Hanna Rua is a UK-based artist from Sweden. With her airy and pure vocals, she delivers bright and dreamy synth pop with a strong sense of nostalgia.
'Don't Cut Your Angels' is her first song released with the record label Aztec Records, that she signed with in 2021. Her debut album is coming in spring 2022.
1- Where did you grow up?
I was born in Östersund, a small town in the middle of Sweden, in 1992.
2- What is one of the first songs you remember liking as a kid?
It must have been a Disney song, probably ’A Whole New World’ from Aladdin. But also ’Mamma Mia’ by ABBA, is it okay to name two?
3- What influenced you to get into music?
It might sound cliché, but I think it was just engraved in my soul, my mum said I began to sing as soon as I had learned to tal, and I remember saying in pre-school I’m gonna be a singer when I grow up”. I must also acknowledge my dad, he is musical himself and has always encouraged the music interest in me. Then of course I’ve been inspired by all the great bands and artists I’ve liked through the years, especially one band - ABBA, still my favourite band today. And just the pure joy of creating something is a driving force in itself, and the singing - there’s nothing better.
4- At what age did you start playing/singing?
I really started to get into singing when I was about 9, then I wanted to record my singing and my dad helped me with that, with his home studio set up. Back then it was Disney, musicals and Christmas songs that was ”the thing”. I think I even did a Christmas album at that age, that I gave to my mum. This album with Aztec (which will come in spring next year) won’t be my first album after all, haha.
5- If you could go back in time, what advice would you give to yourself after finishing school?
Don’t be in a rush to ”make it”, you will have to live a little first. Get to know yourself better and figure out why you make music in the first place, and why you want to be an artist. What is it that you want to say, and what type of influence do you want to be?
6- What are some of your favorite songs at the moment?
’Angels’ - Amy Grant, ’Don’t Shut Me Down’ - ABBA, and ”Jungle” by Megan Lara Mae (who’s an amazing artist, also from Brighton).
7- Do you listen to your own music?
Well… I listened to ’Don’t Cut Your Angels’ plenty of times before it was released. You see, I had never done synthpop before and I was so excited for this new musical path and happy with what Sam and I had created, I genuinely love the song. But now when it has been released I don’t, and I don’t think I’ll be listening to my future releases much either. I spend so much time on the writing and recording process, I know my songs inside out, so I don’t feel like I ”need” to listen to them. And I don’t want get tired of them early on, then it wouldn’t be as much fun to perform them.
8- Which musician would you like to collaborate with next?
It would be so cool to record a song together with NINA, who’s also one of Aztec’s artists. I reckon a big and epic female synthpop-anthem would be just amazing.
9- What is one of your favorite memories so far in your music career?
I must say it was earlier this year when Sam and I was working on ’Don’t cut Your Angels’ and realized we were onto something great here. The song, the style of music, and our co-work, it all just made sense, so we decided to keep focusing on synthpop and then just go for it. We wrote a few more songs, recorded the demos and Sam sent them to Aztec Records, Now we’re both signed with them and working on a my debut album together.
10- What advice would you give to someone that is just starting to get into music?
Don’t rush or compare yourself to other artists, look within your soul and figure out what it is that you want to do, and why. Why do you want to make music? Remember also to have fun and enjoy the process, there’s so much joy in just playing music. I sometimes forget how happy singing makes me; I can feel sad or have an anxious feeling in my chest, but when I start singing, 8 out of 10 times, it will go away in just a few minutes. Music is meant to bring a piece of heaven to earth, to make us connect to something greater than ourselves, at least that’s what I believe…
Listen to her new single below and you can also purchase it on Bandcamp.
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