Erika Grapes: A Dark Pop Music Artist

You need to hear

Source: Erika Grapes Music, Cristiano Miretti. Layout design by Allan Raible.

This interview first took place as a conversation over Twitter (X) back in September of 2022.

No too long ago GoshDarnBlog caught up with Italian singer and all around rock star Erika Grapes.

During the interview we talk about relationships, roller blading, espresso, but most importantly her music.

In August of 2022 Erika put out a cover of “Titanium” by Sia. Her cover has a slow, alluring mysterious vibe, with wonderful keyboard/piano by producer Andrea Del Miglio.

“People are Strange” is another cover she’s done with New York singer songwriter The Slums of Mediocrity.

GoshDarnBlog:

So what’s the story behind (your) “Nothing’s Going to Hurt You Baby” song?

Erika Grapes:

It’s a cover from a beautiful song by Cigarettes After Sex, my first single as a solo artist. When I decided to cover it, collaborating with producer and composer Lorenzo Montaná (Tying Tiffany, TTL, Pete Namlook), I wanted a “liquid sound”.

It took us ages to have it done, for some reason. We started it just a little after the pandemic started here in Italy and during those long months, across 2020, my dear mother caught Covid and …well, she couldn’t survive it, so there are some layers in my singing parts (those recorded before) which were recorded with a romantic intention and some others that are set deep into pain and tragedy and a strong connection with the universe.

I’m a very spiritic* and spiritual person so this song is, in a way, part of my mourning process and partly and expression of the material, sensual survival to tragedy.

*I don’t know if it’s a word

GoshDarnBlog:

What’s going on in Italy today?

Erika Grapes:

Hi! Well, it’s complicated

GoshDarnBlog:

What happened?

Erika Grapes:

There are some problems going parallel ways.

GoshDarnBlog:

You’re very poetic.

Erika Grapes:

Poverty increasing due to wild privatization and sharky markets. At the same time energy bills have doubled, many local companies will shut down soon, including restaurants. At the same time, we have a war in the heart of Europe that doesn’t seem to be willing to end via diplomatic ways any soon. The international tensions are increasing and citizens are worried by the poor decisions made by politics (Meloni is not different than Draghi or Letta in this sense).

Politicians, not politics

We have a big NATO base not too far from here

GoshDarnBlog:

I’m a writer so I’ve been writing about my fears.

Erika Grapes:

Aw I never show up in video calls etc

I suffer from dysmorphophobia

GoshDarnBlog:

Hey. Life’s good. You have a great cover out of Titanium. If I was I Italy I’d buy you an espresso.

How do you like United Masters?

Erika Grapes:

Yay, I’d take you somewhere where they make good cofee.

Coffee

There are bars called “torrefazione”

They grind fresh coffee, different varieties

And the espresso machines work properly

All perfectly set

GoshDarnBlog:

Cool. We could be bff.

Erika Grapes:

Sure!

I use UM and it’s ok

A bit expensive though

GoshDarnBlog:

Oh.

Erika Grapes:

But I don’t feel like changing my distributor

GoshDarnBlog:

Y it’s pain.

Erika Grapes:

Because then it might end up with different artist’profile to manage and so on

Profiles

GoshDarnBlog:

Where did you go to school for music?

Erika Grapes:

They taught music in school when I was a child

So I was the main voice, a soprano in a chorus at the age of 12

GoshDarnBlog:

Very cool!

Erika Grapes:

The teacher was so proud that she begged my parents to have me go to Conservatorio, but they said that I was roller skating already

I hated skating lol. I wish I did figure skating, but I did races instead

GoshDarnBlog:

Do a roller skating video!

What races?

Erika Grapes:

I’m still not healed from my psychological disease, when I will accept my appearence, I will make a video

Skate races

Wait

Race skating

GoshDarnBlog:

If I was hanging out I’d secretly video tape you and upload on YouTube.

Erika Grapes:

Roller blades etc

Italian championships

GoshDarnBlog:

So this is why like Sia? Hiding you face?

Did you go down a mountain? Skating?

Erika Grapes:

I don’t know Sia’s story, but maybe it’s similar

GoshDarnBlog:

Do you have pics of championship?

Erika Grapes:

I posted something from that time (10 years) somewhere in my facebook profile

Wait

I was 10 years old

GoshDarnBlog:

That’s real cool!

Erika Grapes:

Well

I broke teeth, an arm

Got injured many times

Plus I’ve never been the competitive type

GoshDarnBlog:

I hear ya. Wow.

Erika Grapes:

I couldn’t care less about winning

GoshDarnBlog:

I had my front tooth replaced six months ago. Makes me happy.

My modeling career was out on hold!

Put

Erika Grapes:

Yeah, during my teenagehood i always smiled with my mouth closed

When I fixed it at 18, I was smiling all the time lol

To catch up with the times I couldn’t

GoshDarnBlog:

It helps a lot for entertainment careers.

Erika Grapes:

What?

GoshDarnBlog:

I can’t find DJ gig lately in town. I need to try again. I like clubs.

Teeth

Erika Grapes:

Uhm well, it depends

GoshDarnBlog:

It’s fun to make the crowd party.

Erika Grapes:

If you’re a trapper or in a punk band

I bet!

GoshDarnBlog:

I’m more “trapper” but house techno for sure.

Erika Grapes:

I have a friend here in Italy who’s a famous dj

GoshDarnBlog:

Nice! Get your song played!

Erika Grapes:

Be loves my music, but he works for a major network

We had a project together

GoshDarnBlog:

Very cool

Erika Grapes:

Months ago

A dance cover of Torn

But it was too difficult, it injured my vocal box

GoshDarnBlog:

Holy cow

Erika Grapes:

I couldn’t sing for months

GoshDarnBlog:

That’s traumatic.

Erika Grapes:

Never happened with any song

Well, I went to a vocal osteopath

GoshDarnBlog:

Is it on YouTube?

Your playlist on Spotify is pretty rad. I haven’t heard a lot CB of those songs.

Erika Grapes:

Here in Milano, who’s also working with Madonna and other big artists, and she fixed it!

The cool thing is that we found out being penpals when we were 14

What’s CB?

GoshDarnBlog:

Accident

Erika Grapes:

That Dj is on Sporify sure, wait

GoshDarnBlog:

Tell more about this. I also chord incident and this DJ you were working with.

Vocal

Erika Grapes:

GoshDarnBlog:

Ty

Erika Grapes:

We never recorded anything together after that accident

Who knows, maybe somewhere in the future

I don’t push

GoshDarnBlog:

You never hurt your voice before?

Erika Grapes:

I like things to happen, like in a natural flow

Never hurt my voice before, no

But maybe it was my fault

GoshDarnBlog:

Don’t push. Very good philosophy! We have so much in common! Lol!

Erika Grapes:

I kept trying those notes with my throath voice

GoshDarnBlog:

Why was it your fault

Explain

Erika Grapes:

While I should sing with my “head voice” instead

But it’s good, in a way, because I discovered my limits and that I must be careful with my voice

I never did warm ups etc

Before

You sent

I see

Even on “challenging” songs

I did them when I was a child in a chorus of course

Or when I studied a bit of solfeggio in my 20s at Ricordi

My teacher told me that we had also been the teacher of Mina, an Italian superstar

But I don’t know if it’s true

He seemed too young to me to be her teacher

GoshDarnBlog:

He lied?

Erika Grapes:

No idea. Maybe, maybe it was true

GoshDarnBlog:

I meet a lot of fake accounts on dating apps lately. I’ve been writing about that. I like meeting people on the street and when I’m out better.

Sorry I hit wrong button.

Erika Grapes:

Do you use date apps?

I never met anyone from a dating app

GoshDarnBlog:

I don’t like ‘em.

Erika Grapes:

But I dated a guy I “met” on Kittyradio music forums (hole.com) years ago and it was a beautiful experience

GoshDarnBlog:

You won’t like en either lol!

Wow!

Erika Grapes:

We remained friends for years, also because we lived in different parts of the country.

It was maybe a poetry thread having us talk privately at first

GoshDarnBlog:

It’s good.

I just don’t like long distance relationships either. Haha!

Erika Grapes:

I’m a demisexual, or somewhere near that definition

GoshDarnBlog:

Cool.

I’m a man. Traditional AF!

Just kidding.

I’m pretty easy going.and chill

Erika Grapes:

Demisexuals are persons who feel attracted physically by a person only after being attracted spiritually or mentally by them. After a certain bond has been created

They can be eterosexuals or otherwise

GoshDarnBlog:

I like that.

Erika Grapes:

It’s something like Amelie, the movie

Or the romantic vision of love in the victorian era

GoshDarnBlog:

Wow!

Amelie had a profound affect on me.

Erika Grapes:

That’s why I was never interested in dating apps, when I was single

GoshDarnBlog:

I like that you used the word Victorian.

-‘Are you married?

Erika Grapes:

I’ve been living with my partner since 4 years and a half, almost

GoshDarnBlog:

That’s great.

Erika Grapes:

Most of times, yes. After the initial hell

It took him patience to understand my quirks and past traumas

GoshDarnBlog:

Wow. He loves you.

Erika Grapes:

Yes, he’s very caring 🤗

GoshDarnBlog:

Did you write a song about him?

Erika Grapes:

Never

Maybe because we get along well lol

Happy songs are boring sometimes

GoshDarnBlog:

It’s true.

Except for Feliz Navidad!

Erika Grapes:

I used to write tons of poems

Or wonderful world

GoshDarnBlog:

What’s that website to put your face on video?

Erika Grapes:

RefaceApp

Erika Grapes:

It’s an app

Ttyl

Gotta walk the lovely dog here

https://linktr.ee/Erikagrapes