Savanna Leigh
Savanna Leigh is a stunning storysteller. That is the first thing I noticed when I listened to her latest songs “i miss you (i still do)” and “hanging on a dream”. With this double single, Leigh shares her vulnerability and honesty. Accompanied by raw acoustic videos, Savanna Leigh fully highlights the emotion behind each song. Just perfect.
Stream hanging on a dream, i miss you now !
Photo credit: Acacia Evans
Hi Savanna, how are you? What's your story?
Hi!! I'm a bit exhausted honestly but overall really good.. I'm excited to do this interview! I'm pretty bad at not over explaining this question (laughs) so I will try to summarize.
I have been doing music pretty much all of my life. I grew up in Brandon, FL around music and watched first hand a lot of people in my family pursue a creative path whether it was singing, dancing, acting, etc. I always knew this is what I wanted to do with my life. I started piano/guitar lessons at age 6 and began writing songs at age 12. I did whatever I could to be around musicians/other artists but there wasn't much of a scene for that in my hometown. So I made the move to Nashville right when I turned 18 and studied music in college for two years. I wasn't always a solo artist, I was in and out of a couple different groups growing up, the last one being a duo with my sister. But COVID changed a lot of things for me. It was the year I dropped out of college to pursue music full time, I became a solo artist, and I felt like I really found my sound and what kind of artist I wanted to be. It was a year full of self discovery for me. I've been in Nashville ever since and I've never looked back!
You've just released an acoustic double single - what made you want to release both songs at the same time?
I wanted to release both songs at the same time because "hanging on a dream" is an extension of "i miss you (i still do)". It is an AB side release because both songs are outwardly focused on relationships and important people/experiences in my life. I felt like the songs were more powerful storytelling wise released together rather than alone.
When did you start working on "i miss you (i still do)" and "hanging on a dream"? Could you describe the songwriting/production process for these songs? Who helped you create them?
I wrote "i miss you (i still do)" almost two years ago now, and "hanging on a dream" in October last year. The songwriting and production process were very different for both songs.
I started writing "i miss you (i still do)" on my couch on the acoustic guitar. I wrote a couple verse ideas down and I instantly knew this would be a song I wanted to release at some point. I then had a session with Rajiv Dhall and I showed him my idea and he was instantly like "let's finish this". We finished the song that day. I remember teasing the song on my TikTok right after we finished writing it and it got a lot of love, it instantly seemed to be connecting with people, but it wasn't the right time to release the song. But when it did finally feel right, I brought the song to my good friend John to produce "i miss you (i still do)" and he was kind enough to help me bring my vision to life.
Last year in October, I took my first ever trip to LA. I spent a lot of that week in writing sessions and meeting new people and was feeling really overwhelmed. I went into a session at Spotify studio that day with my now good friend Nick Cozine. It was our first session, but I felt instantly like I could open up and tell him almost anything which is rare for me. We got to talking about the music industry and how lonely it can be sometimes to pursue a career path that isn't "conventional" and we ended up writing "hanging on a dream" that day.
What did you feel when recording "i miss you (i still do)"?
I felt nostalgic.. the song at that point had been written almost two years prior, so the emotion was there but in a different way than the day I wrote it... I think it allowed me to view the song through a more removed lens which in a weird way helped me when recording. I was able to relate the song at that point to so much more than just the breakup that originally inspired it, and that was really cool..
What's your favorite lyric on "hanging on a dream"?
"can't feel the ground underneath your feet, if you're hanging on a dream".
What do you want people to feel when listening to these songs? What message do you want to deliver?
I want them to feel heard and seen. I think society romanticizes the idea of your early twenties, and a part of me feels like because of that I have expected these to be the "best years of my life". To be honest, these years have been some of the hardest years of my life, so much changes during your early twenties, you're trying to discover who you are, and who you want to become, you lose friends, you lose relationships, you experience heartbreak, deep loss, etc. And I wanted people to know they aren't alone in those feelings.
What can you tell us about the artwork?
When I was home in Florida this summer, I took a bunch of photos on two disposable cameras of my favorite places/people. I laid a bunch of the photos out on my bed in my apartment in Nashville, and had my sister take a picture of them with my digital camera. I wanted to have a sense of nostalgia in the cover art to correlate with the nostalgia I felt when writing/recording the songs.
What are your thoughts on today's music industry, if you could change one thing, what would it be?
I think the music industry is a tough place to be. I think there is good and bad to every industry but I think it is extremely important to understand as much as you can about the business and what you're signing up for.. to be as knowledgeable as you can be in your field/industry so that you don't get taken advantage of and you can make the best decisions that ultimately protect you and your art.
If I could change one thing, it would be how underpaid creatives are a majority of the time. I'd love to see better systems set up for songwriters, producers, and creatives in general.
As an artist, what are the biggest challenges? And what is the best part?
One of the biggest challenges for me as an artist is I am always trying to control the future. I always want to be 10 steps ahead, and I am always thinking about what I need to do or what I haven't done, rather than being present and appreciating where I'm at and trusting the process.
The best part is seeing your music connect to real people. Knowing that my art is making a difference in people's lives, a real difference, is a feeling I can't explain.
Could you list a few records that influenced the music you are making today?
"Three, Two, One" - the amazing Lennon Stella
"Good Riddance" - Gracie Abrams
"Paint My Bedroom Black" - Holly Humberstone
"AUSTIN" - Post Malone
What does songwriting make you feel?
It makes me feel connected to myself.. as a human I struggle to get in touch with my emotional side, a lot of the time I don't process how I actually feel and so songwriting is the one thing that does help me do that. I feel the most vulnerable when songwriting. It is how I express thoughts/memories/feelings I would never say to anyone.
In your opinion, what would make the world a better place?
People showing each other kindness. Simple as that. Just being genuinely a good human, and treating other people with respect.
What biggest life lessons have you learned this year?
I've learned so many but one big lesson I feel like I learned this year is just because you miss/care about someone, doesn't mean that they deserve a place in your life or that reconnection is necessary. Constantly re-learning to not ignore my instincts.
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