Feritta grew up in a family where education and family duty came first but her passion has always been creating in one form or another.
While most of today’s stars have parents pushing them into the limelight it was quite the opposite for this shy, Indian girl growing up in Australia and trying to find her way between two very different cultures.
While in primary school Feritta was encouraged by her teachers to sing in the school’s choir programs and at 11 she was awarded a scholarship to study the clarinet, which she did for two years but gave it up when she began high school which was a tough place for a girl who didn’t quite fit in.
The isolation gave Feritta a lot of time to think and music became a natural outlet, allowing her to escape to a place where she could express her emotions.
Whenever she has some spare time she was scribbling lyrics and fantasizing about the life of a being a successful performing artist – so much that she stated in her year 12 graduation yearbook that her dream was “to be a successful recording artist.”
While completing a double degree, Feritta returned to music and began vocal training under the guidance of local music teacher Lucy D’Olimpio.
D’Olimpio was an instrumental force, pushing her to come out of her shell and explore her musical talent.
She then went on to perform in a few local bands but Feritta quickly discovered how fickle the music industry can be and after a few false starts and pressure to quit, Feritta began working with UK writers Dean Hopkins and Brian Highet.
Together, their tracks “Be What U Wanna Be” was a song finalist in a national competition and their other track “Boyfriend” went to straight to #1 on the Australian mp3.com.au music charts.
Soon after this Feritta was presented the opportunity to not just sing but to write and produce alongside Hopkins and together, their first collaboration, “Don’t Tell Me That You’re Sorry” jumped to #2 on the mp3.com.au charts and remained in the R&B top 20 for over a year!
Together, Hopkins and Feritta, along with talented engineer and producer James Hewgill, created her debut album, ‘A Journey Begins’. The album enjoyed immense success on the independent scene. Several of her tracks from the album jumped into the Top 10, with several number-one hits in the USA Broadjam.com Top Ten Charts.
Her most recent success has been with… Who’s Got Talent Italy finalist Stef Talia with their smash hit “Set Myself Free” that peaked at #4 on the prestigious European Independent Charts and she is currently in the process of writing several new tracks with exciting new producers from Australia, London, and the USA.
Feritta’s talents have been recognized consistently as Best Female Solo Artist Australia in the International Music Aid Awards twice, receiving two West Australian based WAMi nominations, The Recognition for Excellence Award for her musical contributions to the Zoroastrian community – these are just a few of her accolades.
She has opened for international artists and sold out shows alongside Bollywood superstars Sonu Niggam and triple platinum award-winning artist Pankaj Udhas, International producer and popular UK DJ and actor Bally Sagoo and also recorded with famous trance producer Ronski Speed.
Apart from her musical accomplishments, her entrepreneurial skills have seen her launch not one but two websites, Goddess by Feritta, an e-commerce site committed to holistic yet luxury home and beauty products and her award-winning food blog aptly titled Eat In Style by Feritta. Feritta is also committed to sharing her other passions for health, beauty and food on her YouTube Channels, Goddess by Feritta and Eat In Style by Feritta and of course her music too.
There seems to be no stopping for this multi-talented artist, foodie, blogger, businesswoman, and entrepreneur.
Tell us how you write a song from the start to finish.
It really depends; I think most artists would say true creativity is organic.
Sometimes I can be walking my dog and I will be hit with a great idea, other times I can hear a piece of music and it speaks to me and I want to write to it.
Other times I can be reading or watching something and an idea just resonates.
Writing music is like riding a wave, you just have to go with the flow.
A producer I used to work with used to tell me “Don’t force it, give it time”, I think that is great advice.
Elaborate on the gain and loss of being a musician.
It depends on your personal circumstances, for me I faced a lot of resistance to wanting to pursue music.
It can be very challenging and lonely in a way when people can’t relate to your dreams and many people will think you are wasting your life on an unrealistic dream but that is because they don’t understand how freeing the creative process can be and how much joy it can bring.
While illegal downloading has made it hard for artists to earn through digital sales, the internet itself has opened up avenues through YouTube and other streaming services; where people from all over the world now have access to anyone, anywhere and that is a really cool thing.
Tell us how you connect people with your music.
I just want to be authentic and be who I am and share a part of myself through music. In an age where there is so much fakery, being authentic is the best way to connect with others.
Tell us your greatest song to date.
All my songs are fabulous! My most recent track ‘Set Myself Free’ is probably the track I am most proud of to date. I wrote that song when I needed to tell myself a new story. I was going through some hard times and felt that I needed to remind myself of who I was and what I am capable of.
Set Myself Free is all about empowering yourself and owning your truth. It’s a really catchy track (produced by Who’s Got Talent Italy finalist Stef Talia) but it also is a message to trust yourself no matter what.
Tell us what you hate most about the music business.
I think it is sad that today’s music isn’t about music at all, it is all about creating this “usually fake” image of what one thinks an artist should be so staying true to your message and purpose can be hard because someone will say, this isn’t commercial enough or you don’t have the right look or whatever it might be – the music industry today is not necessarily about creating meaningful music, they are more interested in creating a “5 minute hit” and for some strange reason music seems to be more about shock value and less about music.
I think the integrity of the lyrics and the messages being played on the radio today could be a lot better. When you think back to the greatest artists of all time, Elvis Presley, The Bee Gees, Dean Martin, Michael Jackson, Nat King Cole or Tina Turner to name just a few – they all delivered great music without selling their musical integrity – it would be great to see the music industry come back to music with meaning and not just music to meet sales targets.
Discuss how you monitor your digital distribution and streaming.
I have my music set up through TuneCore, they take care of all that for me.
State the obstacles that a new artist can face as a starter.
Artists have to find a balance between learning from constructive feedback and being true to their musical integrity.
Today we live in an instant gratification kind of world and real music isn’t created like that, it has been cultivated and felt on an emotional level – all the truly greatest songs are.
Give yourself time and don’t believe the hype about overnight success, it is very rare.
Music is subjective so keep learning and growing from other talented artists but don’t give up because you get knocked down a few, heck, maybe a hundred or even a thousand times.
Yes, some people are truly lucky but for most, you have to remember they worked hard to get there so it is really about the journey, not the destination.
As soon as it becomes work, you have lost your way – so enjoy and don’t force the process.
Tell us how you would tutor a new artist in the music business.
I would tell them to immediately set up their social media accounts and again, this stems from today’s culture being one of instant gratification.
My manager is always telling me to create new content but I am so busy and have a million things to do every day but you know what, he is totally right. Also, be genuine and comfortable with who you are.
There are certain people in the industry who may try to make you feel insecure about your looks, or encourage you to do things against your moral values, belittle your talent but remember that their opinion of you isn’t your opinion of yourself, it is how they try to control you – don’t buy into it – you really need to be mentally strong to cope because not everyone out there is a nice person.
Explain how you record songs.
I do basic vocal demos on my Pro Tools system at home but I usually go to a professional studio if a track is going to be recorded for a release.
It’s also nice to go and record in a studio because I really value the input from the engineer, a good one will never just let you lay down crap vocals and charge you money, he will suggest a better way to sing a line, or tell you if you are pitchy, or sing a certain line a certain way and their knowledge and guidance can really help sculpt a great vocal.
Tell us your opinion on adding effects to vocals.
I think adding effects to vocals can be amazing when used properly…the overall sound of a track can be greatly enhanced with the right vocal effects.
Tell us if you would consider singing about politics or injustice rather than love stories.
I think the biggest injustice in the world today is that we do not take the time to nurture ourselves.
We live in a world where we care much more about what the outer world thinks of us which I think is such a sad and meaningless way to live. That is why I wrote Set Myself Free.
We all do it, to please our family, friends – even people we don’t even know.
As I have matured, I have realized that my value is not the result of what others think of me if I am striving to be my best.
Yes, of course, I will still write about love, it is the most beautiful emotion in the world but love can be expressed in many different ways – through hope, empowerment, and inner-strength.
I think if there was more encouraging music in the world, the world would be in a much better state.
Discuss how you distribute your music
Tunecore is my main channel for music distribution and of course, YouTube is also a great vehicle for getting music out to your audience!
Tell us more about your hit single.
For me, ‘Set Myself Free’ was a form of therapy and healing. I grew up with a lot of negative energy and negative self-talk which I carried into my adulthood and I became very sick and was diagnosed with a very serious condition.
At first, I thought “why me” but then I began reading a lot about the mind-body connection and I realized I had become the result of my own negative feelings and that the only person who was holding my happiness and healing back was me.
So my lyrics might be taken literally but are actually metaphorical, like in the chorus when I sing “I’ll put on my crown, before me you’ll bow” – the “crown” is all about taking charge, being a leader, and creating a new ideal of oneself – owning who you are while “before me you’ll bow” is about surrendering your fears and realizing that once you let go of your fears nothing can stop you.
Music has an incredible power to put you into a good or bad emotional space very quickly so I want to create music that makes people feel and live their best life because I truly understand how important it is.
While in primary school Feritta was encouraged by her teachers to sing in the school’s choir programs and at 11 she was awarded a scholarship to study the clarinet, which she did for two years but gave it up when she began high school which was a tough place for a girl who didn’t quite fit in.