From attending the Paul Green Rock Academy to touring with Gibby Haynes of Butthole Surfers and Gene Ween of Ween during their early teenage years, Clive Davis senior Naomi Yanos has used their exposure to rock music as inspiration for their own record and bold style of performance.
“I’ve been told that I don’t show my nervousness at all [while on stage]. I’m very much able to turn something on. No matter what, I can go up there and put on a persona of not caring, but it’s not true,” said Yanos. “I obviously get nervous, I just [tell myself] to remember I’m prepared, I’m just having fun. I know that it’ll be good no matter what, I just want it to be great.”
This was nothing short of true at their performance earlier this month at Astor Place Hairstylists a week after the release of their new EP, “Rock in the Forest.” The level of confidence that Yanos displayed on the makeshift stage was astounding, more so since it was their first time performing many of the new songs live. For a second, you could forget that you were watching them perform in front of a crowd of strangers as they danced around, flipping their hair and exhibiting every ounce of self-assurance one could have. That’s not to mention their mesmerizing vocals — most notable in “Look Alive,” a slower, jazzy track featured on their new EP. The blend of tranquility and strength in their vocals created an impressive vocal display, which they have been cultivating since a young age.
“My first shows were recitals when I was seven, but with [Paul Green Rock Academy] I did my first official show when I was 10,” said Yanos. “It was so out of my comfort zone. I sang this blues song that had no set lyrics, and I remember it feeling transformative. Like this is meant for me.”
By the time they were 13 years old, Yanos was touring with seasoned rock artists Haynes and Ween, an opportunity that they earned during their time at the academy. They credit this experience to having channeled their interest in rock music into their work.
“There’s being good [on stage] and there’s being impactful,” said Yanos. “You’re supposed to make some people feel certain things or a certain type of way. Free, or whatever your objective is.”
Despite many performances under their belt, Yanos had never recorded their music in a studio before attending NYU. When growing up in Harlem, they experimented with an iZotope Spire Studio Recorder, a device and app that allowed them to record music for free. Through their experience at the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, they have learned more about crafting and mixing songs and frequently take advantage of the resources and studio access offered to students. Having worked with producers in the past, they had difficulty finding a collaborator who understood the vision they had for their music. They now single-handedly oversee the writing and production of their songs.
“Rock in the Forest” is an experimental alternative record that Yanos refers to as their “rock project.” Its most recently written song, “Roll Over,” was drafted in one impassioned sitting after Yanos participated in a protest. The angry belting interjected after the song’s calm start creates an almost disjointed portrayal of their emotions, which speaks to the EP’s overall theme of dissociation and use of alternative rock sounds.
“When you’re dissociated, you can’t access all these emotions, or they’re numb, but [you’re] not connecting with anybody,” said Yanos. “Ultimately there’s always a moment of reckoning, a moment where everything comes out. And I think that’s the case with this record.”
Yanos wrote the fourth track, “September,” during a 10-month period when they were not allowed to sing due to a vocal polyp — a growth on the vocal cords — that led to them getting surgery. With their main emotional outlet inhibited, the uncertainty of whether or not they would be able to regain their voice haunted them. Since then, they have taken steps to better protect their voice, with new warm-ups and restrictions on how often they sing outside of rehearsal. Following the upcoming release of their first full-length album in October, they hope to go on a university circuit tour, visiting various universities to perform the music that has proven to be a driving power in their personal life.
“I struggled with emotional regulation in my younger years. So I would try to push everything away because it was too difficult to sort of handle my own emotions,” said Yanos. “[This record] is about embracing that and using it as a guiding force.”
Contact Eva Mundo at [email protected].