Singer-songwriter Adeline Um performs original songs, released and unreleased, live in the WBCA Studio! She also talks about her songwriting process, overcoming shyness to perform, and returning to Boston after living in Scotland for 8 years.
WBCA Podcasts
WBCA Presents: Adeline Um
you're listening to WBCA Presents. My name is Adeline M and this song is called Take the Time to Grow. One, two, three, four. Hey, Mr. Sun, I've been seeing you in a while in this rainy town from the fight. Go down the seaside with my lover and in hand, and we'll drive and drive and drive. And all these winding roads seem far from home 'cause I'm not the girl that I want to be right now. And in this afternoon we'll watch the missiles bloom. Oh, for the day to see, the sea. 'Cause people stay and people go and you might think that you're alone. Maybe just take this time to grow. 'Cause I'm not really good with change and change has never stayed the same. We'll take the time to be okay. This change is on the way. Count down the days until the day we say I do. We've been waiting quite a while for this. To go back to coffee every morning, day by day. Well, the coffee doesn't taste the same for now 'cause with these winding roads. I'm far from home 'cause I'm not the girl that I want to be right now. And in this afternoon we'll watch the missiles bloom. Oh, for the day to see, the sea. 'Cause people stay and people go and you might think that you're alone. Maybe just take this time to grow. 'Cause I'm not really good with change and change has never stayed the same. I guess I'll have to be okay. 'Cause with these winding roads. I'm far from home 'cause I'm not the girl that I want to be right now. And in this afternoon we'll watch the missiles bloom. Oh, for the day to see, the sea. 'Cause people stay and people go and you might think that you're alone. Maybe just take this time to grow. 'Cause if you're not really good with change and change has never stayed the same. I guess I'll have to be okay. 'Cause change is on the way. [Music] This is WBCA Presents on WBCA 102.9 FM Boston. Boston's Community Radio Station. I'm your host, Tommy Shenifield. And we have Adeline Umm with Charles Vadala in the studio, performing Adeline Umm's song. Take the time to grow from her last EP, Still Blooming. Thanks for being here. Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be here. Yeah, so are you from Boston originally? Yes, I am. I'm from Charleston. And how does it feel to be performing in Boston? It feels good. Yeah, I was away in Scotland for the past eight years. So to come back to Boston in this past year has been really, really nice. And to be able to come back to where my roots are is, yeah, really exciting. Oh, so you just got back to Boston pretty recently after a whole eight years in Scotland? Yes, yes. I moved back last July. Well, were you performing a lot of music over there? Umm, not as much as I would have liked to. I was living in a smaller town about an hour north of Edinburgh called St. Andrews. And I played a good amount in Glasgow and St. Andrews and some in London. But, yeah, I wish I could have played more. But just from the location of where we were at, it was a little bit more challenging to get to the bigger cities in the UK. If I have it right, you went to St. Andrews University? I did, yeah. I went for four years and then I ended up staying for another four years. And I did a Masters there as well. And I actually met my husband in my undergrad there and we ended up getting married. And he stayed to pursue medical school in St. Andrews as well. So we stayed there for a while. So how did that, how did you wind up coming from Boston, wind up in Scotland? Did you see yourself doing that from a young age? That's a great question. I actually lived there when I was a kid. My dad was getting his PhD in St. Andrews. So I lived in that town when I was from the ages of two to four. And so I just ended up back there. I know my family had really fond memories of our time there. And, yeah, I just fell in love with the place. Yeah, nice to spend eight years in a place you fell in love with. Yes. So speaking of your childhood, how did you first get involved with music? I saw that you were doing ballet when you were younger, but you moved on to music primarily. Yes, yes, I was with the Boston Ballet. For over ten years, I think I was, I got up into their pre-professional program. But during that time, I also started to get involved in the Berkeley City Music Program, which is an organization that helps underrepresented and underserved communities. It started off in Boston, but now they have over 70 different sites around this country in the world. And I got involved in that when I was about 15. And I just fell in love with singing, and writing, and playing, and Charles Vidal here as well. We met in that program when we were 16. And we started playing together then, and then we just ended up having really good musicianship chemistry, and we have a really awesome friendship. And so, yeah, I'm just so grateful for that program, because I really felt like I was able to come out of my shell. I grew kind of as a shy kid, and so to be able to be in a place that met me where I was was really special. And I had some amazing mentors and teachers there that really just helped me blossom as a musician. I always sung as a kid, but I didn't start getting trained until I was about 15, 16. I saw that you performed the National Anthem at both TD Garden and Fenway Park. Oh my gosh. Wow, you did your homework. Yes, I did. So you're saying that you're shy, but that takes a lot of confidence. Right, yeah, I was put in, I think that's the dichotomy of my personalities, that I have been in a lot of spaces where I've been performing, but yeah, everyone knew me. I grew up as a very shy kid. Yeah, it's great that you're getting that from your music, and then putting it out in the world, and I'm sure you have a lot of people who listen to your music and inspires them to be more confident and work through things. Yeah, thank you. Thank you for saying that. Yeah, who are some of your influences, whether it's in music or living your life? Oh wow, that's a great question that I didn't prepare for. I would say a lot of different musicians. Currently, I'll just talk about currently. I'm listening to a lot of Lizzie McAlpine and Noah Kahn and Maggie Rogers. A lot of artists who are in the singer-songwriter space, indie pop singer-songwriter space. I love their ability to story tell and share very personal and vulnerable experiences in a very beautiful way. And I think, yeah, I've always been inspired by that genre, just because you can share a lot of personal things, but it can be in a fun and impactful way. And being in Scotland for a number of years, then also when you were younger, did the music culture there have any influence on you? Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, I grew up in Boston, basically my whole life. And then moving to Scotland was actually a big culture shock for me. The pace of life is very different than here. But in the same way, it's very peaceful. I don't want to speak on behalf of all of Scotland. But from my experience, I felt that the sense of community and time for each other was very strong. And so it just gave me the space to actually create, so I know you asked earlier if I was performing a lot. And I said not as much as I wanted to, but I actually spent a lot of that time in my apartment writing. And I was just so inspired by being in a space where I could really clear my head and be able to just reflect and being quiet spaces that weren't so overly busy. So being in Scotland was actually a big part of my musical journey, my lyrical journey. And yeah, a lot of the songs on my next album that's coming out was written there. That's great to hear that it had such an influence. And you have two more songs you're about to perform. Do you want to tell us what those songs are and a little bit about them? Yeah, absolutely. So the first one is called "Feast and Famine." It's actually not out yet. Oh, an exclusive. Yeah, it's an exclusive just for you. And this one I wrote actually wrote partially in Scotland and partially back here once I came back to Boston with my younger sister Charlotte. And this was just like fun and funky has some fun play on words. And the song after this is a song called "Simple to Do." And that's on my latest EP, "Still Blooming." And it actually is like one of my first love songs. When I started writing, I wrote a lot of like sad songs, but this song I wrote for my husband when we first started dating. And yeah, it's probably one of my favorite songs to play and to perform. Yeah, I think, yeah, just those two right now. Well, I can't wait to hear them. This is WBCA Presents. We have Adeline Oum in the studio. And first up, we have "Feast and Famine." You're listening to WBCA Presents. My name is Adeline Oum, and this song is called "Feast and Famine." ♪ So you're calling me up on the phone ♪ ♪ And I don't know why ♪ ♪ Said you're tired of being alone ♪ ♪ And you'll start to cry ♪ ♪ And I know that it's stupid to give into whatever you want me to ♪ ♪ But I took you back in a heartbeat ♪ ♪ 'Cause I'm crazy about you ♪ ♪ I'm not a liar, but I like to bend the truth ♪ ♪ You're selfish and holding in my love for you ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, and it's only here ♪ ♪ 'Cause you won't write me in your story ♪ ♪ And you're the kind of guy ♪ ♪ Selfish with your time ♪ ♪ Whoa ♪ ♪ You're getting hot and cold ♪ ♪ Like a meteor snowball in the Canada wildfires ♪ ♪ You're young but old ♪ ♪ Like a bottle of cheap wine ♪ ♪ But not even a good kind ♪ ♪ Feast and Famine, I want you ♪ ♪ But I can't have it ♪ ♪ You're the kind of guy ♪ ♪ Selfish with your time ♪ (guitar music) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ You're listening to WBCA Presents. My name is Adeline and the song is called Simple To Do. ♪ ♪ You are the sweetest gift I've known ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ With life loving you ♪ - You are listening to WBCA Presents on WBCA 102.9 FM. We have Adeline Um, live in the studio, performing some beautiful music. We had just a moment ago, simple to do offer EPs still blooming. And before that, Feast and Famine, which is I'm told unreleased. So keep an eye out for that when it's, you know, released worldwide. Thanks so much for being here again. And yeah. - Yeah, thank you so much for having me. It's been really fun being here in the studio. - So that song you just performed was simple to do off your EPs still blooming. You released that EP about a year ago? - Yeah, I actually released them as singles. And then they all compiled to an EP probably about, yeah, like last April. - Do you want to talk a little bit about the process of writing that EP? And I guess more generally your songwriting approach? - Yeah, so I started songwriting when I was 18 in Scotland, actually. I guess for me, I've always found it difficult to like sit down and just start writing. Usually I will have some sort of inspiration. Whether it be personal or through other friends who've shared their life with me or stories that they've told me. And I guess kind of now, if I ever hear a phrase that I feel sounds conducive to songwriting, I'll write it down to my phone app and then I'll sit down if I'm feeling inspired and I will then pull out my phone and my notes app and try to pick different phrases from that section to that would work in the song. But for this EP in particular, most of the songs are, actually all of them are personal. For the next EP, a lot of them are inspired by other people or movies or TV shows. But yeah, this past album still blooming was very personal. All the songs were very close and dear to me. And so some of them were written when I was very young, like a couple of them were when I was 18, 19. And then some of them when I was a little bit older. But it definitely took a while for me to feel ready to release them. I feel like that's something that not a lot of songwriters talk about is feeling very raw in your emotions and writing about it. But then having to release it for everyone to hear, including all your friends and family is definitely scary. So yeah, a few of them were quite a bit older than more recent ones on the EP. - Do you still feel as connected to those ones that you wrote a long time ago, or do you feel like you're a completely different person now? - I, some of them I feel very connected to, and some of them I feel as if I'm a very different person now. And yeah, the ones that I've played, I still feel connected to. There's some on the EP that I absolutely adore, but I don't, I feel like I've reached healing after writing those songs and being able to process those emotions with however I was feeling at the time. So I wouldn't say that those emotions are as raw, but definitely in the moment when I was writing those songs and playing them live, I struggled to not cry while playing them. So I kind of kept them to myself for a while, but then I realized like when I felt ready to play them, it didn't feel as, it didn't feel like me anymore 'cause I like process those things and move past them. So I feel like I learned a lot about just that entire experience and what it means to be a songwriter and just putting yourself out there on display. - Well, we're very glad that you're sharing your music here at WBCA and so many other places. - Thank you. - Do you have any favorite experiences of performing live or otherwise sharing your music with an audience? - Ah, I really love so far sounds. I don't know if you've heard of them, but they curate very intimate experiences for a lot of artists. And I think it's a great space for singer-songwriters 'cause they curate spaces where the audiences wanna be there and they're wanting to listen and they're excited about new music. So I've probably done about like 20 to 30 so far sound shows across the US and also in the UK. - Well, but it's definitely a great place to play new songs and kind of test it out to see which ones land well with the audience and kind of know which songs to work on more and put into production. Yeah, it's definitely like a great place to test out your new music and play your new songs. - That's great to hear. Do you have any upcoming performances through that or any other venues? - As of now, no. I don't think that we actually just had one at the Samuel Adams Brewery. They were, I guess, launching a beer for Boston Calling. They were launching a beer for Boston Calling and it was the weekend of Boston Calling. It was like the Thursday and we just played a gig there, which was really amazing. I'm very grateful for my relationship to the Samuel Adams Brewery. We've done a good amount of gigs there. And yeah, but I think for this season, I'm doing a bit of traveling away. So as of now, none yet to promote, but I'll get back to you on that. - Yeah, I'm sure everyone will want to stay posted. Do you have any, I assume you're on social media. - Yes, I am. - I just wanted to ask Charles there in the back. So have you performed, I know that you were both involved at City Music, Berkeley, have you been performing quite often since then? - Yeah, well, we met at City Music, we were 16. We were actually 16 and a half, the same exact, we like sharing this fun fact. The same exact age when we met because we were born on the same day. - Oh. - So that's a fun day. - Wow. - Same birthday, same year. - What's your birthday? - 12, 10, 96. (laughing) Happy very early birthday. - Thank you. - But yeah, around when we first connected, we, Adeline asked me if I would do some covers with her and those worked pretty well, those were fun. But I think more recently in the past five years or so in playing Adeline's original music, we've just kind of learned that our musical strengths just work really well together and I think I'm a match for her original music and her original music, I enjoy playing it a lot. And so since she moved back last year, yeah, I've been doing the so far stuff, the brewery stuff, this and that here and there. And I've been enjoying it very, very happy that she's moved back. (laughing) - Thank you. - Yeah, you make a great musical pair. - Thank you. - So sadly we just have one more song from you. - Yes. - Do you want to say what that song is and tell us a little bit about it? - Yes, I've been saving the best for last. This song is called Bet of Roses. This is a song that I've most recently released for this upcoming album. And I wrote it in Scotland about a year ago and I got to work with a London bass producer, Lloyd Wayne, which was very amazing for my musical growth. And yeah, I think that's everything about it. It's a love song and when you're listening to it, just picture that you are in the Scottish countryside and at peace, I think is kind of my inspiration for that. - I think people could stand to imagine that all the time. - Okay. (laughing) Yeah. (laughing) - Well, thanks again so much for being here. This has been WBCA Presents on WBCA 102.9 FM. We have Adeline Umm joined by Charles Fadala in the studio performing one more song. Here we go. - You're listening to WBCA Presents. My name is Adeline Umm and this song is called Bet of Roses. (gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ Avalanche is on the back porch in Ann Arbor ♪ ♪ It's explosive but it's never felt this late ♪ ♪ I cut my hair off time to go a little darker ♪ ♪ It's unoriginal, you know that's what I'm like ♪ ♪ Bet of roses ♪ ♪ Bet you live in luxury ♪ ♪ Oxytocin, I'm in overdrive ♪ ♪ In your passenger seat ♪ ♪ Welcome out of here ♪ ♪ You're a self-made fantasy ♪ ♪ Serotonin, it's a blame ♪ ♪ When you're looking at me ♪ (gentle music) ♪ Got the noise and lights in August ♪ ♪ It was summer ♪ ♪ You convinced me that it must have been a sight ♪ ♪ Took the sleeper trip ♪ ♪ It was summer ♪ ♪ You convinced me that it must have been a sight ♪ ♪ Paper train to London to recover ♪ ♪ I'll believe it when you say that it's our time ♪ ♪ Bet of roses ♪ ♪ Bet you live in luxury ♪ ♪ Oxytocin, I'm in overdrive ♪ ♪ In your passenger seat ♪ ♪ Welcome out of here ♪ ♪ You're a self-made fantasy ♪ ♪ Serotonin, it's a blame ♪ ♪ When you're looking at me ♪ ♪ Bet of roses ♪ ♪ Bet you live in luxury ♪ ♪ Oxytocin, I'm in overdrive ♪ ♪ In your passenger seat ♪ ♪ Welcome out of here ♪ ♪ You're a self-made fantasy ♪ ♪ Serotonin, it's a blame ♪ ♪ When you're looking at me ♪ (piano music) ♪ Mmm ♪ ♪ Mmm ♪ (piano music) (gentle music) [BLANK_AUDIO]