Named by Buzzfeed as having one of the most underrated Pop songs of 2016, New Delhi born artist Vardaan Arora is certainly here to leave his mark on the music industry with his undeniable talent and original sound. After posting several cover songs on YouTube, Vardaan teamed up with Nashville based record producer Kevin Leach and Grammy award winning mixer Nathan Dantzler to create the self-written, tropical Pop summer anthem “Feel Good Song.” In addition to Buzzfeed’s coverage of the song, the track charted on Spotify’s Global and USA Viral 50 Charts. After releasing his following song “Just Like That,” Vardaan is now set to put out his third self-written single titled “Poison,” a track that will truly mark a milestone in his sound.
Always having felt an excitement about singing and performing, Vardaan began to record a few covers while in college. As an acting major, he doubted his ability to pursue music professionally. After years of doubt, Vardaan convinced himself to take the plunge and try to write something. This leap of faith is when everything clicked and Vardaan went on to write “Feel Good Song.” “Being in the studio, writing and then rewriting bits of the song – it was an exhilarating experience. It was like I learned to express myself in a way that I didn’t even know was possible.”
His songwriting process is unique, as he doesn’t write one song at a time. Often Vardaan will get ideas for lyrics and melodies that have common themes, and he will then write in bits and pieces. He typically only writes two-thirds of a song before he goes into the studio, as he likes to improvise the rest to create something magical. Heavily influenced by other Pop artists such as Britney Spears, Sia, Troye Sivan, Alessia Cara, and more, he describes his own songs as having “infectious melodies that immediately resonate with you.”
Born in New Delhi, Vardaan was exposed to a lot of Bollywood music growing up. He feels this entirely different genre has helped him to explore certain melodies and develop an ear for sounds that may seem unusual to a lot of people, but end up working incredibly well. Now residing in New York, Vardaan has cited living among people from so many different backgrounds as having helped him to be able to write genuine human experiences that people from all walks of life can relate to.
Releasing “Just Like That” after “Feel Good Song,” Vardaan felt the song was the next natural step as both songs followed similar formulas. Ready for the next chapter of his career and progression as an artist, Vardaan worked with an entirely different team on his upcoming single “Poison.” What Vardaan feels is most noticeably different about this song are the vocals. He pushed himself to go out of his comfort zone when recording them, thus creating a whole new sound for him. “Lyrically, the song is about something or someone toxic in your life that you keep around even though you know it’s terrible for you. This could be a person, a habit, or a relationship – anything, really.
Tell us about your songwriting process.
It’s a little all over the place. I don’t like to force anything, so I usually don’t begin writing until I feel naturally inspired. I understand that’s a luxury, too. Most of my songs have been written over the course of weeks in little bits and pieces, depending on when ideas would come to me. I’ve also got a few scraps and ideas in the notes section on my phone that I didn’t end up using. It’s messy for sure, but it works for me.
Tell us about your song style. Although you’re inspired by Pop artists such as Britney Spears, Sia, Troye Sivan, and Alessia Cara, you have your own musical style.
Honestly, I like to channel a combination of everything I’m feeling inspired by into one sound. That changes from one song to another, but I think what they all have in common is an infectious melody. I like my music to be lyrically driven, but also have a hook that makes you want to come back for more – if that makes sense.
You are currently living in New York. Does it influence your music?
It definitely influences my writing. A lot of my songs are derived from personal experiences, and being exposed to so many different lifestyles and people here in New York has shaped me to be the person that I am. It’s made me a lot more self aware and perceptive, which definitely helps with my writing.
Let’s talk Poison. You mentioned vocals are noticeably different. Tell us more.
It’s interesting, because I naturally feel a lot more comfortable singing in my lower register. So, when Elliot and Chris (the producers I worked with on Poison) encouraged me to sing an octave higher, it was a little scary. But it brought an entirely new emotional energy to the track, which is what I believe makes it stand alone from my previous singles.
We know you like to push yourself out of your comfort zone. Tell us what inspires you.
I don’t know if anyone really loves going out of their comfort zone, but I truly believe that’s how you grow as an artist. It isn’t easy, but if you continue going down the ‘easy’ route, your work will gradually become uninteresting. My wave of inspiration varies depending on the people meet, the music I listen to, what I’m watching – it’s endless. But, weirdly, and this is a little cliché – I often feel the most inspired to write when I’m in an unusual mood. Whether I’m feeling really excited about something, or really down in the dumps – that’s when ideas for lyrics come to me.
When you look at your repertoire as a songwriter, do you see any themes that characterize it, or maybe any distinct musical themes that define certain eras of music?
Well, it’s pop music – and that genre has evolved so much over the years. Sometimes I wonder what ‘pop’ even means anymore. It’s short for ‘popular music’ – but we have artists with a whole bunch of different sounds that fit into that category. I think that back in the 90’s, for example, pop had a very specific sound. We had Britney, we had The Backstreet Boys. R&B had a specific sound too – we had Aaliyah, Usher. Same with Rock. Now, though, there’s a huge crossover with all of those genres, and I like to take advantage of that as a songwriter. Experimenting with different sounds is exciting to me, you know?
It seems you want people focus on the lyrics—the “message” of your music. Tell us more.
The lyrics behind all three of my tracks are very personal to me. But, I want people to be able to listen to the songs and take whatever they can relate to from them. For example, ‘Poison’ is about something or someone in your life that you keep around even though you know it’s going to be bad for you in the long run. This could mean different things to different people, but the lyrics still apply. I don’t want my songs to have an objective, concrete message that tells people how to feel and what to do – I want them to be able to take whatever applies to them.
Is there anything you believe the critics and listeners may have missed in your work?
I’m sure, yeah. Feel Good Song and Poison are actually both about a continuing battle with mental health issues – I bet most people don’t know that, and that’s fine, because as I said earlier – the lyrics can mean whatever you want them to mean because the themes are universal.
Is there a project you’re working on that you can share with us?
It’s all a little hush hush at the moment. I’m writing a song at the moment, aiming to record over it over the summer. Nothing has been finalized yet, so it’s a little too soon to share the title or anything, but there’s definitely something coming.
Where do you see the direction of your music going in the next five years?
My writing process is so spontaneous, it’s hard. But, I know that within the next five years I’m hoping to reach a stage where I can record an album with an arc. I’m going down the path of self discovery with my music by experimenting with different styles and sounds, but I’m waiting to get to a point where I can say to myself – “yes, I’m ready to record a full length album.”
What’s next in your career?
An EP, hopefully! That’s a natural next step, I think. Again, no definite plans yet – I don’t want to say something I’m going to have to back track on. But an EP is the goal!
Connect with Vardaan Arora:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/vardaanarora
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vardaanarora
Web: http://www.vardaanarora.com
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