Welcome to RavenzCraft Arts Interview project "Artist Spotlight" 2019
We are honored and excited to get to talk with you and learn more about your passions and inspiration behind your music!
1.First off for those of us who don’t already know can you give us a short introduction
Your name, where you are from, and when you first started to create music of your own?
Hello and thanks for having me! I’m Aethelwyne, a folk vocalist based in Greece.
I came up with this name approximately 6 years ago and, to be exact, I was initially called ‘Helga Aethelwyne’-as my real name is Olga, which originates from Helga-but I decided to narrow it down later on, as I felt it was too big. Aethelwyne means ‘friend of the elves’.
Well, I started to upload cover songs on YouTube 7 years ago;it took me a while to find the genre that represents me the most, but I can now tell for sure that folk music is totally my thing. It is also a genre that enables me to sing in foreign languages and feel this deeper connection with other cultures and people.
2. So please tell us if there was anyone you looked up to early on in your life that really inspired you and made you want to pursue a career in music?
Well, I still remember the day that my dad introduced me to Nightwish. I was around 12 and totally blown away by Tarja’s vocals. It may sound cheesy, as she’s a singer that has been a great inspiration to many, but that’s the truth! Her singing style and overall appearance on stage were absolutely determining for my taste in music, although I had yet to discover that I could actually sing haha.
3. Were you involved in music classes and programs at an early age? Or did you take interest and practice solo?
No, I wasn’t. I discovered that I may have a good singing voice at the age of 15, I think, and I started taking up singing lessons at the age of 17, which I now continue with my amazing vocal coach, Melina Ruais. Being mainly interested in Scandinavian folk music, I had to find a native vocal tutor who could help me out with the pronunciation first and of course with improving my technique.
My first performances took place at my high school, where I was asked to sing repertoires for our national celebrations. When I first started on YouTube, I had actually no idea where it would take me! All I knew was that I loved music, I loved singing and I wanted to collaborate with people around the world.
4. So we are interested to know If we were to pull up your recent music track list today, What type of music or artists you personally follow? Any favorite new songs or albums you really like lately?
Good question! I really admire Scandinavian artists, such as Myrkur, Eivør, Aurora, Jonna Jinton, Agnes Obel and Heilung’s Maria Franz, but I really feel the need to declare Myrkur’s Amalie Bruun my all-time-favorite artist and the one that helped me shape my identity as a vocalist.
So, after this short introduction, my recent music track list includes Aurora’s ‘All is Soft Inside’, ‘Gentle Earthquakes’ and ‘Winter Bird’, Myrkur’s ‘Himlen Blev Sort’ and ‘Crown’, Eivør’s soundtracks in ‘The Last Kingdom’ (the opening and ‘Lívstræðrir’), Agnes Obel’s ‘Fuel to Fire’, ‘Familiar’ and ‘Dorian’ and Heilung’s ‘In Maidjan’.
5. So living in Greece must be amazing; do you have any other interesting hobbies or things you like to do on your free time?, hiking, photography, travel etc?
If learning foreign languages counts as a hobby, sure haha! All jokes aside, I’m currently learning German and I’m planning to learn more languages in the future. I have an insatiable thirst for multilingualism. Apart from that, I thoroughly enjoy long walks in nature; they really do help me to clear out and unburden my mind and the atmosphere is always so serene. I also like taking pictures of plants, flowers and beautiful sceneries, whenever I get the chance.
6. Tell us about your country and homeland what do you enjoy most about it? What things do you dislike?
Beginning with the positive traits, Greece is a really beautiful country that combines both the mountainous and the water element and this is the reason why it’s considered to be top destination especially during Summer time. It is also a country of great importance, as our ancient civilization had a powerful impact on a global scale.
However, I feel that our most significant flaw as a nation is that instead of trying to co-operate with each other for the general good of the people, we tend to waste our time and energy into putting the blame always on others. And this has been deeply rooted in our idiosyncrasy. Regarding my hometown, it is located in Northern Greece and it is very relaxing to me whenever I visit it. It is, also, close to nature, which is a major plus!
7. Do you have any new projects or plans to create something in the near future that you can reveal and tell us a bit about?
Well, it is rather honoring to say that I’m an official member of the Munknörr project; Damian is an amazing human being, very devoted to music, passionate, talented and humble and we are having lots of fun, while working on our new album, which is to be released by the end of December. Apart from that, I’m always in for new collaborations, as long as they are close to my taste.
8. So your collaboration work with Munknörr is awesome by the way especially the new single "Sigel" how did you discover and connect with Damian Schneider of Munknörr?
I’m really glad that you like it! ‘Sigel’ is my absolute favorite so far; it’s a song in which we both believed very much from the very beginning and people really seemed to appreciate, so we take great pride in it.
Well, Damian discovered and contacted me when he listened to my cover of Myrkur’s ‘Himlen Blev Sort’ and I’m so very thankful that he did. It’s been a dream working with him ever since. Through his music, I managed to experiment more with my vocals and embrace this animalistic, primitive and raw side of human nature, which I find fascinating!
9. As far as collaboration goes, if you could have a chance to create a song or single with any musician or band out there, who would that be?
You should have guessed it by now! With Myrkur of course! I know I mention her a lot, but she really is an artist I look up to. I still remember my first attempt of singing one of her songs in Danish and posted it on Instagram and then the next day, much to my astonishment, I found out that she had reposted it on her own account!
My excitement was indescribable. I imagine us collaborating in a dark folk song. I’ll definitely be on cloud nine, if this ever does happen.
10. What about live concerts, and festivals or other similar events, I see you have performed at a few different events on your youtube channel…do you plan to do more in the future?
Of course! Performing is so refreshing to me. It’s remarkable how everything seems to freeze for a while and I get to stop thinking and simply enjoy my time there. I was invited to sing in Athens last year, at the annual fantasy festival called ‘Fantasticon’ and also in Spring I was asked to perform as a guest vocalist at a wonderful local show organized by ‘Musical Gymnasium/Lyceum of Pilaia’ here in Thessaloniki, where I live for now. And finally, I seized the opportunity to sing at the annual Christmas festival that takes place in my hometown and it went really good, too!
I’m still in for live shows, but due to lack of time I will be rather selective.
11. Do you have plans to push your music career to a higher level? Any goals or things you would like to accomplish in the near future? Or are you just taking it easy and seeing where it leads you?
Well, I completely trust our project with Damian and I do believe that considerable opportunities will arise in the near future! You just have to believe and work hard. Of course I have goals, which I generally don’t really like to reveal until they happen…so, yes, you can call me superstitious. The thing I know for sure though, is that I’m planning to live abroad at some point in my life; this is something I’ve been saying since I was 13 and I know I will make it happen.
12. Do you have any friends/musicians or great people you would like to mention that you have met along the way that you have collaborated or been involved with that we may take interest in as well?
Sure! I had the pleasure to collaborate with a few really talented upcoming musicians/artists and genuinely good individuals. I’ll start with my partner, ‘Paschalis Lekon’; he has studied graphic design, music engineering and photography and he’s the person that has helped me out with pretty much everything from mixing my vocals to taking my pictures, has given me the best pieces of advice and he’s probably the most talented individual I have ever encountered.
I am extremely lucky to have him by my side. Next in line is Morgan Nichol with whom I had the chance to make my cover version of Myrkur’s ‘Himlen Blev Sort’ and I also got to do a small narrative part in one of his songs, entitled ‘Breathe Life Into You’. To anyone interested in emotional/fantasy music, I highly recommend him! Another favorite of mine, is Arianna Deligianni or, as I like to call her, my Siren.
Her voice is so captivating and alluring that I can’t help but fall in love with every single rendition of hers! Last but certainly not least, is ‘Invadable Harmony’, a really devoted artist who has experimented with many different music genres and never disappoints! I also adore the positivity she radiates!
13. Do you have any advice or words of wisdom for musicians or artists like yourself that are looking to pursue a career in music?
Believe in yourself. Know your worth. Work hard.
Focus on yourself/goals/dreams alone. Don’t care about anyone who tries to bring you down! People will always have something to say, so it’s pointless. Be humble and always accept criticism, as long as it’s constructive, otherwise you can’t evolve and it’s a pity to deprive one’s self of personal growth.
14. Closing statements/ this last question is open to you to say or mention anything you want to say...Let us know where we can find more of your music etc.
>Thank you so much for this wonderful interview! I really enjoyed answering all these interesting questions and I’m wishing you the very best. For now, you can only find me on YouTube-I also own a SoundCloud account, which I don’t use much. I’m planning to expand on other music platforms soon, nonetheless.
It was exciting and a pleasure to do this interview project with you ..Thank you very much for talking with us and sharing a bit more about yourself and your amazing talent and passion for creating music..we look forward to seeing much more from you in the future!
Follow and See more of Aethelwyne and her music here on YouTube at:
https://www.youtube.com/user/OlgaGotei13
Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/AethelwyneVocalist/
Stay tuned for more interviews and projects this season! Follow and support us on YouTube at
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC95bFF-xNLMcxAzRO7rFiCQ
