ARTIST OF THE MONTH: NOV 07

Written by Amos White V for THE ARTISTS FORUM / AF MAG
Image: Judy Schiller
Copyright 2007: The Artists Forum, Inc. - All Rights Reserved

ARTIST: Renee Cologne
RESIDENCE: Pleasantville, NJ
ART: Music – songwriter, producer, singer
MAIN GENRE: electronic, orchestral, pop

TRAINING: Berklee College of Music, Bachelors of Music for Recording &
Engineering; University of NC at Greenville, classical harmony and
theory concentration

LATEST WORKS: “Rock & Roll Housewife”, previous record “The Opposite Of”

PRESS: www.reneecologne.com: go to “News” or “Write About Me/Reviews”

RECENT ACTIVITIES: Grand Prize Winner, THE ARTISTS FORUM ELECTRONIC MUSIC COMPETITION (AF-EMC) for “Know I Said”

UPCOMING ACTIVITIES: Performance at The Cutting Room, NYC 1/17/08; show Mar/April 2008 in LA (see website for more details)

WEBSITES: www.reneecologne.com, www.myspace.com/reneecologne

AF GALLERY:

PLEASE DESCRIBE YOUR ARTISTIC THEMES: The plight of humanity -
the enormity, depth, sadness, joy of life but also the humor in all things.

WHAT IS YOUR ARTISTIC PROCESS?: Create space to create – meaning,
I have to have a clear mind and a clean work space (I’m a Capricorn), and time before me to work. Then, I try to be the pointer of the “Ouija” board and stay out of the way of inspiration. I try to create what I call “soundscapes” when I produce music – aural rooms that you can walk into, that, when listened to with headphones, literally envelop the listener in a stereo field.

I usually write lyrics first, as poetry, concepts or loose ideas. Then, musically sometimes, I start with guitar, other times keyboards or piano – many times it’s a sound or beat that I will start to tweak and then hear something that takes me in a certain direction and I’m off and running. It’s what I call “the way in” to the heart of what a song, arrangement or production should be.

I tend to try to work on each section of a song until it’s finished – then personally, my biggest challenge is how much to take away before there is only the essential elements of a piece left. Only when taking away or adding one more thing feels incorrect, is a song done.

WHAT ARE YOUR ARTISTIC GOALS?: To live a creative life; and be heard by people who will connect, be inspired or moved by what I do.

WHAT ARE YOUR VIEWS ON THE INDUSTRY?: Ah, a loaded question, and one, not surprisingly, that I have a few views on:

The record industry, as it used to operate, is dead. Music changes hands via a digital format today; sometimes yes, still in the form of a CD, but hardly ever as a cassette, LP or remember 8-track tapes? So, the medium changes. The problem is that, the record companies did not embrace digital technology at it’s advent years ago and so now are faced with an expensive dinosaur of a business model, that does not work in today’s environment.

The beautiful part of music moving throughout the world digitally, is that people can find artists and connect on a global level, that previously, from an artists’ point of view, was not available without either a hell of a lot of legwork or a major distribution deal. But, the problem that we are all finding, is this: how can and should an artist be compensated for what they do, while still allowing music to spread as it will? THAT, my dear, I have no answer for, but spend more time than I should pondering.

WHAT ADVICE COULD YOU GIVE TO EMERGING ARTISTS?: The artists’ path is one that is as delicate as a flower and yet as fierce as a warriors’. Be true to your creative voice, be inspired, not only concerned with being inspirING, and mostly be aware of paths that may not fit the mold of how you see your life evolving, and be willing to explore them. And lastly, for God’s sake, don’t take yourself too seriously! By all means, DO what you do with care and seriousness. But, have a sense of humor – you’ll need it!

RENEE COLOGNE