AMARU is a singer-songwriter and a trained actor, originally from the Republic of Suriname (South America), residing in The Netherlands (Europe) since 1991.
Watching Denzel Washington on television (his favorite actor) propelled AMARU to take acting lessons and oddly enough it was the acting that took off before the music.
He studied in Los Angeles and in Amsterdam and he has managed to build quite an acting resumé since 1995. From film, television and (international) commercials to print ads and voice over work, AMARU has done it all, but the music kept ‘calling’. His acting resume is available at www.amaru.nl/resume.htm and the link to his IMDB profile is www.imdb.me/amaru.
In 2007 AMARU traveled to Chicago to work on an EP that generated the release of his debut single “Put Your Hands Up” in 2008 and the accompanying music video.
While the EP didn’t fare too well, AMARU did manage to get some airplay for the music video on television. In the meantime, he was still booking acting gigs, which kept him away from the music, yet again.
While AMARU has been releasing music since 2008, the idea of releasing a full length album arose after the video for his 4th. single “Independence Day” won a Bronze Award at the Global Music Awards in Los Angeles, CA (USA) in December 2016. And as mentioned earlier, AMARU had a steady line of acting gigs that kept him quite busy, so making music was almost systematically put on the back burner. And speaking of acting, he will star in his first international feature film of which shooting will commence in June 2018.
After his win at the Global Music Awards in December 2016, AMARU once again joined forces with producer Marcel van Ling from “MoSound Productions” in the city of Zoetermeer (The Netherlands) to work on his debut album. The two started to work together back in 2014 on AMARU’s single “I’m The One You Need”, which was released in January 2015 on CD-maxi single and on digital download. They continued to work together on the singles “The One”, released in November 2015 and the award winning “Independence Day”, released in August 2016… Click Here To Learn More About AMARU
1.) What elements and/or characteristics made you say to yourself that you wanted to do music for a living? Who are your influences/heroes/role models?
I have to give credit to my late maternal grandmother for planting that first proverbial seed. She was the choir director and the lead singer at the church in our town and she also played the organ and the guitar. I’m her first grandchild and I remember her taking me upstairs with her after the Sunday morning church service. She would then play a traditional hymn and sing and encourage me to sing too… At the time I wasn’t really interested, but it wasn’t until after her passing, when I saw legendary country superstars Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton perform “Islands In The Stream” live on TV, that I was absolutely certain I was gonna be a singer someday! I have recently released my first album “Champagne Attitude” and the song “Never” is dedicated to her memory and her legacy.
Musical influences are too many to mention, but some definitely include Donny Hathaway, Peabo Bryson, Jeffrey Osborne, Bob Marley, El Debarge, Madonna, Gloria Estefan, Celia Cruz, Patti Labelle, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Prince, Whitney Houston, George Michael… Groups that I love include The Whispers, Kool & The Gang, Earth Wind & Fire, Five Star, Mai Tai, En Vogue, Salt ‘n Pepa, Silk, The Pointer Sisters, After 7… see, I told you, too many to mention here!
Role models for sure are my mother, whom I dedicated my debut album to and my aforementioned grandmother. Role models in music or entertainment are definitely Madonna, Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks and many others. Basically I look up to the underdog, because that’s how I see myself. People who rose to great heights despite the many obstacles that life threw at them… people who made a difference… I gravitate to strong people!
2.) If you could compare yourself to an already established artist, who would that be and why? If you don’t like to compare yourself, then music-wise, what separates you from other musicians?
You beat me to it, because I don’t like to compare myself to anybody. The fact of the matter is, I don’t look like your average pop singer, I don’t sound like your average pop singer and I certainly don’t write music like your average pop singer, if they write any music themselves at all! And I base all of that on my own experience with many A&R managers from big labels. They all want you to look, sound and dress like “so and so” and that’s not me. I think my image scares them, because as a big guy I dress a certain way, I’m not afraid to show some skin and all of that and apparently that sort of thing is only reserved for skinny people… I am an individual and that reflects in my work too. So while I think that we all as pop singers have similarities, I do think that where that is concerned, I’m in a separate lane… a lane with all the pop singers classified as “other”, LOL! Listen, what I’m trying to say is that I march to my own drum without trying to be like anybody else, because ME is the only person I know how to be.
3.) Everyone in life goes through adversity of some sort. Is there anything in your life that has any influence on the kind of songs you write? What is the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure on your path to becoming a musician?
My album “Champagne Attitude” is all about my journey thus far. Every song on the album tells the story of a boy who was forced to grow up very fast, a boy who had to learn how to play the hand of cards he was dealt. Everybody’s path in life is different and while parts of my life have not been very rosey, I didn’t want to create an album about gloom and heartache… that’s so not me! I wanted to turn that misfortune into fortune, as I always say, meaning taking the heartache and turn it into words, then set those words to music, preferably upbeat music. It’s that contrast that I love so much, because while some singers would write a tearjerker ballad, I do the opposite. There is too much gloom and heartache as it is in the world and as I just said, everybody seems to be turning their pain into these sappy ballads… after listening to some of them you wanna jump off the Eiffel Tower, for goodness sake! To answer the second part of your question, the most difficult thing I had to endure and that I STILL endure is the fact that I don’t seem to fit in anybody’s mold… they can’t “figure me out”, they can’t “book” me, that sort of thing. I guess I’m too much of an individual for some that it scares them. As recent as a month ago, I contacted a booking agency in this country and they told me that it would be best if I commit a crime, for instance rob a bank, get arrested and jailed for that so they would have a “real” reason to book me, because “people will have a memory to your name that way”… Now, I shall refrain from saying what I told this wonderful child of God disguised as an idiot. But I speak seven languages and I put him in his place in all seven of them, to say the very least! So needless to say, I work very hard in getting my name out there, I book my own shows, I negotiate everything myself and all of that. And I know that at some point all of that will pay off… big time!
4.) How do you prepare yourself to write certain songs? What is your songwriting and recording process?
I don’t have a set way of writing songs really. Sometimes I have a certain melody that pops in my head and I sing it a couple of times. I most of the time record that melody, just in case I can use it in the future. But I have also written songs that started off as poems, really. The interlude to my song “The One” is a clear example of that. I wrote the interlude as a poem called “The Greatest Love”. After that I decided to elaborate on that and that’s how I ended up with “The One”. The melody of “The One” was written after I had written the lyrics, but most of the time I start with the melody.
When I take a demo to the studio to work on, I have already practiced and learned the song completely. I do the vocal arrangement for lead and backing vocals and sometimes I change the phrasing of the lyrics at the studio, because when you add music to lyrics they both may clash or sound strange. That could be because of certain instruments or just certain syllables that don’t go well with your arrangement. All of these things one has to pay attention to and I don’t mind that. At the end of the day I wanna release music that I stand behind 100 percent. When we’re all set to record vocals, most of the time I do a one-take vocal of the lead, we listen to the playback and proceed. Most of the time we record a couple of takes of the lead vocal and then proceed to the backing vocals. And I am very hands on when I’m at the studio, after all I’m not only the artist, I’m also the executive producer and the manager.
5.) Unfortunately the music industry is full of talented individuals who just don’t get any recognition for their talent and/or work. What do you plan to do to make sure you stand out and get noticed?
As mentioned before, I think that I’m in a separate lane altogether. I do what I do and I am not in competition with anybody. I think everybody strives to become “famous” by any means necessary and that is not what I do or who I am. I want to make a difference with my music and my writing, I want my songs to stand the test of time. When you read lyrics these days I often find myself scratching my head, like “what the hell do these people mean with this lyric”… I find that most “lyrics” these days make no sense at all, they don’t tell a story, at least not a cohesive one. Call me old skool, but I am of the belief that your lyrics should tell a story that your audience can understand and follow… but that’s just me.
6.) Would you rather be on a major label or would you rather stay independent? Why or why not? In regards to the music industry itself, do you think that the traditional music industry model as we know it is dead?
I think being signed to a major label has its pros and cons. You get all the benefits of promotion, distribution, PR, appearances on nationally syndicated talk shows and what not. That’s all nice and dandy, but in this day and age where people don’t buy music like they used to anymore, you’d better do SOMETHING to earn back the money the label invested in you plus interest! And that’s one of the things many people don’t understand. They see these mainstream artists dressed up in their designer wear and jet setting around the world in “their” private jets and what not… appearance is everything in this business, but I’m of the school of “come as you are”. And that’s why a lot of these (especially new) artists fade away after a certain amount of time, because REAL LIFE is not about glitz and glam all year long. They wanna live the high life, but forget about that loan that has to be paid back…
As an independent artist it is a little more challenging to get your name out there or to book (decent) shows, but the feeling that you’ve done it all by yourself is beyond rewarding! Not to mention, you are your own boss, you call your own shots, you don’t owe a label any money, your royalties are not spilt and you can negotiate contracts on your own or hire legal representation to assist you with that. In addition to that, you’re not forced to sing songs you don’t wanna sing, because most independent artists write their own material to begin with. It’s very important for any artist to sing songs that they feel comfortable singing. If that’s not the case, you will not be able to deliver the song the way the writer intended it… and there are many singers out there who sing songs they detest.
I think the music industry caused its own demise when they introduced the compact disc many years ago. Popping a CD into your computer and copy the songs and share them with your friends ran amok! At the time a lot of illegal download platforms were established and songs were exchanged globally among users of said platforms. I’m not sure if the technology to protect the contents of the audio CD wasn’t available at the time, but if it wasn’t, maybe they should have waited with the introduction of the CD. The minute people realized that music can be easily accessed without paying for it, that’s when something hit the fan! As the late musician extraordinaire and my hero Prince once said: “Tell me a musician who’s got rich off digital sales”. If all of these famous mainstream musicians had to survive off of the sales of their digital music, they would not be able to live the way they live now. And while some of these (new) artists seem to be doing well, I think their labels are the ones who get the major cut of all the proceeds. But at the same token, a lot of these (new) artists wake up and smell the “independence”!
7.) How do you think the internet and social media affected the music industry and how musicians are able to market themselves?
Let me start off by saying that social media is not so social AT ALL! People are not there to be social with you per say. Many of these folks are only there to collect fans and count their numbers. They’re not there to interact with you, they don’t care! Very few artists actually care about the people that follow them or interact with them. And while people are very busy, it would not kill you to take notice of the people who help and have helped you to build your empire. So, there… I said it, I wonder who’s gonna be pissed of at me now again… Anyway… moving on! Social media platforms come in very handy for many artists to spread the word about their new music or other creative projects, but again, everybody jumps on that bandwagon because they don’t wanna be left out of a movement. When I look at my own social feeds, I am very selective as to who or whom I allow on mine. And maybe it’s easier to monitor as an indie artist, but as mentioned earlier, I’m very hands on when it comes to my online and offline life. It’s not just about the money or the numbers for me, but more so about the people. And in addition to that I think that social media has taken out the soul of organic growth and marketing of ones product. I’d much rather prefer to go from radio station to radio station or whatever to promote my music or talk about my new film, meet the people who buy your product… social media has made people rather complacent, I think! And speaking of film, I will start shooting my first international feature film in late July/early August 2018!
8.) Social media is obviously an extremely important element in today’s world, especially when it comes to business, branding, marketing, etc. With that being said, do you think an artist will be able to survive in today’s music industry if they’re not social media savvy?
Social media platforms are an excellent tool for marketing and branding, but I think that if you’re talking about independent artists like myself, who don’t care about the numbers on their social feeds, but who focus on the music instead, we will be fine. Many mainstream artists use social media to promote their products and shows because they HAVE to. They are on contract with their label, they have to pay back that record deal plus interest and pay their bills, so they have to utilize every avenue to survive. In addition to that, they have now become accustomed to a certain lifestyle, so they’d better work! And let’s face it, many of these official social media pages are not actually run by the artists themselves…
9.) Artists who try to make music for the general public and make more money are usually seen as “sellouts.” Do you see it that way and if so, what do you plan to do to make sure your music stays true to your brand and make a good living at the same time without having to “sell out”?
I don’t necessarily think of those artists as “sell-outs”. What’s for them is for them and I wish everybody the best. What I notice and wanna speak on is the fact that when they release their first or second album, there is a spark, a certain amount of excitement and joy in their demeanor… all of which disappears after the second album, in my opinion… The image changes, their eyes look “dead”, there seems to be no charisma anymore, the music is lackluster, they hardly ever smile in photos anymore, that sort of thing makes me question if their interest in music is genuine anymore. Are they still happy doing it or have they now become a “sell-out” and pay the price for it… ? So, no, initially I don’t look at them as such, but I do have questions, lol! Personally, all I can say is that I wanna make the music that I like to listen to myself! And anybody that connects with my lyrics, my melodies and my musical delivery is more than welcome to come aboard.
10.) Professionally, where do you see yourself 5 years from now?
Hopefully I’d still be around kicking and screaming and wreaking havoc entertaining (or annoying) people one song at a time!
Follow AMARU
Official Artist Website: www.amaru.nl
Official Label Website: www.amaru-music.com
Official Artist Youtube Channel: www.youtube.com/amaruonline
Official Label Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/
Official Twitter Page: www.twitter.com/amaruonline
Official Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/amaruofficial
Official Instagram Page: https://www.instagram.com/
Official IMDB Acting Resumé: www.imdb.me/amaru (full acting resume available at www.amaru.nl/resume.htm)
Official Web Store: https://amarumusic.ecwid.com/