Grand Rapids singer Melissa Dylan plays a songwriters’ night at SpeakEZ Lounge on Friday with Ralston Bowles and Dan Terry. Local Spins digs into more about this tunesmith who just started a new band.
Inspired by Other Writers, Bands: Melissa Dylan creates ‘pop-forward’ songs. (Courtesy Photo)
SCROLL DOWN TO LISTEN TO TRACKS FROM ALL THREE SONGWRITERS
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Grand Rapids singer-songwriter Melissa Dylan has navigated the region’s music scene in varied ways over the years, from fronting a band to hosting open-mic nights to releasing her own solo music spanning indie-pop, alt-rock and folk.
On Friday, Dylan joins veteran West Michigan tunesmiths Ralston Bowles and Dan Terry for a special songwriters’ night at SpeakEZ Lounge in Grand Rapids as part of the Local Spins Fridays series. (Get details about the 7:30 p.m. “in-the-round” show here.)
Local Spins writer Holly Holtzclaw recently caught up with Dylan to talk about her music, open-mic nights, her new band and being a female in the music business. Here’s the Q&A, and listen to a track from Dylan below, along with tracks from Bowles and Terry.
Local Spins: For Local Spins readers who may be just tuning into your music, what have you been up to lately?
Dylan: So I just started playing again about a year ago after taking about a year-and-a-half off. I’ve done some original shows, a couple of open-mic guest nights, and formed a band. And now I’m also just living life and doing music for the fun of it because I miss doing it for that reason. You get going as a performer, not necessarily just as a musician, but as a performer, and you can’t say no to shows or opportunities for people to hear you, or for people to be entertained and have wonderful times. Most of my favorite times are at concerts, so why would I say no to being part of what could possibly be somebody’s favorite night? But I had to take a step back and really take care of myself. So now I do it because I love it and because I want to.
Local Spins: You’ll be playing as part of a songwriter round on Friday at SpeakEZ so I wanted to ask, what’s something you enjoy about being part of these songwriter rounds with fellow musicians from the area?
Dylan: I love hearing all of their stories and inspiration, but sometimes it just kind of comes out of nowhere, and you can be shocked at the actual reason for the song that somebody wrote when you’ve attached your own meaning to it. Getting to share that with other people who work really hard on their craft and have the same types of inspiration that come from unexpected sources, it makes me feel like I’m at home. I get to be with people who think relatively the same as me and work that out through their instrument or their voice or their songwriting. Hearing their process actually kind of helps me with my own.
Local Spins: As you’re prepping for these kinds of shows, you’re playing with musicians who play all different types of music and I imagine you have to be maybe a little more intentional about choosing your songs versus having a whole set to work with. How do you go about that process of choosing what you want to play?
Dylan: As a writer, my own style actually varies pretty greatly in genre so I can kind of fit the mood depending on who else is playing. I will usually start with a list of 15 to 20 songs and kind of pick and choose depending on the order. Like, if I’m first, I’ll probably start with something more energetic, but if that’s not the mood of the room, then I try to dig into softer, more folk-style tunes and more country stuff. But if anybody knows me, the running joke of the last 20 years that I’ve lived in Grand Rapids is that I am terrible at making a set list. I almost never make an actual set list, and when I do I completely deviate from it at every show. Songwriting rounds are not open-mics where you have no idea what the next person or the person before you is playing. You’re sharing the stage with these people, you’re sharing that energy, and you want to continue that energy throughout the night.
LISTEN: Melissa Dylan, “Stranger”
Local Spins: For those attending the show on Wednesday who have never seen you perform before, what would you say to them about what to expect from your portion of the show?
Dylan: I am awkwardly entertaining. I get flabbergasted as soon as a microphone is in front of me and I’m speaking. Singing is a completely different story. I wrote those songs. I can connect with them because they’re mine and they’re part of my experience. So when you put a microphone in front of me to speak it instantly becomes kind of funny, but mostly terrible. Entertaining, for sure. But I’ve been told that I have a very big voice and I do bring an intensity to every single song that I have because I’m able to still connect to even songs I wrote 20 years ago. I can still start playing it and feel exactly the same thing that I was feeling when I wrote it, or even a new feeling that makes it more intense.
Local Spins: You mentioned some of your experiences hosting open-mics, and I wanted to know how that has either changed or formed your perspective on our local scene, seeing some of the up-and-coming acts or people who maybe haven’t performed in front of an audience before?
Dylan: It’s really hard for me to not be a little jaded about the industry. I’ve been hosting open-mics for years standing and men specifically will bring in their instruments, walk right past me to the nearest man that they think is in charge, and start asking questions about setting up or getting on the list, completely ignoring me. Conversely, there have been some really incredible players with great songwriting skills, great enthusiasm and love of their craft, and I love being able to introduce them. I love being able to invite them to come and share a stage with other musicians. I love hearing new things coming out of people, and see that music and creativity is still a really big part of the community. And I love that people are getting braver and braver and wanting to share more. There was a span of about six months where I had almost a different group of people playing every week, just bringing what they had to the stage and it was amazing to see.
Dylan: Set to debut Smile, Darling. (Courresy Photo)
Local Spins: Is there something you’ve been working on that people should be on the lookout for? Any upcoming shows?
Dylan: I started a band and we finally came up with a name. It’s all of my songs right now since we haven’t really started writing as a band yet. My band’s name is Smile, Darling and it’s going to be mostly energetic pop-punk style, with some bluesy, angry rock. We’re playing on May 30 at Turnstiles with two really great bands — Beachglass and Midwest Skies — and they’re all good friends of mine. I’m really excited for the show because I did a show with just my band and Beachglass where I opened with an acoustic set and had pulled other people, like random people from the bar, on stage to sing with me and I felt so good about how it just felt like real teamwork. We were putting on a show together rather than each just playing our own sets. I’m playing a solo set on March 29 at Turnstiles as well with Edison Kitt and the Strangers and the Justin Richard Holcomb Band.
Local Spins: Is there anything specific that’s really inspired you lately, or maybe some new artists you’ve discovered that have influenced your creative process?
Dylan: My creative influences are vastly different from what comes out of my mouth. When I want to write songs, I will listen to an artist named Kevin Devine on repeat. He’s fantastic. I see him every single time he plays in Michigan. But it’s pretty folky, definitely indie. Nothing like what comes out of my brain and out of my guitar and out of my mouth. I write much more pop-forward stuff. I really think that watching other artists, especially other local artists, lights a fire for me to want to do the same thing and share those same feelings and create something. I absolutely adore The Cosmoknights right now. I love watching them perform. There’s so much energy and it’s the most beautiful chaos that I’ve ever seen.
Also part of the reason that I love doing open-mic is that it always made me want to keep playing. Because there was a time when I never wanted to play again and that was a really awful time. I don’t ever want to go back to that. As much as I love doing it and as much as I adore my band, it’s still a struggle to get on a stage at all anymore. Even though I do it, and I do it pretty often, every time I get on stage I’m still a little scared. I’ve started being choosier and doing a lot less shows. I’m playing more quality shows with people that I know or trust, or taking opportunities where I know I’m going to be in a welcoming, safe environment. I’m trying to continue doing what I love to do, because I love to do it and not care so much about the people who don’t matter.
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