Ajda Stina Turek
A dazzling jazz vocalist from Slovenia, Ajda Stina Turek graduated from the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. She swept many national voice competitions in her homeland and became the youngest finalist at the Riga Jazz Stage 2014 in Latvia.
She earned the coveted “The Outstanding Jazz Vocalist” award in 2017, beating 1200 singers at Berklee. She unveiled her debut EP “Sonder” with a smashing tour in Slovenia during her studies.
“The News”
... is a stirring song that laments the wars that still torment the world and the media’s abuse of the blameless souls who endure these conflicts. The song narrates the story of those who have been maimed and crushed by war, and how they have become disposable pieces in the media’s greed for profit, through poignant lyrics and chilling melodies.
Who is the human behind the artist, and how did you get into music?
The human behind the artist is Ajda Stina Turek, a simple and humble girl from Slovenia who adores her 16 years old cat Dimko, mountains, flowers, good movies, and funny people. I got into music through my grandfathers, who both loved to sing, and they were always teaching me traditional Slovenian songs. One of them also played the accordion, so I used to dance around him with my cousin while he would play, and we would all sing and laugh. I have such beautiful memories of my childhood. Later my parents also put me in a choir, and when I was 6, I started playing violin. These were my first encounters with music.
“The News” showcases impressive melodies and powerful lyrics. What is the story behind the song?
The story is quite sad. I wrote the melody and the lyrics for this song in 2017. When I was studying at Berklee College of Music in Boston, I met a girl from Syria. She had to leave her country because of war. It was so dangerous. She lost many of her friends and didn't see any future there for her. All she wanted was to have peace, sing and be happy, not worry about survival every day. She managed to come to Boston and enrol at Berklee, so when I talked to her about the situation in Syria, she would tell me sad stories and what I heard hurt me deeply.
Because of our conversations, I started reading and following the news about the war. As much as I wanted to help in the end, I couldn't do anything to stop it. What triggered me the most was seeing media posting photos of poor kids covered in blood, and I got a feeling that they were doing it to profit, not to help the people there. The situation in Syria wasn’t getting better any time soon. This song points to the media taking advantage of poor people hurt by war for profit.
“Sonder”, your first EP, was released in 2018. How would you describe your songwriting evolution from then to now?
When I wrote Sonder, I was very much stylistically into the jazz genre. That is what I was studying for a few years back at Conservatory in Slovenia and then at Berklee. The lyrics were mostly written to portray the stories that happen to other people because I met so many students in Boston and was surrounded by different cultures all the time.
“The News” was supposed to be released on that EP but arranged differently. In the end, I didn’t have enough finance and time to record it, so I left it. Between 2018 and 2022, I moved around the world, and I got to experience other music, a lot of Neo Soul in New York and pop music, also electronic. I got very interested in those genres, so I started writing songs because of the environment I lived in, differently.
The lyrics from the upcoming EP Trauma, of which “The News” is the second single, are more about personal things, about the traumas, that I wanted to overcome with the help of music. Stylistically is also different because the producer, Sebastian Izáciga, I was collaborating, uses a lot of electronic sounds in his productions. That was very new and fresh to me.
What’s the hardest part of being indie, in your opinion?
In my opinion, the hardest thing is getting the audience. I guess it also depends on which country you live in, but it’s hard to be seen and to persuade people to take time and listen to music that demands a little more attention/ effort to be understood than most of the commercial songs.
Is there any chance to see you live on stage somewhere?
There are many chances to see me live in Slovenia for now. But I am planning to organize performances in Europe too. If I see there are people interested in my music abroad.
What’s next for you?
My next step is to promote my newest EP Trauma on social media and try to pitch the songs to as many Spotify playlists as possible. I want to get my songs on the radio and get some more interviews about the EP to talk about the topic of mental health awareness, which is the main goal of this EP.
During the summer, I also want to start writing new music and record a new album in the Fall. After that, I really want to focus on getting more live gigs in Slovenia and Europe.
