Interviewing Anja Kotar, Slovenian Musician and Future World Dominator

written by alexandra moody

Hi Anja!! So go ahead and tell us a bit about yourself!

Hi! :) I’m a Pop singer-songwriter, originally from a tiny country called Slovenia in Europe (it’s shaped like a chicken!), but now living in San Jose, California (the heart of Silicon Valley). I’m a classically trained pianist, a fashion aficionado, and write songs about my generation and our relationship with technology.

Why music? Was there some moment where you were just like “this is what i wanna do”?

As cliche as this sounds, I never had the moment because I always just “knew”? I have no idea why or how, but ever since I can recall, I was fixated on the idea of being a singer, a performer. I never even considered another option and my entire life has been learning, working, and honing in on these skills to make that dream a reality :)

Where do you draw inspiration from in your music?

Because my music is all tech-related and because I live in the tech capital of the world, my inspiration is always my own life and surroundings. I’m fascinated by observing human behavior, how we react to different situations and experiences, then taking these complex ideas and writing songs that are easily understandable and relatable.

You have (may I say) a killer fashion sense; where do you draw inspiration for that?

Oh my gosh, thank you so much! Growing up in Europe, especially in a country neighboring Italy, I think fashion was always a big part of culture. I remember as a little girl being at the store with my mom, buying Elle or Vogue, then coming home and looking through these magazines together. My mom was the one who truly lit a love for fashion in me and ton me, it’ll always be synonymous with her.

So this new song “Tuscany”. Tell us about it.

Yay! It’s definitely my favorite song I’ve done so far, mainly because I think it sounds the way it feels (that’s so artistically ambiguous haha). When I think of Tuscany i the summer, golden sunflower fields, white linen dresses, plates of hot pasta, I imagine it sounding the way this song does and I that’s probably why it works :)

I wrote it on a quarantine night at 2am after scrolling through Pinterest and seeing ll of these gorgeous images from Tuscany, started daydreaming, and before I knew it I had the first demo of the song done. It was initially just a fun little song version of a Pinterest board for me, then I shared it on my Instagram stories the next day and got so many messages from people (more than on any song ever before!) that I decided to make the song for real.

“Tuscany” is the perfect mixture of instrumentation and vocals, how’d you find that perfect mix?

Thank you, that’s such an awesome compliment and it really means a lot :) This was the first song to feature my friend and guitarist Dimitri Morris. After we had the basic production done, Noah (my producer) sent over the track to Dimitri who then recorded some incredible guitar riffs and loops to add to the song. He was inspired by John Mayer and ended up we adding this amazing guitar solo as the bridge of the song which is now my favorite part :) So, to answer the question: the perfect mix in the song is the perfect mix between the two producers who created it, Dimitri Morris and Noah Taylor.

What do you wish to accomplish with your music by the end of the year?

This whole year has been so absolutely unpredictable and it has altered a lot of my views on life. I used to be (still am a little bit) so fixated on planning and controlling everything in my life that the initial wave of lockdowns and news of Covid was  a huge gut punch. In retrospect, I realize that there are always things in life that are out of control and instead of being frustrated over that fact, it’s important we learn to accept it and navigate through it to the best of our abilities (much like surfing on waves). So what I wish to accomplish is to continue to work hard, write music, pursue my dream career, and finish each day knowing I took full advantage of it :)

Here’s the classic “what’s next” question, anything new coming soon?

Yes! Quarantine has been very fruitful and creative, and I have three new summer songs coming out over the next couple of months - two collabs and one of my own singles. This is hands down my favorite season so I’m super stoked that this year I get to explore and potentially provide soundtracks to different aspects of it, starting with ‘Tuscany’.

Any advice to those wishing to venture into music?

Accept that everything takes time (and this really is advice for any area of work). What comes fast, won’t last long and what lasts long won’t come fast. Instead of constantly living in the future and longing for the time when today’s dreams are a reality, learn to relish in the process and the simple joys of every day. And never, ever, ever give up. Even when it seems like the hardest, most insane thing to do, believe in yourself and your vision, constantly work to improve it, and always keep going.

Thanks, so much for taking time to speak with us!

Thank YOU <3

You can follow Anja on instagram @anja.kotar

link to tuscany: https://song.link/tuscany