ‘Kingdoms’ and ‘Smoke’ with Gorgon City and ‘One Night’, ‘2am’ and ‘Lies’ with MK.



It was odd for me, because as an artist I’ve always been a producer as well as writer so I’m really looking forward to putting out the new music I have lined up for people to get to know me as the whole artist - producer as well as writer.

Tell me a bit about your sense of identity and how it influences both your preferences as a listener and your creativity as an artist, please.

So as I mentioned earlier, I’m half Persian, half British and I think it has a huge impact on me as an artist. My dad is a Persian carpet specialist, so I grew up surrounded by incredible carpets, design, poetry, food and music. I always try to incorporate elements of that into my songs, because I think the culture is so beautiful and vast and it makes me sad how that has been forgotten amongst the dark politics of Iran.

I also recently wrote a protest song in support of the brave women and men fighting for freedom in Iran right now. My family is still there, and I feel like my heart is too, so as an artist  that sadness and loss seeps into everything I do. I did my dissertation on political protest music, so I know how powerful music can be. And as an artist I think trying to connect with the human consciousness is at the heart of everything we create.

I’m also incredibly inspired by the 13th century Persian poets and philosophers Rumi and Hafez and sometimes draw from them for lyrical ideas and concepts. I also always love finding the slightly Middle Eastern inflections and riffs at the ends of my phrases - and I think as a listener I really connect with those kind of snaky melodies.

What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and art?

Honesty and searching for something that excites me.

I write probably around 150 songs in a year so I’m always searching for that something - whether it be a weird synth sound, a drum loop or a melody line that makes me excited and sparks something in me.

How would you describe your views on topics like originality and innovation versus perfection and timelessness in music? Are you interested in a “music of the future” or “continuing a tradition”?

I think the beautiful thing about music and art is that it’s this perfect mix of both innovative new, but also everything else that’s come before it.

Maybe some people will disagree with me but I don’t actually think there is such a thing as pure innovation. I think we’re all intrinsically made up of everything we’ve ever heard, seen or experienced in society and history like a musical tapestry - mixed with our own individual innovative view on things which creates magic.

I think we should honour tradition and it’s important to understand where we’ve come from, but even classical music in its time was a radical innovative movement and Bach chorales were banned in church for using voicings that pushed the boundaries too far.

Over the course of your development, what have been your most important instruments and tools - and what are the most promising strategies for working with them?

I think first and foremost is my piano which I was gifted when I was 14. That’s what I started to write songs on and it’s still the instrument I keep going back to every time I write.

It helps me to remember to always strip back the song to its core - it’s a great way of working out issues or ironing out song melodies / structure that need to be fixed.

Take us through a day in your life, from a possible morning routine through to your work, please.

This is still a work in progress haha because I find it very difficult to separate work and time off.  

But usually I always make sure I have at least 10 minutes every morning to pray and centre myself. I think for me this is the most important part of my day - I struggle with anxiety and the music industry can be tough sometimes so that 10 minutes with myself every morning really helps to remind myself what’s important spiritually.

I then always start my day with a strong coffee and porridge with peanut butter - emphasis on the ‘strong’. Most days are either split between writing sessions with others or writing myself both in my studio in Shoreditch or around London.

I like to always start sessions getting to know each other first - often they’ll be set up by our managements or publishers so it can feel a bit like a blind date. I’ve met some of the most amazing friends and co-writers this way though.