Jackie Castro is a musician who originally debuted in 2016, with her then band “Castro,” comprised of her two brothers. Their EP “Diamond Dreams” debuting at #1 on the Singer/Songwriter charts on iTunes. This earned them over 9 million streams on Spotify, and a chance to appear on “The Wendy Williams Show,” chances to tour with Andy Grammer and Gavin DeGraw. In 2018, Jackie decided it was time to follow her own path. I got the chance to speak with Jackie about forging a new path and finding a new voice with her new song “Romanticize.”
What importance do the costumes in the “Romanticize” music video have?
We really wanted the costumes to portray this Old Hollywood look. From the red carpet glamorous look I do in my singing shots, to the classic head scarf and vintage glasses while riding in the car, we really wanted the viewer to feel like we were re-creating a movie from that time period. We also took inspiration from movies like Singing In The Rain and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. We basically replicated the exact rain scene from Breakfast at Tiffany’s and wanted to get the look as close as possible with the costumes!
Who inspired “Romanticize?”
The idea for Romanticize specifically started from a guy I had feelings for in college. I sing, “I think of you sometimes. Like in the grocery line when the song we used to like starts playing.” That’s actually where the song started, while I was checking out at the grocery store and heard a song that reminded me of him. But as I wrote the song I realized it really describes more of a pattern I’ve had in my life throughout all of my relationships. I tend to only see the good in things and paint memories better than they actually were when I care about someone. But this was a song to remind myself that I’m only romanticizing.
Image courtesy of Jackie Castro’s team at Black Box.
What lead you to leave “Castro?”
It was a number of things. I think the main thing was that we were at such different points in our lives that we really weren’t compatible to function as a band. My oldest brother is in his 30’s and has a family he needed to be home with, while I was 22 at the very beginning of my career ready to work hard to make my dreams happen. I wasn’t fully capable of doing that within the band and it put a lot of strain on us as a family. Us going our separate ways was the best thing that could have happened. I’ve discovered my sound and music that is so meaningful to me, and they get to pursue music at their own pace while being home with their family.
When did you know you wanted to be a singer?
For as long as I can remember. There wasn’t a moment where it was like “oh, this is something I wanna do,” I was just always doing it! My mom has home videos of me writing songs in my play room alone at 3 years old. Singing was like breathing to me, it always came naturally and there was never a question of if it was what I wanted to do with my life.
Image courtesy of Jackie Castro’s team at Black Box.
What style of music were you trying to make with “Romanticize?”
With all of my new music I honestly haven’t been trying to pursue a “style” – for me the writing process has been all about telling my stories. I work with amazing producers who take my story and help me put the music behind it and helps tell the story even better. My friend Chase Martinez produced this one with me, and Jeff Carl co-wrote it with us.
The music video of “Romanticize” is very pretty, did you have making a video in mind when you made the song?
Thank you! And absolutely, I’ve been dreaming of this video since we were in the session writing it. It’s such a visual song. I’m so excited we landed on the idea of making it a mini movie to go perfectly with the lyrics “if this were a movie…”
What inspired the video in aesthetic and style?
Old Hollywood, 1950’s time period, and all things vintage and glamour!
Image courtesy of Jackie Castro’s team at Black Box.
Featured image courtesy of Jackie Castro’s team at Black Box.
