"The greatest benefit of being a solo performer is that it is seriously frightening, but at the same time very empowering. It's just you and the audience. All the weight is on you to deliver the songs."

3 likes

Source: Zola Jesus Interview: On the Planet, Society, and Self. Interview with Maranda Pleasant, www.marandapleasantmedia.com.

About the author

Zola Jesus

Musician, singer-songwriter

Zola Jesus is an American singer-songwriter known for her powerful voice and exploration of identity, often blending elements of gothic and electronic music.

All quotes by Zola Jesus →

Same author

More quotes by Zola Jesus

See all →
Zola Jesus Musician, singer-songwriter

"As a child, I was always making sound; it was a compulsion. I loved to scream and yell and sing; it freed me from all the thoughts in my head. I begged for opera lessons because opera singing is the most formidable, most emotional way to use your voice."

Read quote
Zola Jesus Musician, singer-songwriter

"I started performing opera when I was 10 years old. I didn't perform as Zola Jesus until I was probably 18."

Read quote
Zola Jesus Musician, singer-songwriter

"It sounds kind of stupid, but I've never not wanted to be a musician. It's been inside me since I was little so I don't know what else I would do."

Read quote
Zola Jesus Musician, singer-songwriter

"The only reason I would write a break-up song is because my own problem of allowing myself to relate to people."

Read quote
Zola Jesus Musician, singer-songwriter

"A lot of times I have the song inside of me and I have to fight to get it out. I'm a very visual person, so I can see the song but I can't hear it. But I think that if your music becomes a war for it to happen, in the end there's a certain kind of aggression in the music. And I think that's a lot more interesting."

Read quote