Shani Weiss - Feel Alright
Love finds you when it feels like you need it the most. That's how many see it. Think of that moment of realisation that love is here and it's here to stay. Listening to Feel Alright by Shani Weiss feels just like that. The song is a vintage pop song with a jazzy vibe to it. The piece has a nostalgic vibe to it that is accompanied by an easy-going groove. Consider it a contemporary pop phrasing layered over chord voicings and rhythmic feels reminiscent of early jazz/swing ballads. It takes you back to the good old days, not just with the stylistic choices or the beats, but with the song's structure and the music video walls too. The Dizzle Dazzle Behind the Song What first sparked the inspiration for "Feel Alright"? I like writing uplifting songs when I'm having hardships in life. If I can happily hum my trouble, it sort of eases me out of the dark into the light with happiness, and I like that. Then once the song has a life of its own, it carries me. Feel Alright was sparked by a radio presenter who wanted me back on his show. At the time, I was hormonal, pregnant with my second child, had just moved to Melbourne from Israel as an adventure with a new real network and security, and to add on that, going into a pandemic. This radio presenter, David, really insisted I come back on his show. I had been on a few months before, and within the darkness, he saw me and made me Feel Alright again, so I wrote the song inspired by him and for anyone else who was struggling to sort of pay it forward. You've said the song emerged from "an emotional whirlwind... a world tilted off its axis." How did you translate such intense personal experiences into the tone and lyrics of the track? Great question, well, the first verse talks about being pregnant – "All these feelings I can't control are driving me a little bit crazy… I'm confused and sometimes lonely…" The second verse talks about my workplace, where I was having a lot ofissues, a lack of support, and an inner battle to try to move on and see the positive, but it kept bringing me down. The chorus reminds me that you only need one person to see you and help you feel alright again. The third verse is once I've had that boost of positivity, my outlook is shifting, "maybe I'll drop my philosophy and my animosity, pick up my guitar and let it all out," which is how I write, just let it out, and I can Feel Alright again. The song initially started off very happy, Jazzy in contradiction to my feelings to manifest positivity, which happened at the end! The Color Glam: Vision, Aesthetics & Creative Choices In the video, there's this intentional breaking of the fourth wall—it feels like you're speaking directly to us. What led you to make that creative choice? Because I am! I'm speaking to you, too. I'm here if you need. Listen, this world is crazy, and we have a severe shortage of kindness and empathy. That is my message, I am speaking to you, the readers, the viewers, and the followers. It's one step at a time, but if everyone would try to see each other a little more, let down their guard, hear a full story, be kind, this world would look much better than it does. So, from my little corner, that's what I'm trying to do. The visuals have such a rich, Victorian elegance. What drew you to that aesthetic, and how does it tie into the song's mood or story? The song started as a jazzy song, but I changed it to a lighter ukulele vintage pop arrangement, and I wanted that 1920s Great Gatsby Vibe. When recording the song in 2024, I envisioned a pub with everyone getting up and singing my music, so that's the vibe I went with, and The Local Taphouse in Balaclava, Melbourne, was just the fit. Then, for hair and makeup, pearl fringes had to follow. Hay and Bae: Life Stages & Personal Impact How has writing and performing this song affected you, especially considering your life stage at the time? You know something, it's funny life has come full circle with this song. When writing the song, I was dealing with a specific challenging personal issue, where I was being wronged and my surroundings did not see me to the point of even ignoring me; it was awful. Fast forward to the future, karma had it that alongside releasing this song, I would have the same kind of challenging personal issue. Still, this time, everyone around me has literally written and said they have my back, which is mind-blowing. This song has totally manifested itself and come full circle. A personal question: How has becoming a parent (or preparing to be one) shifted how you see your art and career? I wasn't so keen on motherhood. I thought if I became a mum I would have to give up on music, the thing I have been doing since I was 5, and you know what? My greatest musical achievements came after becoming a mum. Firstly, you use your time more efficiently and wisely as you have less. My kids are totally intertwined with my music, whether making silly reels with me, my son Tom telling everyone in his school to listen to my single, or having my boys in the video clip. After a lot of internal debate, and there was a lot, I am a mother before anything, and I will do anything for my boys, but we are all together in this journey, and part of their purpose is to be my roadies, so starting them young. The Long Road to Release Looking back, how long did the journey take from first writing the song to releasing it now? Well, I was pregnant with my second son, Luka, who will be five next week, so it took a while. The thing is, every song release is such a unique journey. This specific song is the journey of where I started off in a new country with no network or stability to teaching music full-time, gigging, having a band, hosting a radio show, raising two great boys, and continuously building my relationship with my partner of 18 years. And the best thing of all is that I am still creating and releasing music, for which I am grateful daily. The song has a soft, retro-pop vibe. What motivated that sonic direction? I wanted it to have a timeless feel, as it has a timeless message, and after creating the song and performing it a lot, that's simply the direction it took. Playful What-Ifs If "Feel Alright" were a fragrance, what would it smell like to you? It would be sweet and sexy with a kick. If you could have a one-song duet with any artist—living or gone—who would you pick and why? Oh, that's too hard, I love so many, but maybe Eddie Vedder. I think we can work great vocally, and I love him. I admire his career and who he is as a person. The song is a good fit for a movie like Midnight in Paris (2011). The retro-jazz feel blends well with the film's romanticized vintage Paris aesthetic.
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