NetValar Interview with Mysti Mayhem

Tell us a little bit more about yourself?
I was born May 14, 1984 in USA. Singing since I was 2, playing guitar
since the age of 9. I am a performing artist for a living.

In less then 10 words desribe yourself?
Animated, impatient, deep, tortured, philisophically silly

How would you describe your music to a complete stranger?
Soulful, with organic elements

The difference between you and all the other musicians online is?
We are all connected in some way... I can't think of a difference because
I don't know all the other musicians.

What are your strengths as a (1) a musician
(2) a human being?
#1. "Perfect Pitch" #2. I am determined

What are your weaknesses?
I am easily distracted and discouraged

what are the proudest achievements of your life?
Making it to the age of 22 alive.

What type of music do you listen to on a regular basis?
New music on Sellaband is intrigueing me as of late.

What 1 advise would you give to an aspiring musician?
Never stop. Never stop learning. Never stop playing.

How do you feel about interviews?
They can either be super fun, or tramendously boring

How do you feel about optional questions instead of interviews?
Optional questions leave out room for discussion, which can be either good
or bad.

Do you come from a musical background? YES.

Was your childhood inspirational or does it affect your music? My
childhood was very disturbing and unhappy. Yes, it has absolutely
affected my music and why I do it.

Who inspires you? Everyone with a story to tell.... a talent that
supercedes others... or an undeniable sense of self.

Do you get nervous about playing live? Every time. It's good to be
nervous, it loosens me up.

What is your favorite web-site? www.sellaband.com

What will you do if you never "make it" big in the music industry? I will
still create music and perform just as I have been. Nothing would change,
except the difficulty of music would be a lot less.

What do you think you will be doing 10 years from now? Writing a song,
playing onstage, composing a piece for operas, movie scores... etc.

Would you accept a million dollars in cash to NEVER play your music or
anyone elses music again? No. Never. My life is music. I hear it
everywhere I go. There is music in everything.... the rhythm of life will
always be my number one love.

Why do you deserve to succeed? Because I have paid my dues. Success is a
song I would love to learn.

If you had to lose either your hearing or your eye sight - what would you
want to keep? I want to keep my hearing because my ears are my tools that
I use to create with.

What would you do if you were disabled and unable to perform again? Life
would stop for me, either by dying of a broken heart, or ending it on my
own.

What is more important?
(1) having your music heard by the masses for free
(2) being heard by a limited number of people but being paid for it
This is a difficult question. Difficult, because in one hand I have the
ability to share my life and what I do with others which is necessary in
my line of work. In the other hand, I am presented with the option of
putting food on the table... I don't know which I would want more... to be
able to eat, or have others enjoy my music.... I can't answer.

If you had to walk over people to make it big - would you? Yes... it just
depends on who. HAH.

If you could go back ten years - what would you change? I was only 12, so
there wasn't much I could change.

If you were not a musician what would you be doing? There is no other
option.

Do you have many close friends within the music industry? Many.

Who is your number one fan? It's a toss between Patsi Moonbaby, or Ray
Baisden. (If we aren't counting myself, that is.)

What 1 thing would you ask your fans to do to help your carrear? To
spread my name and music... to copy my discs they buy at shows and share
them... to invest in me on Sellaband if they see fit.

Would you suggest a business manager or fans doing partial work?
Absolutely. The music industry is way too difficult to attack alone.

How do you feel about using social networking to promote yourself? It is
one of the greatest strategies, especially for DIY artists.

Would it matter if 99% of people hated your music if 1% thought you were
the greatest artist ever? I suppose so. I base a lot of what I do on
whether or not my fans will accept it... if my music started a direction
that wasn't pleasing to my fans, I would be more than likely apprehensive
about my changes and directions.

What are the major frustrations you face within the music industry? Being
overlooked because I don't fit the "image" American music industries want
to sell... their number one priority is whether or not the artist looks
good on camera. Their number two priority is selling that image to the
masses. And one of the last priorities is teaching them how to either
sing, or lipsync the music they are selling. It's ridiculous that there
are so many over qualified artists out there that won't be in the lime
light because they weren't a model from birth, or they didn't have a very
rich daddy to supply "PAYOLA" to the radio stations and record execs.

How do you see digital distribution compared to physical distribution? It
is the future. People don't purchase CD's anymore because of the iPOD.
Because of this, they are willing to pay per song, per download. I have
made more money off of my digital distribution on CDBABY than I have
selling copies of my record online. Digital distribution also saves me
the time and money of having to spend thousands of dollars on the
manufacturing of my record.

What is the 1 thing your promo kit can't do without? Pictures. Quality
photograhs.

what is your best promotional web-site? www.spellboxmusic.com

What are the 3 things you need to do to succeed in the music industry?
HAHAHAHA If I knew the answer to this I would have done them by now.

What is more important: talent or determination? Determination. People
don't need talent to make a record today because of the fancy tools used
in the studio. And more importantly, people can't hear the difference
between organic talent and computers, nor do they care.

What do you think of performers who can not play a musical instrument? In
my book, they are not a performer. The only exception to this is if the
person is an extraordinary vocalist who has experience and training on
some level.

Does it matter if an artist writes their own songs or not? I find artists
who write their own material to be more appealing because I feel as though
they are speaking directly to me from their soul. But not everyone can
write hit songs that are appealing to the masses, so there are people who
do that for a living. Don't get me wrong, if Linda Perry allowed me to, I
would sing her songs to the high heavens.

Which do you prefer the oldstyle MTV video or the new style YouTube video?
MTV plays music??? YOUTUBE, Medicinefilms. This is the future.

Do you prefer the recording experience most or performing the songs live?
I enjoy both. For me there is not much difference. I try and keep my
recordings as organic and unprocessed as possible, because otherwise, I
feel like it would be a lie to manufacture something that I don't do
normally or in the flesh.

What advice would you offer someone starting out in the music industry?
RUN AWAY.

Do you feel it is important to know as much as you can on the "business
side" of music? Every day I am learning that this is very important...
without going to college for it, apprenticing the knowledge is difficult,
but not impossible. And definitely a necessity.

Do you feel you know enough? I will never know enough, even when I think
I know it all.

Where do you see the current music industry going? I believe the record
industry will start looking for talent online to try and save their dying
business.

The music industry is best described as:
(1) hell on earth
(2) pergatory
(3) heaven
(4) all the above
Why?

It's Hell on earth because it's very similar to the old adage of the devil
offering you everything you ever desired and dreamed of, but then you must
sign your name and life away in blood. It's like pergatory because an
artist can do so much hard work, and still feel as though nothing has
changed, nothing is rotating... it can be heaven for those who find
nirvana and truth within their own spiritual self and their own creation
and music.

What is your opinion of all the lawsuits by the RIAA in recent years?
They are a lame group of lawyers who are getting rich by sueing lots of
people. They don't care who gets the cash except themselves. The beautiful
part about what they do, is they convince people they are on the
musician's side.

Do you respect artists that do styles of music that you do not like?
Absolutely. I have found over the years, that when I listen to something I
dislike, or am closed minded about, several years down the line, I will be
enjoying that same music. My tastes change over time as I grow and learn
more.

How do you feel about drugs and alcohol in the music industry? LOL.
Well... they go hand in hand. With the right amount, the most beautiful
music can be created. With the right amount, the most beautiful music will
be destroyed... and if not careful, the musician with the right amount
will die... be careful.

You can spot a fake person in the music industry by? How manufactured the
songs are... there is a certain "sound" that accompanies those who don't
quite make the bar for talent.

A&R people are best described as? Leprechauns. They have the ability to
grant wishes and do magic, but where in the hell are they?!

Do you believe politics belongs in music? Yes. Social suppression and
those who weren't allowed to speak spawned the earlier music that
stimulates me today. The old gospils... the old country songs... music is
an excellent way of bringing the truth from the streets,to the people.

Are you politically active? Absolutely.

What is more important: kindness, knowledge or talent? They are equally
important. Sort of like, the Son, the Father and the Holy Ghost.

Are people born with the gift of an artist or can it be learned? The true
gift comes from those who are born with it. It is a craft that can be
learned, but both are distinguishable and different from eachother.


Which is the better band: Beatles, Rolling Stones, Metallica, U2 or
Nirvana? BEATLES.

Links for you to follow on this artist:
http://www.sellaband.com/mystimayhem
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/spellbox
http://www.myspace.com/mystimayhem