Artist Spotlight: Meet Janita
Credit: Photo by Taylor Ballantyne
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind "I Want You I Warn You" and the story it tells?
It’s not a threat, I wrote “I Want You I Warn You” as a love song, pure and simple. And yet I find that because of the moment that we’re currently in politically in the world, the message of the song has morphed into something more complex. That happens sometimes: the meaning of a song changes because of the circumstances that the song finds itself in. There’s a strength and boldness to the production, the performance, and the lyric, and all of it amounts to me as a woman showing my fangs. Like I said, this is a love song, not a threat. But it’s a love song on my terms. On a woman’s terms. And it feels like there’s a lot of people out there in the world right now who find that somewhat scary. Well, I say––good luck with that.
How did you work with the producer or engineers to bring your vision for this song to life?
I wrote the main guitar part, which is the foundation of this song. My producer Blake Morgan has taught me over the years that the answers to the production and arrangement of my music really lie in my original guitar parts; our mission together is always just to discover what’s supposed to coexist with it. Michelangelo put it so eloquently: “The sculpture is already complete within the marble block, before I start my work. It is already there, I just have to chisel away the superfluous material.” I find that that’s true of music as well: the answers already exist, they’re there to be found. We start with the drums, and work extensively with my drummer Miles East to discover the drum part that belongs in the song, and then we move on from there to all the other instruments. All the instruments on my new record have been played by only three people: me, my drummer Miles East, and my producer Blake Morgan. This is a small, but extra-spicy operation.
How do you feel this song represents your artistic identity?
My upcoming album, ‘Mad Equation,’ is my tenth studio album, and I think this song might as well be the CliffsNotes off of it. “I Want You I Warn You” encapsulates the vision, the style, and the direction of it. This album is unique in that it somehow manages to combine all of the many influences I’ve had throughout my whole career. My indie rock-, dream pop-, R&B-, dance- and alternative-influences are all part of the palette. I think I’m probably harder for an algorithm to categorize than ever as an artist, but I’m alright with it. I’m actually more fully realized than ever before. I’m more fully….me.
How has your music evolved since you started as a singer-songwriter? What have been some key milestones in your artistic journey?
I’ve written songs since I was 3 years old. Rather simplistic and childish little tunes at first obviously, but over time, things got more interesting. I started writing songs in a more professional, concerted way when I made my album ‘I’ll Be Fine’ in 2001, which was a very different-sounding record from the one I’m releasing in May. My music was way more jazzy and R&B-influenced back then, and I was also co-writing all my songs at the time. Two albums later, with ‘Haunted’ in 2010, I started writing songs truly on my own, and veering towards a darker, more Alternative sound. And that’s the path that I’ve stuck to style-wise, more or less, ever since. I’ve written every song on my last three albums on my own––mostly on guitar, but also on piano. All of my favorite artists have evolved and changed throughout their careers, and I certainly have too. We all change as human beings throughout our lives, inevitably the art that we make will have to change too. I think it would be unnatural to fight that transformation, or try to play to other people’s tastes.
Are there any specific themes or messages that you aim to convey through your music?
I’m always after authenticity and honesty. Lyrically, I try capture something that’s true for me personally in each song I write, and usually when I accomplish that sort of specificity, there’s a good chance that it will connect with people universally. There are sometimes threads of current events that run through my lyrics, and as they say: “the personal is political.” The way I view the world is woven into the fabric of my music. As an artist I think that I have the responsibility of being righteous, uncorrupted. It’s as important right now as it’s ever been. Artists are the first and last line of defense against any and all bullshit.
