Presented in partnership with Mississauga Music and Modern Mississauga Media.

In conversation with award-winning vocalist and songwriter, Mississauga’s Adina V. Making heartfelt music with her warm, sweet voice, Adina V is a rising star in the world of indie folk and rock. She divides her time amongst three artistic ventures: her solo project (Adina V), 4 piece indie-rock group (Heartrunner), and an acoustic duo project with partner Jack Gaughan (A Soft Place to Land).

Rob Aguiar - You first landed on my radar when I saw you perform at the 2023 Marty Awards. I am excited to chat with you and capture a glimpse into your heart as a singer songwriter!

Adina V - Thank you, I’m honoured to be here!

RA - Let's jump right in. It must be hard to channel vulnerabilities and express complex emotions in your lyrics. Do you find yourself revisiting those emotions when performing your songs live?

AV - That’s a great question! When I perform some of my more vulnerable songs, I do find myself back in the emotional space I was in when I wrote them, but with some extra distance so it’s not as painful. I think to some extent it’s actually necessary to step into those feelings to communicate the song’s message authentically.

“I didn’t really get to feel my early 20s because of the pandemic, so when things opened back up I jumped straight into a quarter-life crisis, which thankfully I’ve overcome and am feeling happier and healthier than ever.”

RA - Can you share an original lyric, released or unreleased, that holds a particularly deep or personal meaning for you? What makes it special?

AV - I have an unreleased song called “The Beaten Path” which has the lyric,

“Growing older / and phasing in and out of touch / there’s so much I’ll never know”.

I think when you’re young you have a concrete idea of adulthood, and the more you grow into it you realize it’s all so fluid and obscure and we’re constantly fluctuating between feeling put together and completely lost at sea. I’ve done a fair bit of reckoning with aging out of what I used to think was my “prime” (which, I’ve concluded, doesn’t exist - our prime can always be right now as long as we are honouring our bodies, doing meaningful work, and surrounding ourselves with great people). Writing this song was a way for me to process those complicated feelings. I didn’t really get to feel my early 20s because of the pandemic, so when things opened back up I jumped straight into a quarter-life crisis, which thankfully I’ve overcome and am feeling happier and healthier than ever.

RA - From a mental health perspective, as creators and consumers, we all understand the downsides of social media. I’ve noticed you have a hot and cold relationship with social media. Do you find that social media enhances or challenges your artistic expression?

AV - Oh boy, haha. That’s a good way to describe it. It’s mostly gone cold these days. I primarily use Instagram, but I think I’ve almost, almost given up on social media as an actual artistic platform. Numerical metrics like likes and shares can’t even begin to contain the depth of meaning that good art can spark in someone, and I’ve made the mistake of letting that numbers game make me feel less-than. Or creating something empty just for the sake of making a post.

Having said that, TikTok resulted in my “Your Love” collaboration with Nashville-based YouTube channel The Acoustic Room a couple of years ago. Wonderful opportunity - the virality gods smiled down on me once but I’ve been fighting with the algorithm ever since, so until a label or manager forces me to be on there I’m happily off of that platform.

YouTube is actually where I started sharing my music journey at 14 - filming covers in my room which seemed to really resonate with people back then. Nowadays it doesn’t seem like YouTube is much of a music platform anymore, but it’s the only other platform I’d consider hopping on again.

“The biggest way my own writing has evolved over time is that nowadays I can easily expand on feelings or write stories that haven’t actually happened to me, versus when I was younger I was the epitome of “write what you know”.”

RA - You’re part of two other collectives, in what ways has your songwriting evolved over time, and how have you grown as an artist as a result of collaborating?

AV - I’m typically much more of a solo writer, holing up in my room and chiseling away at a song, which I’ll then bring to the rest of Heartrunner (if it’s a band song) to build up musically. That being said, the past few years I’ve had the pleasure of co-writing with some wonderful songwriters - Jack Gaughan, my partner and second half of A Soft Place to Land, as well as Julie Title and Zack Elliott, with whom I have a single called “Lighthouse” coming out later this summer/early fall. I was delightfully surprised by how well that writing session flowed, with us finishing the song in just one day; I think that speaks to our complementary writing styles and general comfort level with each other. I find collaborating a fantastic way to put ego aside and get new perspectives on other artists’ processes. The biggest way my own writing has evolved over time is that nowadays I can easily expand on feelings or write stories that haven’t actually happened to me, versus when I was younger I was the epitome of “write what you know”.

RA - I imagine that there must be a delicate balance between remaining authentic to your artistic vision and creating relatable content with a universal appeal. How much energy do you invest in finding that balance?

AV - I’ll be honest, I’m almost never thinking about universal appeal when I write - I do it to process my feelings and create the sounds I’m yearning to hear. I think there’s some faith that if I openly articulate my specific situation in a song, there must be other people who can share a similar feeling or experience.

RA - How do you handle moments of self-doubt or uncertainty in your songwriting process, and what helps you push through those challenges?

AV - I have a ton of imposter syndrome about so many things, but thankfully songwriting isn’t one of them. If anything, it might be the one thing I can confidently say I’m good at. Of course, it took years and years of writing plenty of pretty crappy songs to get to this point! I never approach songwriting from a scarcity mindset - if an idea isn’t working, I just let it go because I trust another will come. I’ve even gone through phases where I don’t write for months on end, one time it was a whole year! I never think, “Oh no, what if I never write again?” - I just try to stay tuned in to my feelings and the world around me, which will inevitably inspire me to song write.

RA - We just passed the midway point of the year. What can we expect from Adina V for the second half of 2024 and beyond?

AV- I mentioned that single with Julie Title and Zack Elliott, “Lighthouse” - we’re aiming to release that in late August/September of this year. It’s a gorgeous, yearning folk ballad with 3-part harmonies and all sorts of sparkly acoustic musical tidbits. Besides that, I’m currently in the early stages of recording my debut album. I’m so excited about this one - these songs have been sleeping under the floorboards for years now but in 2025 they’ll see the sun. A Soft Place to land will also have our debut single “When You Know You Know” releasing sometime this fall, and Heartrunner has an EP in the works alongside our late 2023 release, “Faltering”. All in all, plenty of original music is coming your way!

RA - Thanks Adina, for taking some time from your creative schedule to chat with me. I look forward to following your journey and I wish you continued success.

AV- Thank you so much Rob! Both for your support and for shining a spotlight on songwriters in such a beautiful and insightful way.

adinavmusic.com