Zitat des Tages von Daya:
You should never be put into a mold based on your gender.
Because of my interest in songwriting, I was invited to visit a friend in L.A. for songwriting sessions with him and his friends. We wrote six songs by the end of the weekend, and 'Hide Away' happened to be one of them!
I feel like I get all the good parts of college, cause I just college hop on the weekends and party with them, but I don't have to do any of the school part or the work part.
All my friends are usually at festivals... I just have so much adrenaline running, I literally could run a marathon after my shows.
Music has been a huge passion of mine ever since I started playing the piano at age 3. Going to concerts, performing on my own, and listening to my favorite artists growing up confirmed that love for music and made me want to pursue it as a career.
I will wear makeup because I want to look good for myself, but it's not to please other people. It's not so I fit in with the pretty girls or to impress guys.
I try to write catchy hooks but, at the same time, things that mean something that will provoke thought.
I remember looking out into the sea of phone lights as Chris Martin belted 'Yellow' on the piano and deciding that that was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
I listened to a lot of Amy Winehouse: her albums 'Frank' and 'Back to Black'. She was such an incredible artist. She was just so raw and had her unique sound; she paired jazz with pop and was so soulful at the same time. So I pulled from her a lot in the beginning.
I've always been a songwriter.
If I'm going to release anything into the world, I want it to have a positive message. So I think that 'Sit Still, Look Pretty' and 'Hide Away' were two upbeat pieces, and their messages really uplift me the most.
Coldplay's 'Mylo Xyloto' tour was incredible.
We're all humans; we all go through phases.
I honestly just hope to continue creating music that people can relate to and connect with in a personal way.
I am still very independent in my real life, and that's why I'm always trying to get out of relationships prematurely.
I did a show with Tori Kelly, and it was really cool that I got to meet her. She has always been a huge inspiration of mine, and I'm obsessed with her voice, so it was great to get to talk to her about the industry. The best advice she gave me was to just be myself.
Music was always a huge part of me, but I always did it on the side. I didn't even take any music classes in high school... it was more of an extracurricular thing.
It's always pretty amazing to hear your own voice on the radio.
People should be allowed to roll out of bed and go to an interview; people shouldn't be telling you, 'You can't curse because it's not ladylike.' I don't believe in those standards.
I would like to work with Ed Sheeran at some point. I really admire his songwriting, and I just think he has a great voice and great artistry. Who else? On the producer side of things, definitely Diplo: that'd be awesome.
It was like I was Hannah Montana! I was a normal girl from Pittsburgh one minute and then a pop star the next!
I used to daydream in class about what it'd be like to be a singer. It's what I wanted to be ever since I was little, but I never knew if it'd happen or not. I was just a normal girl who was doing all the things teenagers do, but on the side, I was attending music camps and going to songwriting sessions.
I'm a classically trained jazz pianist - I've been playing since I was 3 years old.
As soon as 'Hide Away' came out, it was like everyone knew who I was, and I started getting all this attention. It was hard to get used to at first. I just remember that I suddenly couldn't walk down the hallways without hearing a classmate or teacher playing it - it was unreal!
I think the first concert I attended was Coldplay with my dad when I was around eight years old.
I started traveling, performing, doing photo shoots and working on new music. At the same time, I was juggling homework and trying not to miss out on too many experiences during my junior and senior years - like prom and graduation.
I wouldn't use a song I didn't think was my brand or image.
Stay humble, be fearless, and work, work, work, work, work, work.
I was invited to L.A. when I was 16 for a weekend-long songwriting session by a writer I had met through my voice teacher in Pittsburgh. My first hit, 'Hide Away,' was one of the songs written during those sessions. It was played for a radio rep who then started a new label; the song got a pretty organic start at radio and then took off.
I like to create something that's unique and kind of true to myself and authentic and everything. I don't really like to mirror myself after different artists.
I'm a fan of H&M, Topshop, and Forever 21.
In terms of role modelling for younger kids, I never really censor myself.
I love New Orleans. I love jazz. I grew up practicing jazz piano, and that's just been such a cool genre to me. There's a lot of talent there.
I'm a quarter Indian; my grandfather's originally from New Delhi.
I think Labrinth is an amazing writer and an amazing singer. His voice is just so magnetic. There are so many people that I would work with inside and outside of pop.
I think I have always been a hard worker in school and in sports and everything. Growing up, my parents encouraged me to do that from day one.
