Madison Park. A name you may not know but should definitely become acquainted with as she’s breaking boundaries within the music industry. Music for Madison is something that is instinctive for Madison, knowing how to read sheet music before Korean; music has been ingrained in her since she started classical vocal and classical piano at the tender age of four; that would lead her to become the female DJ and producer she is today.
Despite her training in the classical element, at the age of 12, Madison truly fell in love with music after discovering the pop music world on YouTube. It was Zedd’s “Clarity” that resonated with Madison so much which helped her discover her love of the EDM genre. YouTube was also the platform that she found her passion for film scoring and music production, but all the tutorials were in English, a language she didn’t know at the time, nevertheless, she found a way to teach herself and now Madison is fluent in Korean, English, Japanese, and Chinese.
I had the opportunity to talk with Madison about her debut single, “Hindsight” and her passion for music production.
For the readers who don’t know who you are, can you tell us a bit about yourself?
Hey there, I’m Madison Park and am a 20-year-old Korean DJ and a music producer that has been training classical piano for 16 years. I love good layers of synths in the drop, melodic bass and chicken nuggets.
What was it that attracted you to music?
There was no definitive thing that attracted me to music but it happened naturally growing up with my parents who are very musical.
You have a background with classical music from learning classical vocal and classical piano at such a young age, however, the music you produce is totally different. How and when did you discover your love for EDM and pop-culture?
I did start the whole “creating music” thing with classical piano and orchestral instruments, but my music taste evolved a lot throughout the years as I experienced different genres and styles of music. I have been learning more about myself as a musician regarding what specific sounds and styles I love, and am currently in love with melodic dance music. I first encountered EDM when I was 14 at my Taekwondo gym. My coach put on “Clarity” by Zedd and I remember stopping everything and stood still listening to it until that song ended. I was scolded by the coach and other sparring teammates for that. That was the moment I fell in love with dance music and started digging more into EDM and Pop culture.
Courtesy of Gramophone Media
How did your passion for music production come about?
After years of training in classical piano, I reached a point where I couldn’t find any purpose of practising the same piece to reach the technical perfection without being creative. That’s when I started writing music using a piano. But that also didn’t last that long because there was no way for me to share my music with other people because they were all phone recordings; which was the only way to document everything without actually drawing each note on blank piano sheets. That problem eventually led me to learn how to produce music on different software.
Talk about your debut single, “Hindsight”, what does this song mean to you?
I made this song exactly a year ago when I was visiting Salt Lake City, Utah for a few days. The creative energy I experienced there is still the most incredible studio experience I have ever had, and this song is one of the songs that made it to my release list from that studio trip. Also, it means a lot since it’s my very first debut single. Frankly speaking, the lyrics don’t really talk about my own experience so I won’t say this song’s lyrics have a significant personal relationship to me.
What is the message you’d like to share with the music you make?
I don’t have one because I don’t like putting a limit on the interpretation of my music. No matter what kind of message you get from my music, if you are feeling good, that’s all I care about. I just want to make people feel good when they listen to my music.
If you could give young aspiring artists one piece of advice, what would it be?
99.99999% of people in the industry probably won’t care about you and your music, especially when you are starting out, but also keep in mind that those people’s opinions about your artistry don’t matter either.
Is there anything you’re working on that you’d like to share?
I am currently in the process of wrapping up my second single and I’m very excited for it. I am also working on different collaborations with K-Pop acts so stay tuned!
Any last thoughts?
I want chicken nuggets.
To stay connected with Madison, follow her on Instagram and make sure to check out her debut single, “Hindsight.”
Featured Image courtesy of Gramophone Media
