Music is her life

ACCORDING to her mum, Lunadira was already singing That's The Way It Is by Celine Dion before she could even speak English properly.
Lunadira herself said: “Maybe she’s just glamourising the past, but I’d like to think it’s true.”
Regardless, the talented lass has gone from singing effortless, stripped down cover songs, into becoming a trailblazing artiste in the local music scene, all in the space of two years.
“Not to be cliché, but music is life, music is everything, and it’s what I need in every aspect of my life,” she expressed.
“Music is the soundtrack of my life.”
Following the trajectory of her debut single, Forever’s Not Our Thing, which has garnered over 280,000 streams on Spotify to date, the 24-year-old has released another soft and melancholic track to tug our heartstrings, Stuck With You.
Rumour has it to be a slow-burning lover’s anthem that everyone needs in their life.
How did you find your sound?
I don’t want to say I’ve found my sound, it’s more of [how] I present myself as an artiste, and who I am currently. I really believe in the evolution of music, so I’m not making music for the sake of it.
It’s not just the aspect of sound, it’s also asking myself how am I going to implement music in my life. Whenever I do push out music, it’s a certain aspect of me that I’m confident about, it’s a representation of how I felt at a certain time.
I would like to think that my personality is not just one straight line. People always say Geminis are two-faced, but I can’t agree with that. I’m more than two-faced; because if I were to say I belong in R’n’B or Pop, there are lots of people who are way better than I am.
I guess I’m at the middle ground between both genres.
What is the story behind your latest single Stuck With You?
That’s the only song I’ve written that is not based on my personal experience. It stems from the relationship with my best friend. There was a time when she was seeing someone, and every night she was complaining to me about the guy.
So I channelled that frustration through the song. Thank God she liked it when I told her about it, but I don't know about the guy though.
I don’t want to say that the song is strictly about the guy. It’s about people who are in that similar situation ... A few of my friends [were] all in what I like to call ‘situation-ships’.
There was an influx of that at one point, so I asked myself: ‘Why don’t I write a song about it since it’s happening all around me’.
As you are writing a song, how do you know when it is finished?
I don’t. That’s why I’m so thankful that I have my manager Jin, Airliftz, and people from my record label to help. Because if you listen to a song so much and you think it’s ready, then when someone else listens to it and give you a second opinion, you’ll ask yourself: ‘Why haven’t [I] thought of that?’.
It’s a very tedious process, at the end of the day I feel that maybe the song might not be finished, but the only way to find out if it’s good or not is to release it.
What are your thoughts on the current music scene in Malaysia?
It’s improving tremendously. Around the time when Alextbh was popping everywhere, a lot of people started paying attention to the local artistes. I remember [saying] that [this] year is going to be a good year for Malaysia music, and indeed, it is going really well.
Do you think it’s hard to get recognised when the music industry is rather saturated right now?
It’s true. There are so many people doing the same thing, I’m not saying that I’m different, because I’m [one] of those people [trying] to make it.
It’s not an unknown fact that social currency is something important to get recognised. [It’s] a struggle [even] for someone my age, and if you’re willing to push yourself and push the boundaries, you have to really start caring about social media; look at what is trending, study it and just keep doing it.
If [you’re] at a certain point where you’ve done everything, but you feel like you’re still not getting recognised then maybe there is something wrong.
What are some lessons you’ve learned throughout this journey?
Believing in yourself, which is something I’m struggling with.
Know what you really want, because if you [don’t], no one is going to believe your image and the message you’re putting out.
I’ve also learned to self-analyse a lot, in order to be the person I want to be.
Honestly, just carry your own weight and choose to be with people you can trust to create a positive, or at least a conducive environment around you. It’s essential to being the best person you can be.