The musical journey of Milky Day, a rising singer-songwriter and producer from New Zealand, has taken him from classical piano lessons as a child to crafting his music in a recording studio. With influences spanning various genres, Milky Day’s music exceeds all expectations with its ethereal melodies and heart-warming lyrics. Recently, we had the chance to interview the singer, and we spoke about the inspiration behind his music as well as the story behind his stage name. We also discussed the impact that his upbringing in New Zealand and his education in the US had on his musical style and approach.

From chatting about his latest collaboration with Filipino singer Denise Julia to sharing insights into the creative process behind his newest single, Let Me, Milky Day’s artistic vision, personal breakthroughs, and exciting plans for the future will, without a doubt, allow him to climb the ladder of success on his own terms.

There are countless artists out there who have their own story to tell about why they were drawn to the profession of a singer. What initially attracted you to music and becoming an artist? And why did you choose to call yourself Milky Day?

Milky Day: I was involved with a lot of music growing up – I received lessons in classical piano since I was eight, and I took part in various music clubs during middle and high school. When I started college, I began exploring music production and songwriting, and I fell in love with the process. At the time, I just did it for fun and didn’t expect to pursue music as a career. It wasn’t until a couple years down the line, when my music started gaining a lot of traction, that I realised that becoming an artist full-time could be a possibility. Then last year, I stopped working my day job and set my mind on focusing all of my time and energy on music.

The name “Milky Day” is something I came up with alongside my two friends in college. We used to make music together and wanted to come up with a name for our group. We thought “Milky Day” sounded chill and had a ring to it. Eventually, we drifted apart a bit and stopped making music together, but with their permission, I kept the name and stuck with it until now.

You have just released a new single, Let Me, a collaboration with Denise Julia, a Filipino singer. Can you tell us more about the release and how the collaboration between you and Denise came about? And can you share some insights into the creative process behind Let Me?

MD: I wanted to make a dreamy track with emotional depth. As I was producing and writing the song, I was reminiscing about the days when I lived in LA and would go on night drives. Halfway through the writing process, I thought it would be nice to have a female vocalist feature in it to tell the story from another perspective. So, my management got in touch with Denise Julia, who we thought would be a great fit for the song due to her soothing vocals. I explained the concept/vibe to her, and she sent over a demo, which I immediately loved. We then sang the final chorus together, and surprisingly, our voices really ended up complementing each other.

What inspired you to create a song that captures the essence of intimate summer nights and share it with your audience?

MD: So, in LA, I would often go on summer night drives and adventures with my friends and loved ones at the time. We would look for a new park or lookout spot to explore each time, and we’d sit there gazing at the stars, the moon, and the lights. It was a really serene and lovely feeling, so I wanted to capture that moment in the form of a song and share it with my fans.

How would you describe the overall mood and feel of Let Me to someone who hasn’t heard it yet?

MD: In a nutshell, Let Me is a dreamy love song! I produced and wrote the song intending it to sound really dreamy (for example, adding echoing adlibs in my verse, using lots of reverb and delay to create an atmospheric space, and selecting ambient sounds and textures). It’s also definitely a song that suits the night-time, perhaps while you’re going for a drive or stargazing.

What aspects of your individual styles and backgrounds did you and Denise Julia bring to this collaboration?

MD: Although we both have a background in R&B, I was actually a bit nervous at first about inviting Denise to collaborate on this track because I knew that a lot of her previous releases were more about heartbreak rather than love, and her writing and singing style was a bit different from mine – Denise has more of a contemporary R&B style than I do. However, she captured the essence of the song really well in her verse. Because we come from different backgrounds (Denise being from the Philippines and me being from New Zealand), I wonder if the kind of music we grew up listening to was a bit different, or if there are cultural elements that influenced how we wrote this song. Overall, the collaborative process was pretty smooth, and I think we sound great together.

The collaboration spanned across multiple countries. How did this international aspect influence the project’s creative direction?

MD: Yes, that’s right! I first started producing the song in Australia, had Denise write her verse in the Philippines, mixed and mastered the track in NYC, and filmed the M/V in Seoul. I think the main reason the track spanned across these different countries was because I had been travelling around a lot these past few months, so we were able to make use of the best resources available in the various locations I was at.

There are a couple of ways that the international aspect influenced the creative direction. It was my first time getting my music mixed at the Platinum Sound Studio, and I had the opportunity to give in-person feedback in New York, so I was able to get the track to sound exactly how I wanted. Also, it was my first time filming my own music video with a film camera, so I made sure to brainstorm the video concept carefully and plan out all of the best spots to shoot in Seoul to match the energy and vibe of the song. In the process, I explored a lot of really cool areas in Seoul and learned what does and doesn’t work well on camera. 

Could you share some details about the involvement of Grammy-winning engineers Serge Tsai and Alex Psaroudakis in the mixing and mastering process?

MD: I happened to be in New York working on a project with some friends, so we decided to work with the renowned Platinum Sound Studios for my next few songs. It was extremely helpful to go into the studio to give live feedback on the mixes. I went into the studio maybe four or five times while I was there, staying for multiple hours at a time. Serge has an excellent ear for detail and has the intuition of an expert, and he was very patient and understanding during our revisions. I, unfortunately, did not get to master the track in person with Alex as I had left the country by then, but Alex was also amazing to work with – he was very professional and efficient with his revisions.

What significance does the visualiser filmed in Seoul hold in complementing the song’s message and atmosphere?

MD: As the track is a love song meant for the night-time, the music video concept we decided on was ‘date night’. A 1960s Canon 310XL film camera was used to give it an authentic film quality. I thought it would add a layer of nostalgia that matches the dreamy style of the song. The video was also shot fully in a POV-style to make it feel more intimate and personal to watch. We tried to capture a lot of glowing colours and cool textures to complement the atmospheric soundscape of the song, and we spent a lot of time shooting near the Han River as it’s a really beautiful scenic spot that reminds me of my night-time adventures in LA.

How does Let Me align with the sound that your fans are familiar with, and what do you believe will resonate with them the most?

MD: As I mentioned earlier, I made this track sound really dreamy, which I think is the “classic” Milky sound. Some other elements of the song that are very much “Milky” are the lofi-sounding drums, use of deep 808’s, and distant adlibs. I think that listeners might resonate most with the night-time imagery in the lyrics and the way the song drops into the chorus.

What do you hope listeners will take away from Let Me in terms of emotions and connections to their own personal experiences?

MD: When life gets you down sometimes, it’s easy to forget that warm, fuzzy feeling called love. I think that there could be more love in this world if people were kinder to each other instead of being uptight or on-edge all the time. I wanted the song to help assuage any worries or stresses that the listener may be experiencing and to remind them what it feels like to be in love.

How has your upbringing in New Zealand and education in the US shaped your musical style and approach as an artist?

MD: New Zealand has a very laid-back, relaxed culture compared to places like the US. I think that might be where I got the “chill” style and quality of my music. However, when I moved to the US, I found that there was more of a hustle/grind culture, which encouraged me to put my head down and work really hard on my artistry. The US is where I met a lot of the talented creatives who I still work with to this day. I also studied music and took jazz piano/voice lessons in the US while attending college, which helped tighten up my understanding of music and train my ears for music production and songwriting.

As a singer-songwriter who is also a producer, how does your background in production influence your approach to writing and performing your own songs?

MD: I feel very lucky to be able to both produce and write my own songs. It gives me more creative freedom, allowing me to craft songs with more flexibility and execute my vision with more accuracy. I usually begin with the production before the songwriting process, but there are times when I start writing before finishing the production. This often gives birth to new ideas or possible directions that the song could go in, based on what the melody or lyrics suggest.

With the success of your previous tracks like You’ll Be Alright and Take it Slow, how do you see Let Me contributing to your growing reputation and musical journey?

MD: My fans and listeners seem to resonate a lot with my love songs, so I see Let Me contributing to the reputation I have as an artist who often explores ideas of love and heartbreak. In fact, You’ll Be Alright and Take it Slow are also love songs, but in slightly different ways. You’ll Be Alright is about reassuring a loved one during tough times (which I wrote during Covid), whereas Take it Slow is more about love-making and passion. Let Me takes yet another angle, as it touches more on fuzzy honeymoon feelings and is more downtempo R&B than the other two songs.

As a songwriter, you must constantly write songs, but not necessarily all of them end up being recorded or released. How do you decide which song to record and release?

MD: That’s always the dilemma [laughs]. Approximately every ten songs I write, I end up actually liking only one or two of them. I’ve found that some of my best-performing songs are made within a day or two. My theory is that when I’m going through something significant in life or feeling an emotion very strongly, I channel that energy into a song as a source of inspiration. I make sure to grind on a song when I’m really feeling it, or else that inspiration can disappear at any time. Consequently, perhaps my listeners can feel that raw energy that I channelled when they hear the song, which is why it ends up performing so well. It’s all very interesting to think about.

How would you describe your development as an artist in terms of interests and challenges, searching for a personal voice, as well as breakthroughs?

MD: These past few years have been a constant search for my sound. I’m always taking inspiration from different sources – whether that be a song, an experience, or a memory – and experimenting with different genres in my production. I’ve even gone through periods of creative drought when I would question whether I really had what it took to be an artist.

The biggest challenge was a bit after Covid-19 happened, maybe around 2020, when I didn’t release music for a year because I had really bad writer’s block. That was a really tough time, because even though I wanted to keep my fans happy and keep releasing music, I just couldn’t make any good music. It didn’t help that we were stuck at home due to the pandemic and that I was trying to balance my day job with my music, and as a result, I found myself struggling with some mental health issues. I was eventually able to break out of this when I started a new chapter in my life to pursue music full-time, travel more, and move to a new country. It’s been really great since then, and in hindsight, it helped with character development, and I don’t think I would have taken that leap of faith to pursue music if I hadn’t been put in an adverse situation like that.

What can your fans expect from you in 2023?

MD: I’m going to be releasing a lot more music consistently over the next few months, including my next EP! In addition, I plan on performing a lot more in different countries. I’m also trying to be more active on social media so I can engage with my fans more, and have some music videos, merch, and other things on the way. I hope my listeners are just as excited as I am about the rest of the year.

Written and interviewed by Maggie Gogler

_{View of the Arts is a British online publication that chiefly deals with films, music, and art, with an emphasis on the Asian entertainment industry. We are hoping our audience will grow with us as we begin to explore new platforms such as K-pop / K-music, and Asian music in general, and continue to dive into the talented and ever-growing scene of film, music, and arts, worldwide.}