BAYLA

For many years, she was the girl in her bedroom armed with an acoustic, writing songs from a vulnerable, emotional place. Now, she wants to bring out her fun, colorful side to the world.

With two album already released by the age of 20, BAYLA, Montreal-based musician is ready to open up in a whole new way - starting with her new stage name. Up until the Summer of 2015, fans would refer to her as Brittany Kwasnik. Now that she is shifting musical genres, she wants something more marketable and reflective of her new direction. BAYLA, which is actually her Hebrew name, translates as "white". "People were having trouble spelling my name, and remembering my last name, which is actually Kwasnik" she says. "So I said, 'I think I'm going to go for a shorter name that means something to me'. So I took BAYLA. I felt a little awkward when I was thinking about what I was going to change my name to [...] so I took something that was already part of my name."

Her new music has more of a radio-pop feel to it, sometimes bordering on electronic-pop. The lyrics reflect having fun and being carefree as opposed to an emotional experience like her older music. While her approach to songwriting has changed, her ability to write a catchy hook is stronger than ever before. "When I'm in the studio now, I'm thinking more about the whole production" she says. "So that means a lot more layering. A lot more time spent on thinking about melodic hooks, and not just lyrics. Even now, I notice some of the lyrics that I'm writing don't come from the same emotional place as before. It's more about the energy and having fun, and showing this really exciting side of myself. It's a very different adventure for me but I'm having fun with it."

Her first single from her newest release, titled "Turn It Around", has an awesome drum beat and groovy vibe. The electric guitar also adds some edge to what at first seem like dark lyrics, but as soon as the chorus hits, the catchiness is infectious. The chorus speaks about breaking away from what's bringing you down and changing your attitude, as BAYLA sings: "If you're tired of feeling down, getting lost then getting found, doesn't have to be this way, turn it around, turn it around. If you're tired of wasting time, or you think you've lost your mind, doesn't have to be this way, turn it around." The high-energy song will get you dancing, and that is BAYLA's goal, after all. But, the energy translates best when her band is there to back her up on stage.

BAYLA's band consists of four members: Luc Celny on Drums, Aaron Shepherd on Guitar, Jacob Liutkus on Keyboards, and George Flores on Bass. "I actually met all my band members through the Montreal music circle," she says. "I decided that the acoustic stuff was great, but I wanted a little more energy on stage. I still play guitar on a lot of songs, but now I'm a little bit more free to run around and have a bit more energy." No matter how many electronic layers gets added into the songs, she feels the band really brings the songs to life when it comes to performing live.

Her influences growing up were the artists she often listened to going on road trips with her parents, such as Sarah McLachlan Jann Arden, and Fleetwood Mac. Although nowadays it's more likely that she'll be on the road with band, her early influences still inspire her. "What I listened to early on in my childhood definitely still influences me today" she says. "Obviously I also really appreciate radio music. I love Tegan & Sara, Ellie Goulding and Lights. I pretty much listen to a lot of Top 40 Radio and get inspired by it, but it's also really fun to listen to older music to kind of bring out that fire inside, and be able to bring that into my music as well."

That fire has always been there. The words "give up" are not part of her vocabulary. At the age of eight, she was diagnosed with Vocal Cord Dysfunction. This occurs when the voice box does not open and close correctly. It is a condition often confused with Athsma, although it's related to vocal cord muscles as opposed to bronchial tubes.

"The doctors told me I was never going to be able to sing" she says. I went to speech therapy for quite a few months. Eventually, I got it under control. It was cool to prove doctors wrong; it was really fun. I think the fact that they told me I wouldn't be able to do it made me want to do it even more". It is not surprising that her advice to aspiring musicians reflects that determined, fiery attitude. "Never stop" she says. "Don't give up at the early stages when it's really, really tough and there's no recognition at all. Just keep practicing, because practice makes perfect."

Like many musician, recognition is always a struggle. "I think the hardest thing is just making it, and for people to realize the effort you're putting in," she explains. "I'm working five days a week, full time, just on music production and all that, and on the weekend I'm performing all the time. So it's really a full time thing and it's hard for people to realize how much you're putting into it." Despite that, she has a lot to be proud of. "[I'm proud of] just writing as much as I've been writing, and being able to release so much music already. I released my first album when I was sixteen, second album at nineteen, so I've already been able to get music out there and I haven't stopped writing, and I haven't been discouraged on that side of things," she says. "So I think my greatest accomplishment is continuing to get music out there and just not giving up."

The response she gets from creating is something that will keep her from ever giving up. "My motivation is that I know that people are going to listen to it and I know they're going to connect to it. I know that somebody, somewhere, is listening," she says "I also remember being younger and music helping me so much in life, that is somebody is listening, and if that makes somebody feel better, then I've done my job. Even for myself, I feel like music has helped me be myself".

"I feel like people hold back and don't follow their dreams because they feel like statistically it's not going to work out. I just want people to feel they can do anything they want to do."

Big things will be coming from BAYLA soon, including tons of new music. Her music video for "Turn It Around" is available as of September 22nd. Don't forget to check her out at http://www.faceook.com/baylaofficial. - The Vocalist Magazine

BAYLA's Single "Turn It Around" Debuts at at No.47 on the CHR Airplay Chart and is bubbling under the Canadian Emerging Artists chart. The 21 Year-Old BAYLA hails from Montreal and has been recording under her name Brittany Kwasnik since the age of 14. While her previous recordings have been ballads, the new single moves into a pop direction. Early believers on the Single include CJCH Halifax, CIQM London, CJFM Montreal, CFBT Vancouver, CHSU Kelowna, CFMG Edmonton, CIBK Calgary, CKMM Winnipeg and CKFM Toronto. - NEILSEN BDS (ARTIST SPOTLIGHT)