Inside ‘Coping’ with Gabby Neeley
Gabby Neeley ON SPOTIFY
Los Angeles, CA — Southern California based pop and R&B singer songwriter Gabby Neeley (@gabbyneeley) is ready to debut her latest single 'Coping' ahead of her upcoming and highly anticipated EP. She has been set on this journey since her youth at just 8 years old and is finally ready to make the name Gabby Neeley a household one in 2021. Gabby Neeley joins us today to speak to her experiences as a rising artist, overcoming adversity of the pandemic, and her creative process behind her debut single ‘Coping’ off her upcoming EP release streaming everywhere January 15th, 2021.
As a rising artist, Gabby Neeley is a creative you will want on your radar! Fueled with a passion for music growing up around a musically inclined family, Gabby started on piano and vocal lessons at just 8 years old. From there, she decided to tap into her passion for creative writing and began songwriting - it was all over from there. By 12 years of age, Gabby knew for a fact that singing, songwriting, and performing was how she wanted to spend the rest of her life. But she didnt stop there; after graduating early from high school, she was able to make performing live a full time career under the age of 21 - a true anomaly in the music industry. Gabby Neeley’s discography is essential her heart on a platter and that is apparent with her debut single ‘Coping’ releasing January 15th, 2021 on all major platforms.
To Gabby, ‘Coping’ means closure — by putting everything she had into these songs just like she everything into who the tracks are about, there is a sense of pride and appreciation for growth that shines through her words of these songs.
We asked Gabby Neeley what her favorite track of her own as well as that of another artist to get an idea of her personal music taste and how that drives her creative process. Her favorite track of her own is going to be the second single on the EP titled ‘Block U Out’ and her favorite co-write is definitely ‘Using you, Using me too’ by Laci Mercede. ‘Using you, Using me too’ is an R&B tune written about two years ago that was released in October of 2020. Drawing inspiration from honest writers, she resonates with artists like Kiana Lede and Ariana Grande as well as writing styles like H.E.R and Julia Michaels.
Looking into 2021, the adversity brought about by the global COVID-19 pandemic continues to hit performing artists and musical artists stronger than many other professions. Gabby Neeley is no excepting and proved her ability to overcome these immense challenges by adapting to her new environment, a quality that speaks to a strong-minded creative individual. Gabby shares…
“Pandemic anxiety and fearing for the safety of my loved ones had made me the most demotivated I have ever felt towards music in the past 6 years. I let myself take a step back and learn to be okay with not putting my all into my career 24/7. At first, it felt like a nice break, but around July a switch flipped in me and I just couldn’t sit around any longer. I have never felt more driven + motivated to reach my goals ever since. I started recording the EP in the end of August, choosing 4 of the 40 sum songs I had written since the start of the pandemic that I felt described the story of my life post-breakup in quarantine the best — and here we finally are! The most important thing I learned in 2020 is that everything happens for a reason.”
We asked Gabby what motivates her to wake up every morning as a creative on the brink of success. Whether you’re an artist making music, a salesman selling clothes, or a driver dropping off a delivery, there is an element of motivation that sparks us to take actions, make decisions, and live our life the way we choose. When asked what motivates Gabby Neeley to wake up and do what she does daily as an artist, songwriter, and creative she responded…
“It’s all very simple in the end. I love music more than anything. I started singing when I could speak because my family is full of musicians and I was lucky enough to have creativity highly encouraged growing up. My parents put me in piano lessons at eight and I fell in love. Songwriting followed once I went to my first songwriting camp at OC Hit Factory when I was twelve. Once the camp had come and gone, I can’t say I remember much details, but I do remember feeling so at home that it was never even a question after that. I just knew this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I still feel that little girl within me who simply just loved music every time i perform or write or play. I am motivated by the goals I have set for myself within my music career and love for telling stories. “
Simple moral of the story: do what you love and you will never work a day in your life. Be ready to do anything it takes and find that motivation through a connection to your passion.
Further, we asked Gabby what her biggest inspiration for this single and upcoming EP — the answer will break your heart then light a fire to achieve your goals. Gabby shares…
“Going into quarantine with my first real heartbreak made moving on feel impossible at the time. I had nothing to do but stare at my ceiling and overthink..well, literally everything. The relationship, the breakup, the unspoken-social-media-interactions..and go through the highs and lows of ‘getting over’ someone that changed my life. Funny how the feelings I felt like the worst months of my life led to creating the best songs I’ve ever made.”
Creative inspiration takes all forms. Gabby Neeley expresses her true emotions of pain, growth, and change throughout her single ‘Coping’ and her upcoming EP. Gabby encourages those who want to feel heard and empathized with to join her journey with these upcoming releases.
As a rising artist, Gabby had to find an authentic sound to herself as a creative. When asked how Gabby describes her style of music she shares…
“My music is a melting pot of Pop, R&B, and Singer-Songwriter. My individual songs vary a lot- you might click on one and hear merely a piano and vocal, then skip to the next track and find a fully produced 20-harmony layered track with a bass and kick that your neighbors can hear from down the block. Above all else, my songs are true to how I was feeling in the moment I wrote them. I create the production from scratch with Robbie Dean based on the chord progression I made for any given song, and try to keep the feeling of the lyrics throughout the music in the project.”
Looking ahead into 2021, it begs the question — who would be part of a dream collaboration for Gabby Neeley? The track would be an absolute hit featuring songwriting from Julia Michaels, a performance with Tori Kelly, and production from none other than Joji.
We continued to dig through Gabby’s discography and found insatiable pop bangers including ‘IG’ featuring mellow guitar and soothing lyrics, ‘What Are We Gonna Be’ starring a catchy and mind melting hook and groovy instrumental, and many more. Her discography is a trove of undiscovered pop and R&B hit tracks!
The music industry is full of hidden gems of information but also countless industry trade secrets. Our go-to advice for rising artists is to soak up every bit of information you can and proceed to find themselves going through unbelievable growth. The best advice Gabby has received is to “OWN YOUR MASTERS” as she puts it quite bluntly. She is spot on - trying to own as much of your masters for as long as possible is the overarching objective for a rising artist but that doesn’t mean there aren’t GOOD or even GREAT deals that sacrifice some if not most of a master. That is a discussion for a different day!
Thank you for reading and as always, be sure to follow Exclusive Audio and our incredible guest, Gabby Neeley on our socials below!
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