Singer Daya Talks Being An Independent Artist: 'I Don't Feel The Pressures From The Industry'

Daya takes over the November 2016 cover of NKD mag.

The “Sit Still Look Pretty” songstress opens up about her debut album, wanting to stay an independent artist, and more. Check it:

On her debut album: “We wrote the album over the past year and a half, and I was on the road at the same time. I was doing a bunch of shows on and off and then I would fly to L.A. when I had a free break and we didn’t have too much time to spend in the studio together, so we really buckled down when we did. And I’m really proud of the way that everything turned out.”

On being an independent artist: “It’s been amazing, actually, because I’m independent and I’m working with such a small team; which was extremely hard and challenging at first because a lot of the radio slots go to major labels first, so it’s kind of hard as an independent artist to get your foothold in the industry. But it’s nice because I don’t have people telling me who to be or how to act and look. I have that creative control because I’m independent. So I don’t necessarily feel the pressures from the industry. I like having that control and freedom, because now I’ve kind of established myself as an artist and more people are starting to hear about me. I feel like we’ve done a pretty good job with the start up, and I feel like that’s the hardest part of being independent is just getting your name out there and establishing a name for yourself. So I feel that now that we’ve accomplished that I want to try and stay independent. I’m not against major labels, but I think right now my situation is great.”

On her upcoming tour: “I am so excited! Honestly, that’s what I’ve been waiting for since the release of ‘Hide Away’, just because I love performing and seeing my fans out there singing along, and I can’t wait to play a lot of songs from the album live for the first time.”