Interview with Yajna | CEO/Artist/Founder of Rising Phoenix

Love Music: Hello Yajna, can you tell our audience a little bit about yourself? 

Hi everyone, I’d love to tell you some about myself! I’m a Swedish singer, songwriter, producer, entrepreneur, businesswoman and CEO of Rising Phoenix Music Group and Rising Phoenix Entertainment.

I’m a dedicated and loving mother of two, a passionate musician, snowboarder, horseback rider and a lover of action sports. I’m also a Jewelry designer and will soon launch my own Jewelry collection with Giantto Group in Los Angeles. Currently, I’m planning the campaign for the launch of my Jewelry and music releases.

Entrepreneurship sparks my desire because new ideas constantly come to me. I have a lot of energy, I am so thankful!

My philanthropy work allows me to give back, and do work that deeply matters to me. I founded a non-profit organization called, "Women World Wide" to help women develop leadership, business ideas, and collaborate with other entrepreneurs. I want to give women the space to do what they love, and integrate that with a healthy lifestyle that works for them and their families. I'm also one of the founders of the non profit organisation "STOP GBV", where we are artists working to prevent and stop gender based violence. We are a strong and dedicated team, and right now we are focusing a lot on our work in Africa.

My goal is to inspire others through my own experience, my struggles, and my mistakes so that others can feel empowered and learn from my story.

I’m a small-town girl living in the Swedish Mountains in Sweden’s most popular Ski Resort Sälen, Dalarna. I love the feeling of community and being around others, making conversation and enjoying each other. I love to cook and throw parties with big dinners for family and friends.

Here on Earth, I do my best to take care of our planet, animals and develop my awareness. I’m a proud vegan and I keep up with my health. I do pilates and a lot of mindful exercise and I love just being out in Mother Nature to fill up my energies and boost my body with fresh air and be close to nature.

Music has always been a source of comfort and joy in my life, I grew up in a family of musicians, and my mother was a composer. I have a big family, five siblings, who I adore and admire! I’m a mindful person with an open heart so I live my life by thinking that you can do, and have whatever you truly desire, and focus on. Think about it, believe it, receive it! Life is beautiful and a blessing!

Love Music: How did you come up with the idea of the Rising Phoenix project?

I wanted to share my own true story to the world. And I see myself as a Rising Phoenix. I have been through a lot, I am a fighter and through my Rising Phoenix project I have found myself and my passion for music. And I feel that so many out there can relate to my story, and by my work with the Rising Phoenix project, I can express myself through my work and my music, and inspire others to follow their hearts and dreams. I have built my whole business on the story of the Phoenix and how I have turned my pain into my passion, and now sending out a message of self love, joy and empowerment.

I released the trilogy of the Rising Phoenix as my first music project in English.

Love Music: Where did you find so much strength for creating music full of self-love and empowerment?

After my divorce in 2016, I got really sick and fell into a deep depression. It was a very dark time. What saved me was the love for my children, music, and God. Music started coming to me during the darkest moments in life. Through music and the love for my children, I could see a light in the tunnel and that made me fight my way back to life. By the time I got better and was healing, music was my way to recover and accept myself for who I am: nothing more, nothing less. I remember thinking about people without self-love, I want to be there for all of them to inspire them, and give back all the energy that I got from healing myself.

My strength comes from surviving through such darkness and coming out of it stronger than ever with so much energy and power. I feel that it’s my mission to share this with the world, as a living proof of how much we can accomplish with the right mindset, love and the power of life.

Love Music: Describe your sound.

I call my sound atmospheric, cinematic soul/pop, R&B. I want my music to give the listener inner visuals and take them to new dimensions. My sound is very airy and I feel like I found my own tone, my unique sound as if I’m standing on a mountain when I’m singing!

Love Music: What’s your inspiration?

I get inspiration from my own experiences. I write about things that I’ve been through, about what’s going on in the world and about things that people can relate to. I’m always true to myself when I write my music, thinking, this is me, this is what I want to say in this song, and then I just go with it, all in or nothing at all.

I get inspired when I think about the power of music and the impact it has on people’s lives. I want to make a change and I want to speak for the ones that can’t get their voices heard and I want to stand strong for the ones that aren’t that strong. That keeps me inspired and motivated.

Love Music: What’s the story behind your latest single “Last Heartbeat”?

I wanted to give my audience a song with the message of true unconditional love. I know so many people out there have felt love and been in love, it is so powerful. We envoke love because it feels good to love and be loved. Love makes us stronger and vulnerable at the same time and makes us do all kinds of wacky things!

Love is universal, and we all crave it even though it can hurt us. After going through the pain of getting divorced from a long marriage, I had thoughts of never being able to feel love or fall in love again. It was difficult but slowly, love came back into my life, stronger and more powerful than ever. I allowed myself to feel love, even if it might be scary or uncertain.

When we embody true unconditional love, we are willing to sacrifice everything for the ones we love and care for. This song is very personal to me and my experience. I dedicated it to my loved ones, family, friends and of course to my fans and everyone listening!

Love Music: The track is more electro driven than your previous releases, how did you decide to switch your music approach?

Short answer, I LOVE TO DANCE! Dancing and moving to a fun beat brings people together and creates so much energy. I decided to bring that feeling into my music. I want my lyrics and harmonies to bring people out on the dance floor. My music makes you feel happy and swipe you off to a world of your own.

I’ve attended many music festivals through the years, and I love to see music capture a dancing crowd, that is massive! I want to bring my music into that scene, it resonates with me. I decided to bring more electronic sound to take my music beyond the living room or headphones. Standing still is not an option, dance your ass off!

Love Music: “Last Heartbeat” has been remixed by Bennu and Theiproducer, why did you decide to collaborate with these two producers?

I have worked with Theiproducer for a long time now, he is an amazing beatmaker, and producer. We are dynamic which makes for a great team, he was actually the first one to share my vision for The Rising Phoenix project. Since we’ve worked so closely together, I wanted him to be a part of my EDM project. He creates such catchy rhythms and beats, we found my atmospheric and cinematic pop/soul sound while working together. When you collectively create with someone who shares your vision, there’s an explosion of creativity!

Bennu and I met through our mutual friends in Los Angeles. After hearing some of his music and beats, I was completely convinced. I love how he experiments with different sounds and rhythm, it resonated with me and my vision. His creativity and the upbeat sound was something I wanted to bring to the track. I am absolutely blown away by both remixes. I feel so much gratitude for Bennu’s and Theiproducer’s help and insights!

Love Music: How do you feel in the EDM genre? How is it different from pop you have been representing so far?

I feel amazing standing in the EDM genre, I love the energetic vibe! I still have a similar audience with a lot of pop/soul/R&B fans who love hitting the dance floor. I am confident EDM lovers will fall in love with my music as well.

In my experience, the big difference with the EDM scene is that it’s like a movement where people gather around music in a spiritual way. The audience listens to more underground acts, which creates the vibe of being one with the music. It’s like a strong movement or feeling of experimental sound that actually benefits you. Being unique and authentic attracts fans and connections on another music level. The EDM audience seems very active on social media and they are dedicated to their music. That’s probably why it is growing quickly. If you make a quality beat or track, your music can spread amazingly fast!

Love Music: Are you planning any new collaborations?

I actually am! I have some amazing new releases that I am about to drop soon with great collaborations, and I am waiting for the right time to publish them. I have benefitted so much from collaborations, and I see myself as unlimited in music! I am building a lot for my music, and there is so much I want to do! I believe and see my career as completely limitless, it’s an amazing feeling!

I have some dream collaborations that I am creating, and excited to see come in my reality! I would really love to work with artists like Daft Punk, Martin Garrix, Kygo, Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Rihanna, Billie Eilish, Ed Sheeran, Travis Scott or Khalid in the future!

Love Music: Are you going to experiment with your sound or stay in the fields of EDM and pop?

I will probably circle back to EDM/pop/soul with new music, but I also enjoy experimenting with other genres and sounds. One of my dream goals is to perform at big arenas such as Madison Square Garden NYC, The 02 Arena London, and The Forum Inglewood. But everyone knows that in the times we are in right now, nobody knows what the future is gonna look like! I pray that the entertainment industry in one way or another will recover.

At the same time, I want my music to sound like me, and my fans to feel that they can follow and grow with me. I will always stay true to myself and my sound, but I am open to mixing it up with different genres and styles and artists.

Love Music: When can we expect another release?

I’m working on a new campaign for my next releases right now, so new music is out soon! With my latest release “Last Heartbeat” I made some remixes, "Bennu Remix", “Bennu Trapbeat Remix,” and the "Iproducer Remix". I wanted my fans to find their own favorite remix. So the next one out will be "Femenomenal Special Edit" with a new sound from me. After that I have some more singles droppin and also some amazing music videos. I have been working hard with my new project, and I promise you that you will love my next releases! I am releasing my album of The Rising Phoenix soon as well. I have a lot of unreleased music that I am excited to share! I don’t have the exact dates yet, but stay tuned and follow me on my social media and music platforms for more updates!

I am looking forward to expanding my business in new areas such as books, fashion and beauty care. My vision is to let the Rising Phoenix family grow and inspire others to follow their dreams and hearts. Welcome to the movement of the Rising Phoenix! Spread the love, joy, and empowerment!

Much love and blessings to all of you,

Yajna

Follow Yajna on Instagram, Spotify, YouTube and Facebook

Instagram

www.instagram.com/yajnamusic

Spotify

spotify.com/artist/6vRcQwJni6XQcoQFeYlPu6?si=1Q-7Zzk1RKegLShOFswF-g

YouTube

youtube.com/channel/UCDjn4ac4V9o4OMNv9kXfPVA?view_as=subscriber

Facebook

www.facebook.com/yajnamusic