Mone
Mone is a dark, expressive singer-songwriter based in Berlin. With raw and emotionally honest songs reminiscent of Fiona Apple and PJ Harvey, her debut single Crocodile Kisses was released in 2020.
What are your favourite qualities in a song?
I love it when a song is expressive and I can feel a person went deep into a certain emotion and is brave enough to show that to others.
Where do you look for inspiration?
In many places. My main source of inspiration is my own life and the things that happen to me, but I also love taking inspiration from other music, visual art (I love the painter Egon Schiele for example) or books.
Where are you happiest?
When I’m with people I love. But in music I am happiest when I’m writing a new song and I feel like I am onto something special. That moment of flow and the incredible potential that moment holds makes me feel very good.
As a performer, what makes a show special or memorable?
I think the honesty and emotional intensity I deliver my songs with.
As an audience member, what makes a show special or memorable?
The same thing I try to deliver: emotional intensity and the feeling that somebody is raw and honest and is not afraid to show their ugly side or their hurt side or their mean side.
What is your idea of success?
I feel succesful when I feel connected to people. I felt already succesful when recording my debut album at The Famous Gold Watch Studios for example, because I am working there with a team that understand me and sees me. That creates a very good process and flow which made me feel like, however well this album will be received, to me personally it is already a succes. I hope to be able to build a fan-base of people who I can feel an honest connection with. If I manage that, I don’t need to play in front of a thousand people to feel succesful.
What is something you would like to learn more about?
I started playing the piano quite recently and I’d love to dive deeper into learning this instrument.
What was your biggest musical failure?
I guess I can always change that but I’ve been playing the guitar for so long and I still don’t know any scales or in which key any of my songs is, which makes it harder to jam with people. I’m sometimes a bit ashamed of not knowing these things even though I’ve been playing music for so long.
What was your biggest musical success?
Recording my debut album (coming out in fall 2020). I went into the studio with the plan to record a 4-5 song EP but everything went so well that I came out of the studio with a full length album.
Who do you look up to?
Artists like PJ Harvey and Fiona Apple, cause they have such a distinctive sound.
What was the first song you have ever written like?
It was about love and heartbreak. All of my songs pretty much still are ;P
Who deserves a shoutout?
The Famous Gold Watch Studio. An incredible studio in Berlin where I’ve been spending a lot of time lately. It is founded and run by Cameron James Laing, who is also producing my album (together with Gidon Camel).
You can find out more about Mone here. Check out the video for ‘Crocodile Kisses’ below.