Claire Maisto
I’ve been studying Claire Maisto’s music before writing this article and I LOVE her voice and what she does. “When U Leave” might be one of my favorite songs because it’s r&b, hip-hop and soulful, and I live for this. But “Complacency” is also another favorite :)
She recently released her latest single “John Tucker”. It’s soulful, jazzy, and it’s unique and cool. The production and the mix are GREAT and Maisto sounds amazing on this song. But my favorite part is the end because it’s unexpected and it just feels edgy. Absolutely brilliant.
I’m happy I got to discover another amazing Nashville-based artist. Claire Maisto makes the kind of music I LIKE, and I will keep following her :)
“John Tucker” is now available worldwide :)
Photo credit: Jeremy Aguirre
Introduce yourself - what's your story?
Hey! My name is Claire Maisto, I’m 23 years old. I’m a songwriter and Pop / R&B artist in Nashville, Tennessee, but I’m from Massachusetts originally. I just released my latest single, “John Tucker,” based on the rom com “John Tucker Must Die.”
What did you grow up listening to?
When I was really little I mainly listened to whatever was on the radio, so a lot of pop stuff. But my parents showed me some music -- Alicia Keys, Norah Jones, Corinne Bailey Rae, and James Taylor. And I sang a ton of jazz standards in my singing lessons, so a lot of Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone and Frank Sinatra. Middle school onward I developed my own taste in music, still mainly pop but I was obsessed with Lady Gaga, loved Sky Ferreira and Marina and the Diamonds. Finding Frank Ocean, Kendrick Lamar, SZA, and Isaiah Rashad in high school flipped my world around and I started reaching more for hip hop and R&B from there on out.
When did you know you could sing?
I actually remember the exact moment -- when I was a kid, my siblings and I would gather around the piano to sing Christmas carols while my dad played. When I was probably 7 years old he turned to me after singing one and was like, “Hey, you’re pretty good at that.” I had enjoyed singing before, but never really gave it that much thought until then.
When did you start writing songs? What made you want to write in the first place?
I started writing songs when I was in fifth grade. I remember wanting to write because I was running out of things to sing. Singing is my way of getting emotions out and I’ve always had a lot of emotions (haha). I had been playing piano for a minute but wasn’t crazy good, so learning a song to accompany myself would take a second. I remember getting frustrated and deciding I should just write my own songs because then I could decide what the piano parts would be and I could get to belting sooner. The day my piano teacher showed me chords was a game changer. I went back to our lesson the next week with my first song written.
At what point did you realize you were good at what you do?
I honestly always really liked what I made and thought my songs were good. Which is hilarious because looking back on those first songs I can see they were definitely not great. But I think the process of turning thoughts in my head into tangible songs has always blown my mind, and I’ve never taken that magic for granted. But also having the adults around me take notice and be supportive of my music definitely reinforced the idea that I could be good at this. I remember in fifth grade when my school music teacher heard my first songs, he put me in the high school’s songwriter’s showcase. That support early on was so important.
When did you decide to fully be an artist and release your own material?
I started recording at a local studio (37’ Productions) in middle school, a few years after I started writing songs. Once I started writing, the decision to be an artist came almost immediately. I released an EP when I was 14 that I have absolutely scrubbed from the internet because I am so embarrassed of 14 year old Claire’s songs, but the experience of making it was so positive and transformative, and really solidified that I wanted to be in the studio recording music for the rest of my life.
Who was the first person to ever believe in you?
Both my parents were the ‘first’ to believe in me. Their support from the beginning has been incredible. I remember applying for colleges, thinking I would just be an English major because I had no idea how trying to be a pop artist would fit into any curriculum. But my mom knew that I should be pursuing music in my education. She went and found all these colleges that had songwriting programs, insisting I just apply, and that was how I found Belmont. I hadn’t even known Songwriting was a major, and Nashville wasn’t on my radar at all. When I wasn’t taking my path as seriously as I should have, she was there to make sure I stayed on the right one. And my dad from being the first person to say I could sing, has been a constant supporter since. Always telling me to make time for music, always saying it is the most important thing.
How would you define Claire Maisto, the artist?
Claire Maisto, the artist, is kind of my alter-ego. Still a lot of elements of myself in there, but I’ll use my music and artistry to say things I don’t feel comfortable saying. Claire Maisto, the artist, is confident and evolved and doesn’t care about the opinion of others. I tend to be a little shy and not always speak my mind. I often feel like I’m still working towards reaching her level. Genre-wise, I would describe myself and my sound as neo-contemporary/alternative r&b. But at the core really pop-centric. Especially with the melodies I write, I think I just naturally gravitate towards that pop space. But I think my general flow and the rhythms I use are really inspired by hip hop.
"John Tucker" is your latest single - what made you want to release this song as a single?
I’ve always loved the movie “John Tucker Must Die.” It was such a staple of my adolescence and my peers’ so I chose it as a single because I felt like a lot of people would be able to connect with it -- either by just loving the movie or through personal experience. And it’s a song I’m really proud of, one of my favorites I’ve ever written. I wrote it about 2 years ago and still kept coming back to the rough demo before I decided to pursue releasing it. It also marked a fresh start within my artistry. I felt like with some of my past releases I was focusing on what I thought the audience wanted to hear or what I thought would make sense in my artist trajectory. Way too fixated on outcome and not focusing on what songs I loved and thought were cool. With this song I was 100% certain I wanted to release it. Since I loved it so much I wasn’t concerned with what other people thought, I just knew I wanted it out in the world. And that’s the same attitude I’m going to have with all of my releases going forward.
Could you describe the songwriting/production process for this particular song? Who helped you create it?
I wrote the song on my own 2 years ago, then brought it to Cleve Wilson this year for the production. The production on this song ended up going in a totally different direction than we both anticipated. We wanted to create this huge pop sound with a lot of electronic elements, but ended up going for a more organic instrumentation. Townsend Hoffman recorded the guitar first, and once we heard that with the vocal, it was game over. We wanted to preserve that intimate feeling while keeping the melodrama. After the first session we looked at each other and said, “what have we done?” while listening back to the bounce. The outro was added on one of our last sessions together. I remember feeling kind of crazy trying to explain my idea for it to Cleve, but he was so open to it and trying it out. He also ended up mixing and mastering the track!
What's your favorite thing about this song?
The beat switch at the end. I’m so obsessed with it.
What can you tell us about the artwork?
The photo used for the cover art was taken by Jeremy Aguirre, an amazing photographer here in Nashville and a dear friend. I brought some eye drops to the shoot, thinking it might be fun to get a couple shots with my eye makeup messed up and teary. I wanted it to look super dramatic but still feel classic. Jeremy was the perfect person to go to because he knows exactly how to get that type of shot while still keeping it unique and fresh. The edit / graphic design was done by Olivier Palle, a french graphic designer I found through the instagram, @neonlimemagazine. I instantly fell in love with his clean designs and his use of negative space. With the edit I wanted to up the drama but also have it feel self-aware and a bit tongue in cheek. I think the hot pink and practically comic book effect accomplishes this perfectly.
As an artist, what is the hardest part? And what is the best part?
Being an artist is all about knowing yourself and that is the hardest but the best part. My favorite artists aren’t always the best singer, or best musician, or whatever -- they’re the ones who have a distinct voice and are doing something differently than everyone else. The best artists are the ones who are being themselves and it feels authentic. And as an artist that’s awesome because your job is to just be yourself, which is just crazy when you think about it! But that can also be difficult. I’m in my early twenties, and sometimes I feel like I have myself completely figured out, then other times I wake up and look in the mirror and am like “wait who is that?”
What are your thoughts on today's music industry? If you could change one thing, what would it be?
I think the impact of Tik Tok on the music industry has been really interesting. It’s done amazing things for people entering the industry, and has been a great equalizer of the playing field. A song or artist can pop off on that app and build a following, and not need to have connections or anything. A little snippet of a song I wrote had a bit of a moment on the app, and I was able to reach so many more people that I definitely wouldn’t have been able to without the algorithm. However, sometimes it feels like the industry has become too focused on it. Songs are made with Tik Tok in mind, in hopes of blowing up there. Artists and musicians have to become content creators to keep up. And that part is kind of a bummer because I wish it could all still be about music, but that’s just the direction the industry is going in and I’d rather adapt than fight it. So I’m not sure if that’s something I would want to change necessarily, but it’s not my favorite part.
What biggest life lessons have you learned so far?
Worrying about a problem does absolutely nothing to solve it. I tend to worry a lot, and though I’m still working on it I’ve gotten better at identifying when a thought isn’t healthy or serving me. And all that time spent worrying whether or not people like me won’t affect their opinion. People are going to think whatever they want so you might as well just do your thing and not be concerned with it. So much easier said than done! I’ve learned this lesson but implementing it can be a whole other story.
In your opinion, what would make the world a better place?
If everyone was a little nicer and if we did something to combat climate change. :)
Connect with Claire: