Tag: Zurich Openair

I approached Jessie through Instagram and she was very open to my interview request. She invited me to her show in the Kontiki bar in Zurich. She is a super nice woman who knows what she wants when it comes to music.
I thought I was there for just the interview but then I was able to stay throughout her show. Believe me you have to see it. It’s incredible! I didn’t know what I was in for because I missed her set at the Gurtenfestival. So when she started it blew me away. It is so asian and so special I cannot describe it. I stood next to an asian guy who danced to it and I’ve never seen an asian guy move like that. It was a brilliant experience.

Jessiquoi transforms into this energetic figure who produces unique songs with her loop pedal and her laptop and this special guitar with lights. It is the perfect club music and people there loved it.
Before her a little over an hour set we sat down for the interview you can read below:
 
You’ve played the Waldbühne at Gurtenfestival and you’re playing Zurich Openair on Wednesday, 23rd August. So what would be your favourite or most special venue you want to play in?
It’s my big dream to go on tour in Asia. There is a club, which I discovered when I was in Shanghai once so I think my favourite venue would be a shanghainese late night club.
Your music is super special. How did you come up with the idea to use a loop pedal and have some Asian influences as well?
The looping came to me through an artist that I follow. Her name is Kawehi. She is a completely DIY looping artist and she lives in Kansas, US. Se is completely unsigned and lives with her husband and dogs in a farmhouse and she completely built her career on posting looping videos on YouTube. A lot of the set up that I have today came from her. She’s really cool and she gives advice to people. She posted a photo of her set up and that’s how I figured out how I wanted to make my own set up.
The asian stuff comes from a friend in China when I first moved to Switzerland I was learning German and she introduced me to Chinese pop music. It’s totally kitschy and it’s close to K-pop (Korean Popular Music). For some reason I really liked it and we started singing chinese pop songs. Later, she invited me to China and I went there and was totally captivated by the sounds in Chinese pop music. They also use traditional instruments. That’s where the influence came from.
Do you speak Chinese?
I speak a little bit of Chinese but not as well as I’d like to. But I can do the basics.
Wow, that’s really good!
As you just said you basically moved halfway across the earth when you were 15. How did that happen?
I’m actually half Swiss. I grew up in Australia, my Mother is Austrialian and my father is Swiss from Bern. I grew up speaking English at home and my parents decided to move to Switzerland when I was 15 for financial reasons. My parents both got great jobs here and that was it. The funny thing is that they live back in Australia now and I’m still here. I didn’t like it at first but I didn’t start making music until I moved to Switzerland so lot’s of good things came out of it. 
You’ve toured quite a few festivals this summer but you haven’t released an album yet. Is that something you have on the agenda as the next step?
I am working on my album. The thing is that I’m unsigned – still – I have had a meeting with a couple of Bern based labels but I decided not to sign yet because I prefer to be with an international label. So I’m just going to keep working on my album and start sending it out. I’m looking to secure a release date for 2018. So there will definitely be another single by the end of this year. I always release my music on all the major platforms and also band camp.
I’ve heard of band camp before but never checked it out.
You’ve never heard of band camp? It’s really great! There are artists who put their music on band camp exclusively and build a following. I’ve heard of a guy who funded his kids’ entire college education by selling his music on band camp. Band camp is a lot fairer to the artists. The artists get most of the revenue so it’s a really good thing. I personally put my music on everything but there are artists who just put their music on band camp and they do quite well with it. So it’s definitely worth looking at.
Last Question. What needs to happen that you would say „Yup I made it with my music!“?
 Oh, that is a good question. Right now I can’t live from my music. I’m still working in bars etc. I don’t like the idea of being super super famous and not be able to sit in a restaurant just like that without being approached by people. That would be a horrible way to live. I would really love to have a steady following who are the exchange that I have with the public. That is like a growing and on-going exchange which also becomes a part of the music and then I would also like to pay my bills. That would be pretty much „made it“ for me.
That’s a good answer. Thank you very much for the interview.
 
Later she reveiled to me that she would also like to produce the soundtrack of a Zelda game since she is a huge fan of that game series.
I think she is a great artists with a bright future ahead of her and I wish her all the best and I hope one day she can say “Yup I made it”! 🙂
Have I made you curious about her? Then please check her out and click on the links below.
Web: jessiquoi.com
Instagram: @that_certain_jessiquoi
Facebook: @thatcertainjessiquoi
YouTube: www.youtube.com/Jessiquoi
Live:
20.08.2017 Les Digitales Festival, La Chaux-de-Fonds
23.08.2017 Zurich Openair
02.09.2017 Les Digitales Festival, Bern
18.11.2017 Queen Kong Club, Neuchâtel