Veronica Fusaro
Veronica Fusaro is a up-and-coming Swiss-Italian singer-songwriter. She just released her new single, “Better With You”, as she pulls together her debut album. Her organic, raw sound mixed with clever and relatable lyrics will make you want to kick back at the beach no matter where you’re actually at.
This isn’t her first step into the music game either! She’s been going since 2016, when she released her first self-produced EP Lost In Thought. If you haven’t come across her work yet, you definitely will be adding her to your playlists now. You, and her roughly 35 thousand monthly listeners.
We got to sit down and talk about Veronica’s new music, artistic process, and career on our show, SheSources: New Voices, New Views on W!ZARD Radio. We are happy to share the full interview with you below—she really is such a light in the industry.
How do you identify yourself as a creative? How do you tell people about what you do?
I tell them I am an artist, a musician, singer/songwriter. I used to tell them I’m a producer but I kind of got off that when I realized that was an art in itself. But an artist — I’m an artist that makes music.
Why do you like to do what you do?
It feels good. It makes me feel good. It’s as simple as that! I need it, I need it like food. I need to get stuff out but I just love music. It gives me so much, it helps me a lot.
With your new song “Better With You”, what feeling do you hope the song gives the audience?
I do have a very specific setting in mind actually! You know how after a long winter, you have the first sunny day in ages? The sun rays caress your skin in the morning. You wake up and next to you, you have that person that means the world to you and makes that already perfect moment more perfect. That’s kind of the scenario and the scene I was trying to set.
I’ve noticed also with a lot of the pictures you pair with your music that there’s these iconic heart-shaped glasses. Do those hold any specific meaning or are they just like “the vibe”?
Honestly, both? It started with “the vibe”. It was really funny because the glasses were made by Tom Davis, who is a designer from the UK, and he designed not this new one but previous ones I was wearing. He sent me over a bunch of new things because we were looking for sunglasses for the video, but not specifically heart shaped ones. He ended up sending me the heart shaped one and I thought it was perfect! It was like the song “Beach” (that was the first one we used them in) the art work is basically about distracting yourself from pursuing what makes you actually happy. You know, you put on these glasses and “Ah, life is still great!” but in reality you are afraid to find out what actually makes you happy. It kind of all made sense but it was kind of a coincidence at the same time!
You’ve been really open about how your song-writing process has changed over the past few years. Do you think that’s influenced you music sound too?
I think so. I think as I’m breaking out an album right now and as for the songs you mentioned as well — I really wanted to write songs that I can play on a piano or guitar only and the songs work. That was really an ultimate goal of mine, that every track I write I will be able to make like that and everything else is just fancy stuff that you can have fun with. That’s changed and has become a very important part of songwriting for me.
Amazing! And which instrument is your “clutch” instrument you go to when you write songs?
Apart from my voice, it’s the guitar for sure. I always have it around, I carry it around wherever I go! It helps me express my emotions.
For sure! Do you have a specific moment where you knew that music was for you?
It was more of a process. I’ve always loved doing music but I guess as a kid you don’t give it special meaning. You just love doing it, right? And you just keep doing it, you pursue the stuff that you are good at or people tell you that you’re good at. It’s a motivation, so I guess it’s always been there. I always loved doing it!
I would say the moment I was like, Oh dang, this is awesome! I love doing this. . . for the first time was in ninth grade. I was fifteen? Sixteen? Something like that. And I was in a school band festival thing and it was the first time I stood on an actual stage. The whole school was there and I was standing there paralyzed and terrified, but at the same time I was really loving it. I guess that moment was a key moment for me.
A good throwback! I know this is a shift here but have you experienced any disrespect in your career or in the industry and how exactly did you navigate it?
I don’t know—maybe bad comments once or twice but I don’t think that’s anything. I don’t think so honestly, nothing bad. There’s enough sunny stuff about this that there’s not anything worth mentioning.
Oh that’s definitely a good thing! Glad to hear it. It’s a hard topic to discuss because you just have that general constructive criticism and you’re navigating it. And sometimes it’s a little more harsh than that and you’re like “WHOA ok…”
Yeah of course, there’s always moments like that. Also it’s important to recognize which of the stuff you actually need to take seriously and which of the things that are being said. People talk and that’s ok. That’s fine, but it’s not going affect me. For now, I’m good.
What would you say was one of your proudest achievements in your work?
There’s two coming to my mind. One would be more of an obvious one. I was able to open Mark Knopfler’s concert from the Dire Straits in an amphitheater in France. It’s always been a dream of mine to perform in an amphitheater, like a proper gladiator-style thing. That was really beautiful performing in front of 13,000 people, I believe. That was really cool, up there with my guitar. Beautiful achievement for me!
And another one I have in mind: we were playing a show in Germany. . . there was a girl in the crowd who came up to me after the concert. She was all crying and so sad. She was like, “That was beautiful, that was beautiful!” I’m not proud of the achievement of making her cry, don’t get me wrong! It was beautiful to me that this person felt safe enough to open up like that after seeing me perform and hearing my music. It wasn’t sad tears, it was happy tears.
That’s so sweet!
Yeah it never happened to me before as well and I was like “Aw you need a hug??”
What would you say is one of the biggest influences on your career?
One of my favorite artists of all time is Amy Winehouse. I think musically, lyrically, she had it. It was in her blood and I think that is really beautiful. She was doing her thing or at least it looked like she was doing her thing. I really admired it.
I love her music!
She’s great! I would’ve loved to see her live but I never did.
When you’re playing live, how would you describe that connection with your audience that you are trying to build?
That’s a very nice question. I think my job, in terms of live performance, is I enter a room I may have played in before. I say there’s new people any time I play in a room or a stage. I think my goal is to create a world for an hour or hour and a half, however long the set is, and just become this one big space. Create an atmosphere where people feel like they can be themselves. If they want to dance, dance please, come on! Don’t care what the others think! A safe space where the people can enjoy the music. That’s one of my goals.
I’m thinking as we start to wrap up here that I would love to do some rapid fire questions with you really fast for fun. Small things, whatever comes to mind just let it out!
Cool!
What was the last thing you watched on T.V.?
Probably Modern Family? I don’t know, probably! I love that show. It’s the second time I’m watching it.
Cool! What was the last thing that you read?
Oh! Probably an article about history and everything that’s going on in Europe, Ukraine, Russia. Trying to gather information.
Absolutely. What is one of your go-to albums you put on?
Oh nice question! I love SZA! I love her album Ctrl. It’s such a beautiful album. I love listening from A to Z. That’s a masterpiece.
Last one - If you could tell your younger self one thing, what would it be?
Quick answers you said? Don’t be so hard on yourself! Just do your thing and you’ll be fine! You’re fine! You’re good the way you are! Just a nice hug maybe and we’re good to go.
Thank you so much for coming on here and sharing your story and your music with us! We really appreciate it!
Thank you for your time and for giving me the opportunity and space, it’s very nice and cool!
Thanks again to Veronica Fusaro for chatting with us! You can check her music out on Spotify here!
Excerpts from this interview initially aired on W!ZARD Radio on Saturday, April 2nd, on our weekly radio show produced in partnership with W!ZARD Radio Media, SheSources: New Voices, New Views.
