Interview: Catching Up With Meiko + Stream “Gimme Gimme”

With a career that’s included a litany of song placements on TV shows, a chart-topping hit in Japan and multiple tours in the US, UK, Japan & China, indie singer-songwriter Meiko has experienced just about it all since her debut in 2008. With all of that in her rearview, Meiko is getting back to basics with her forthcoming fifth album of originals, In Your Dreams.

Self-funded and independently released, In Your Dreams finds Meiko teaming with Justin Glasco for a new collection of songs that recalls her time recording her debut while working as a cocktail waitress in Los Angeles.

“I was paying people in whiskey, asking them to come to the studio and lay down some tracks in exchange for a few Jack-and-Cokes,” Meiko shares. “It was really simple, but there’s something beautiful about having all the time in the world and no money. With In Your Dreams, I wanted to simplify my sound and go back to the bare-boned mindset I had when I made that first record.”

In Your Dreams is led by single “Gimme Gimme,” a dark-pop anthem that rails against consumer culture with an enveloping swirl of natural and electronic elements. To go along with a stream of “Gimme Gimme,” we sent Meiko some interview questions.

Check it all out below and look for In Your Dreams out May 21st here.

Hi, Meiko! Congrats on your new album. Can you tell us a little more on who you are and how you first got into making music?

I’m an indie/folk-rock/pop singer-songwriter from a teeny-tiny town in Georgia called Roberta. I started playing guitar at 12 years old because I was bored out of my mind in a town of about 800 people, and since my dad played, he was able to teach me a few chords. It started as a hobby in my adolescent years!

What’s your songwriting process like? Who are some of your biggest influences?

I can go months without writing a song, but then some days I’ll write 3. Inspiration isn’t easy to just ‘turn on’, but I’ve been trying to lately as it’s really frustrating to be inspired but not have time to go into a room by myself and write.

What’s “Gimme Gimme” about?

Consumerism. I’d just moved to Nashville from Los Angeles – and not long after that, I gave birth to my son. Of course I was at home most of the time in those first few months and I started obsessing over Amazon and buying things online. Since I was far away from a lot of friends and family and not really socializing, I got my fix from receiving packages at my door. It was like Christmas every morning. So I wrote a song about it, and what it feels like to want everything all the time.

How, if at all, did moving to Germany and becoming a mother influence this record?

I finished this record a few months after I moved. I think most of the inspiration came from the mental preparation it took to leave everything I knew. Also, becoming a new mother made me feel extremely introspective about my relationship with my own mother. I started writing a few songs about forgiveness that started off as lullabies I would sing to my baby.

Any new artists/venues/purveyors of the arts you could turn our readers onto?

Speaking of forgiveness, I just came across a song called “Make Peace With It” by Jadea Kelly. I can’t get it out of my head. It’s so beautiful!

Where can we follow you and where can our readers catch you live next?

I’m playing an album release show in Los Angeles at the Hotel Cafe on May 15. I can always be found on social media too! Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.

Any parting thoughts? Open platform!

I’m a big fan of this charity called Song For Kids. I played a couple of shows with them when I lived in LA. One of the many amazing things they do is set up a little sound system in the waiting rooms of children’s hospitals so kids can take the microphone and sing karaoke to their favorite songs that are played live. I played a lot of Justin Beiber for them, and the light that shined in their faces was priceless. I think in those moments, the kids weren’t thinking about their situation and the pain they were in. It was a beautiful experience to see how comforting the power of music can be!