Meet Maxine | Singer-Songwriter-Producer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Maxine and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maxine, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I pursued an artistic career because when I create music I feel completely in the moment and a rush of dopamine. My artistic journey began when I started classical piano lessons at age six. Now, in my journey I have an artistic career as a dance pop singer-songwriter-producer. I began writing songs when I was in first grade of elementary school. My first song was about moving houses; it was the first big change in my life and I turned to music to deal with the emotions I was consumed by. I remember sitting by my piano with a green journal writing lyrics and a melody. This was the beginning of using music to share my story and work through my feelings.
As I continued to write songs by myself, my second calling to music was when I took choir and a cappella classes at school. My teacher asked if anyone wanted to arrange a song: so I took on “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen and arranged this into 8 part vocal harmony. I spent hours at the piano teaching myself music notation software and singing all the parts. From this moment I knew that creating was my passion.

While I worked on arranging and writing songs, I found my love of performing from doing musical theater. For 15 years, and for the first year of my first college, I performed on stage telling other people’s stories. While performing this music gave me so much joy, I wasn’t telling my story. I knew I had to make a change so I started to write and produce more original songs and was then accepted into Berklee College of Music. I am now studying Songwriting and Music Production and Recording.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I released my first single in November 2021 called “No Limits.” This became my anthem to why I do music. The lyrics I wrote are about how people have discouraged me and how I always felt like I couldn’t get to where I want to be. I wrote this song to prove to them and myself that I can, will, and have pushed through hardships to keep moving forward. Since then I have released six more singles. Each of these songs tell part of my story. I want to share my most authentic self by writing about my experiences. Through this I hope to be relatable to my audience so that I can connect with them.

While I focus on writing, producing, and releasing music, I also perform with my band all around Boston venues and I have performed with them in Valencia, Spain. Some venues we have performed at are “The Jungle,” “Nash Bar & Stage,” “The Bebop,” “Hennessy’s” and in Spain we performed at “Un Lago de Conciertos” and the “Centro del Carmen de Cultura Contemporánea.” We perform mostly my original songs but also covers. Being up on stage is my my forte. It is when I feel most free and most myself. I feel that I can show who I am and do what I love most which is singing. Not only do I get the privilege to sing in front of people, but I get to do it with my friends: my band are the people who make me happiest, who make me laugh in the practice room and on stage, and they are the people I can create music with.

There are two most memorable performances that make me want to continue my artistic career. First, the show that made me realize that my music has an impact on people was when I sang at the Berklee orientation show for incoming students. I sang my original song “Plane Ticket” which is unreleased. This song has a lots of instruments but this time we played a stripped down acoustic version with just piano and vocals. While I was just having fun singing on stage I had no idea the effect that it was having on the young students. For the next month I was known as “plane ticket girl” and the amount of people who came up to me saying that the song moved them was overwhelming and exciting. A couple people stood out to me, one person had recorded the song and told me that they would listen to it while they were getting ready in the morning or walking to class. Another person said that my story had inspired them to write a song that night. And one person said that my song had helped them to talk to their long distance boyfriend to work through their problems. When I found out that my music could inspire, support, and be an uplifter to people, it inspires me even more to keep writing.

Secondly, when I performed in Spain it was my first concert in a country that speaks a different language; I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to connect with the Spanish community. However, as soon as I started singing I noticed everyone start to dance and smile. After the show, people from the Valencia community came up and complimented me and it made me realize how music is a universal language. Music affects everyone and the fact that my music positively affected multiple people in the audience overjoyed me. Additionally, some people came up to me singing the lyrics of my song that hadn’t even been released yet and that made my day because it means that I had an impact on them.

My artistic career today involves the continuation of writing songs for me and my audience to vibe with. I hope to continuing inspiring people and being a relatable source of songs for people to sing along to, cry to, scream to, and dance to. Next, I will release my EP full of songs that tells my story of this year and to continue performing and living my best life on stage.

You can follow me on my socials for my upcoming shows and releases!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If someone was visiting Boston, Massachusetts I would first take them to The Bebop. This is a restaurant and bar that always has musicians playing all styles of music. It will be be a gamble of what we get to listen to that day, whether it’s a pop band, an acoustic country set, or a jazz trio, but no matter what it will be an energizing experience with good food too. The next place I would take them is through the Boston Public Gardens and Boston Common. There are multiple people busking to watch and beautiful greenery to enjoy. On this walk we would continue towards the North End. There are the a multitude of restaurants to choose from all serving incredible Italian food. Then you can head towards the bars and clubs with bands and DJ’s playing all night. These bars have old Boston character next to cobble stone roads. I would also take them to the Charles River Esplanade where you can go for a long walk, bike ride, or sit and have a picnic. Lastly, I would of course show them the Berklee College of Music campus. I would show them my favorite place to write songs: the tiny practice rooms in the main building. Then I would show them the studios which I have had many late night sessions in recording vocals, guitars, and full band live versions of my songs.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to thank my family for supporting me in my musical endeavors!

Website: https://www.maxineedmonds.com

Instagram: @max_louise

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxine-edmonds-73000b221/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/heyyitsmaxine

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maxine.edmonds.79/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8sPsuaz0-j2QfaEOs6733Q