We were lucky to catch up with Marica Petrey recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Marica thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

One of my most personal and most meaningful project is the current album that I’m finishing up right now, “Chrysanthemum.” It is my 2nd LP as “Girl Swallows Nightingale.” Out of all the work I’ve ever made – this album is the closest to my heart. It is inspired by my own journey with grief, sudden death of a parent and loss of close friends, the video game Gris, and a handful of my favorite Japanese ghost stories. It’s my sonic expression of what makes the heart beat, what makes the heart break, and how we heal and repeat that cycle. I’ve been working tirelessly on this record, fully producing and arranging it myself, which is a new step for me technically as a musician.

I played my first paid gig when I was 16 and have been hustling as a full-time artist since I was 21, with all of the heartache and joys that come with it. I feel proud that I’m still here doing what I do, independently, and I want to celebrate more than 15 years of consistently creating original work across many mediums. This includes directing and producing award-winning films like “Owl” and “Zoey & the Wind-Up Boy,” writing and producing my first album, “Shapeshifter,” and giving hundreds of live performances as a professional singer, cellist, dancer and actor around the world.

As grateful as I am for the projects I’ve been able to work on, it’s not easy being a full-time artist. Behind the scenes are countless hours of training, schlepping gear, instability, extreme highs and lows, and long stretches of time away from loved ones. You truly have to have nerves of steel and the will of an ox to continue choosing this path.

The thing that keeps me going is the fact that I get to surround myself with some of the most incredible, talented, sensitive, driven, wonderful people in the world. I love that I get to choose who I work with and watching them go keeps me inspired. If what I create makes people come together and feel things, that’s worth it all for me.

Marica , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

At my core, I am an art practitioner. I have a passion for worldbuilding, with over 15 years of experience working across storytelling mediums such as film, theater, music, dance, journalism, and building immersive theatrical experiences, my portfolio includes award-winning films, dozens of short documentaries, international tours, otherworldly music videos and a steampunk fantasy short film that I wrote and directed. While all of these mediums bring me joy, music is definitely where my heart is.

Art-making and a knack for languages has taken me around the world, from Russia to Senegal to Japan.
While earning my BA in Comparative Literature (Arabic & Russian) from UC Berkeley, I lived and worked in the West Bank, Palestinian Territories as a ballet instructor all the while translating and editing reports for the Palestinian Trade Center and the UN for a year. Atfterwards, I went on to train Russian State Institute for Performing Arts in Saint Petersburg. I owe much of my directorial style and skillset to this time period, where I practiced music, acting, and dance under the guidance of Arvid Zeland and Irina Kovalenko.

In 2015, I toured West Africa as a cellist and singer with the band MAD NOISE and worked as a Music Ambassador for American Music Abroad with the U.S. Dept of State. In 2016, I was one of only four the up-and-coming female directors to be selected world-wide for mentorship by BAFTA-winning filmmaker Amma Asante (The Handmaid’s Tale, Billion Dollar Spy). I had the opportunity to shadow her on the set of her period film, Where Hands Touch, shot across multiple historic locations in Belgium.

Currently, my creative pursuits are centered in the raw beauty and industrial grunge of Oakland, CA where I’m now based. I recently finished producing my first independent feature film called Owl (2025). Owl is now making its festival rounds and has already been selected by CAAMFest, Twin Cities Film Festival, and the Poppy Jasper International Film Festival, where it won the award for “Best Local Feature” in Northern California.

My emerging heartchild is called Girl Swallows Nightingale; a fresh blend of ethereal synth wave, dreamy art-pop and dance music visually nestled in the realms of sci-fi, fantasy, and folklore. The forthcoming second album is called “Chrysanthemum,” which I wrote about in the previous question.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

As a performing artist in the social media age, you can be exposed to stalkers and uncomfortable encounters with strangers more often than other jobs, and particularly as a woman. We think this only happens to famous people, but it doesn’t. In some ways, you’re even more vulnerable and accessible as an independent artist with no entourage, often not even a manager or a roadie. Don’t be shy about asking security at venues to support you, no matter how small, or asking friends to help or watch your back when you need it.

Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

I love the playfulness and endless creativity and humor coming out of the NFT world. I think the possibilities for art/crypto/gaming crossovers have only just begun, and it offers more ways for us to make money as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.girlswallowsnightingale.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/girlswallowsnightingale/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madmarica
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@girlswallowsnightingale

Image Credits

Mogli Maureal, Rudi Tcruz, Jordan Park