New Release – Dying To Meet You by Chenél No.1 and Rose Alaimo
Chenél No.1 is a South African songwriter that loves to write songs with a deeper meaning. Rose Alaimo is singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Ithaca, New York. They met on Twitter about a year ago, right around when COVID-19 started and the two of them became fast friends.
Their song ‘Dying to Meet You’ will be released on March 16. ‘Dying to Meet You’ is part of a three song EP titled ‘Hey Rose’. I sat down with Chenél No.1 to ask her some questions about this collaboration and the upcoming EP.
How did this collaboration come about?
“Well, we felt that the world is entirely too bleak lately and needs a happy, optimistic song. Rose was working on a fun little ditty, a lovely chorus for a song but couldn’t come up with a verse. She mentioned it to me and I in turn responded, “I have been working with a lovely verse but have no chorus!” We swapped what we had and the pieces literally fit together perfectly. They were even in the same key! Right then, we decided to do an EP together.”
“This song, ‘Dying to Meet You’, is the result of those shared choruses and verses. It’s about our friendship, our hopes to someday meet each other in person, and our dreams about our music careers taking off.”
You are in South Africa and Rose is in New York, about 12.000 km apart. What can you tell us about the writing and recording process?
“Initially we sent sound snippets via phone recordings to each other. When the structure and lyrics were set we continued with the production. We opted for an Americana singer-songwriter feel, where Rose did the bass & mandolin, where I covered the guitar. After my producer, Johan, wrapped it up and Rose heard it for the first time, she said she actually cried.”
“Rose wrote the chorus & I wrote the verses. Somehow it encompassed our friendship, to have hope in the future and to know that there are wonderful people out there who care about you and with whom you can do beautiful things, even if they are literally half a world away.”
What can you tell us about the other songs on the upcoming EP?
“The song ‘Hey Rose’ was written for her about her life and our friendship (and being released with her generous permission). So it does give a little personal insight about her and the wonderful friend she has become.
“The last song on the EP is called ‘Head over heels’, which is a love song where Rose is a featuring artist.”
Is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
“We also have a video that will launch at the same time, it was such fun doing this 12.000 km apart. We recorded our parts separately, showcasing our humorous sides, with her rocking the mandolin and me attempting to roll out of the frame and her quizzical look.”
“Thank you for the opportunity to share this coming release with you and we hope that this song will touch many lives, knowing that people can connect across the globe and be there for each other when needed.”
Your friendship is a special gift, generously given, happily accepted and deeply appreciated!
Here’s the pre-save link for the upcoming EP.
