We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nana Razaia a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Nana, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

My last ep “NANA” was the hardest project I ever worked on. It took hours of being in and out of studio sessions, rewriting lyrics, searching for the right musicians (which took months), scrapping songs, etc. The list goes on of all the challenges I faced and how long it took to complete the project. A year went by and I finally had the project that showed my growth not only as a songwriter, but as a composer. It was truly empowering and I’m proud of the effort I put in. “NANA” taught me resilience and was the reminder that if I don’t show up for myself, no one will. Meaningful is an understatement.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m originally from Brockton, MA with roughly 4 years experience as a mixing engineer and many more as a songwriter. When it came to writing, it first came in the form of poetry and short stories. A 6 month trip abroad compelled me to pick up the guitar and start building proper song structures. Not knowing a thing of producing, I decided to make my way across the country to LA to study Music Production at the La Film School and that is when I started taking my music career seriously. With two EPs and 6 singles under my belt, I’d say my catalogue shows my fluidity as an artist and my growth as a songwriter and composer. My involvement extends over to the visual side of things, as I am also the creative director for music videos, photoshoots, and other media.

Have you ever had to pivot?

The word is “pivot” is secretly a favorite of mine. Over time I’ve gotten used to the idea of pivoting and not attaching myself to any version of my life, career, or myself. The first time was when I decided that design school was no longer for me and I came to terms with it. It was something I dreamed of since a child. I closed that chapter in my life and pivoted to focusing on music, albeit the most terrifying thing ever. The second time was when I rebranded from ANINHA to Nana Razaia. My music kept getting mixed up with other artists and it was starting to become a nightmare. My brand recognition was at risk and after days of brainstorming a new artist name, Nana Razaia was conceptualized and brilliantly derived from my birth name(s). The transition was a tad brutal, but so worth it.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

The main goal driving my creative journey is to continue my family’s legacy. Music and the arts has been a part of our bloodline decades before my birth. In fact, my mother was an upcoming singer in Brazil back in the 70s. Unfortunately she was mismanaged and her career didn’t really take off and instead she moved to America to change the course of her life. Growing up with stories of her and her siblings’ youth along with watching old film footage inspired me to pursue a creative career. It almost felt predestined. The upside to having a family of creatives is that there’s always been nothing but support and affirmations from them as I trek this journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nanarazaia.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nanarazaia
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nanarazaia
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/nanarazaia
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/nanarazaia

Image Credits
Maiwenn Raoult, Kwesi Mark