Published: August 15, 2010 2:15 AM EST
By: Isaac Davis Jr., MBA (Juniorscave.com)
New Music Spotlight August 2010 Edition
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa
Music Now Artist/Band Spotlight Weekly Series
Title: Monique (Shy?Sultry)
Photographer/Artist: Adam Sheridan Taylor
Copyright: 2007
Remember such wonderful acts as Lady Kier of Deee Lite, Jamiroquai, and a host of other wonderful Dance/Club iconic giants? Well, let’s add the magical flow of Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa to the list as she is bringing her own spin into the Electronic/Dance/DJ/Club genre that club music lovers are going to enjoy. In this spotlight with our Webzine, the lovely Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa shares her world with our readers. Here is the whole online conversation for your pleasure….
Isaac: I just listened to several songs off your new EP/CD. What was the inspiration for making your new album?
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa: There are 2 songs, and various remixes of the songs on this upcoming EP.
The first song is entitled The song is in English, except for a few lyrical lines of German. "Wo sind Sie?" is the formal way of saying "Where are you?" in German. I had heard the original music by Michael Bernard Rosewood, as producer over in New Jersey, and I immediately told him that it sounded like a European dance song. He asked me to write lyrics about lost love to it, as that was his vision, and so I wrote them...on the bed of my now former love from Bosnia Herzagovina. Okay, I still love him, but he chose another path. He wasn't thrilled with the entertainment business. That took a toll on me, because I have given so much of my soul to the arts. The business behind the arts is in a sad state compared to the art itself though, which I love.
Anyway, getting back to me writing the song...when I wrote it, I thought about a former boyfriend, who had broken my heart over the course of six years. I was through with him emotionally, but that's where some of the inspiration stemmed.
After writing the song, my thoughts wandered off to wondering if the song would wind-up applying to my relationship with the current boyfriend. I had an innate feeling one day it would. Perhaps I should have applied The Secret to my thoughts, but even positive thinking isn't full-proof I gather. So now when I play the song, I think of my lost love, whose bed I wrote the song on, and I hope someday we will love each other again in another lifetime, as long as it is blessed.
The second song is entitled I Can Breathe . This song was released as a promo to DJ record pools around the US in 2003-2004. It received the following recognition:
IN PHILADELPHIA
CHARTED ON THE PHILADELPHIA SPINNERS ASSOCIATION TOP 50 DANCE CHART BETWEEN NOV. 2003 - MAY 2004
SOME VENUES IT PLAYED AT IN PHILADELPHIA:
Casablanca
Sisters
12th Air Command
ADDITIONAL RECORD POOL, CLUB PLAY, RADIO PLAY, LIVE PLAY, AND DANCE MIX FEEDBACK
(1) Positively Received - Resource Record Pool - Los Angeles, CA
(2) Charted on Pick Hits - Flamingo Record Promotions Inc. - Florida (Jamaica too)
(3) Charted #1 - Backstreet Club Dance/High Energy Top 20 Chart - Little Rock, Arkansas
(4) Charted #5 - CTB Music Pool Dance Chart Toppers - Connecticut
(5) Charted #11 - Groove Promotions Top 50 Pop/Dance Chart - Cambridge, MA
(6) Charted #13 - Philadelphia Spinners Association Top 50 Dance Chart - Philadelphia, PA
(7) Charted #19 - Groove Promotions Top 50 House Chart - Cambridge, MA
(8) Charted #20 - Central Ohio Record Pool Top 30 Dance Chart- Ohio
(9) Charted #21 - Long Island Record Pool Top 40 Dance Chart - Long Island, NY
(10) Charted #22 - VIP Chicago Music Club Dance Chart Top 40 - Illinois and surrounding area
(11) Charted #23 - dance song on 91.5fm WKM's website - in Bolivia, South America
(12) Charted #32 – em>Starfleet Music Pool Top 50 Dance Chart - North Carolina
(13) Charted #35 - Pittsburgh DJ Association Top 40 Dance Chart - Pittsburgh, PA
(14) Charted #44 - Groove Promotions Top 50 House Chart - Cambridge, MA
(15) Charted #47 - Northwest Dance Music Association, Inc. Top 50 Dance Chart
- NW Coast
(16) Urban 2004 Mix tape/New Music Highlights
(17) Airplay on WRSU FM
(18) Sung Live on WVLT FM
(19) Charted #116 - Fieldens Private Club - Richmond, VA
(20) Extended play at Escuelita (NY, NYC)
Isaac: Who were your influences?
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa: I would have to say the motivation of artists from the 60s were my influence, incorporated with a love of dance music, and my Sarah Lawrence College MFA theatrical experience. All the plays I was involved in there were very over the top, comedic pieces with strong underlying messages. Also, when I first got into dance music radio, South Jersey Air Personality Christina Joyce was a big sisterly help to me. She now broadcasts on WTKU, Kool 98.3fm out of Linwood, New Jersey. Also, acting teachers Roslyn Clarke at Our Lady of Grace Regional School and Denette Beluch at Highland Regional High School were very instrumental in the early years of my artistic climb. Thank you to them, and to all, who have helped me along the way. I hope I have returned or will return your help in the future.
Dance artists, who I feel my vocal quality is like is Madonna, Stacy Q, & Expose. I like how Madonna had strong messages in her music, and was very creative...not a fan of her playing into sex in her early years to climb the ladder. It makes it difficult for females in the entertainment industry, who don't wish to act like this in order to "make it." The arts can be a very spiritual field, & I feel more should preserve it as such with higher virtues of integrity.
Isaac: What do you consider to have been the highlight(s) and lowpoint(s) of your career to date?
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa: My high points in my performing arts career thus far has been:
Performing comedy open mics cross country in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Chicago, and New York. I first tasted stand-up when taking a stand-up comedy class with Christine Farrell at Sarah Lawrence College. My class performance was probably the best high I ever have felt in my life to date. It's almost scary to think it was so on point. The audience was in stitches, and they weren't drinking!
Winning the Hollywood Music in Media Awards Best Electronica Artist in 2008 was also a wonderful experience. I have Jim DeCicco to thank in part to thank for that. Jim routed for me in producing my own electronica showcase prior to the Awards Show. This self-produced showcase turned out to be a California anti-farm animal abuse awareness party as well, helping give California farm animals the right to be able to sit, stand, lie down, and extend their wings or limbs. More info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Proposition_2_(2008)
Also, performing at the California Cougar Convention was a real highlight. My music, comedy, and social messages all meshed into one that night...not to mention it was featured on CNN!
The low points have mainly been when working with male artists, who manipulate "the professional" to "personal." This invalidates trust. It also wastes a lot of time, because all the time vested into projects is for naught if one has to walk away. And I have walked away a lot.
Isaac: Brief history about your background plus the style of music you play.
Monique's been performing on stage since age of 3 1/2. Ultimately a shy girl, performing was a way to come out of her shell. Monique went on to become a part-time radio personality during her college years & has had her own radio show ever since. After receiving her MFA in Theatre from New York's Sarah Lawrence College, Monique's pursued an eclectic mix of performance art genres & created several campy dance music songs with social messages. (Being of Revolutionary War hero / Declaration of Independence signer, Patrick Henry's lineage, she inherited his freedom-fighting spirit) Monique also has several dance tracks on major labels. Monique is a member of Screen Actors Guild (imdb.com/name/nm1203382/resume). She wrote, produced, & performed in her own 2-hour mystery/dramedy entitled Murder Under A Porch in Phila. NJ. Don't worry, no one actually gets hurt! Monique doesn't believe in violence. A vegetarian for 5 years, & for the past 4 vegan, she fulfilled a 1,000 volunteer signature gathering to lessen farm animal abuse in CA, & produced, hosted, & sang in her own Hollywood Music Awards Electronica Showcase / Prop 2 Awareness Party! All these actions helped in passing the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act as well as granted her with the 2008 title Hollywood Music in Media Awards Best Techno/Electronica Artist. Her latest accomplishment is a song placement in the upcoming film Coming & Going, directed by Edoardo Ponti (Sophia Loren's son). Monique's on a mission.
Monique's Genre of Music
Electronica Music, which will make you dance...& think. Many songs are topics with strong social messages. I am hoping through my music, people will be enlightened as well as be able to be entertained & feel the beat!!!
Isaac: How easy is it to gets gigs for you as an artist? What is the live music scene like in your area?
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa:
Moz Buddah Lounge for the 12th Annual Method Fest - int'l film festival (Agoura Hills, CA) Beverly Hills Crowne Plaza (for the "California Cougar Convention"), The Talking Stick (Venice, CA),
Left Coast Wine Bar and Gallery (Pasadena, CA) The Muse (Hollywood, CA), (Santa Monica, CA), In the Mudra Yoga & Dance Studio (Canoga Park, CA), Bixby Park for Walk for Farm Animals 2009 (Long Beach, CA), Rancho Park for Vegan Thanksgiving Potluck, (West Los Angeles, CA), Leaf Cuisine Raw Vegan Restaurant (Sherman Oaks, CA), Helio's House BP (West Los Angeles, CA), Renaissance Hotel for TAXI Road Rally Music Convention (Hollywood, CA), Westin LAX for TAXI Road Rally Music Convention (West Los Angeles, CA), Musician's Institute for the IMC 2008 (Hollywood, CA)
Isaac: What do you think of the state of Indie music at the moment? Do you listen to radio much at all? Has the Internet helped music grow or hindered it in your opinion?
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa: In Los Angeles, dance stations really don't exist. You have some dance shows here and there on KCRW, Power 106, and Amp Radio, but other than that, no. Many times I listen to a station called KPFK, which is raw on politics, health, and other pertinent social topics, which otherwise usually get "manipulated by mainstream media." I'm a truth seeker, and this station seems to be on point with just that, mainly because it is noncommercial. It doesn't accept grants from any corporations either. I am hoping to get a social topic / dance music radio show on there myself. I had an Internet dance show on for a few years entitled DUI ! Dancing Under the Influence of Electronica. Some show clips can be heard at MySpace.com/DUIElectronica
Now the Internet HAS helped with my music. For one, I have discovered so many opportunities listed on Sonicbids.com and Broadjam.com, which I would have never have know about otherwise. Thanks to Broadjam.com/Monique, I had my song, Wo Sind Sie? (Jake "Heartache" Benson Trance Mix), included in the new Edoardo Ponti film (Eduoardo is Sophia Loren's son) titled Coming & Going, which just screened at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. And well you found me at Sonicbids.com/MoniqueAKAUniqueMonique, so enough said! One thing I am concerned with is the illegal websites that actually "sell" your music without your permission. I mean making music isn't free, so we artists need to be paid. Right now I have songs being sold on http://mp3skyline.com/rid-0x538c-unique-monique_-_i-can-breathe-smoke-free-mp3-download.html. This website is located on a military base in Russia. I have no idea, who the people involved are, but they are selling my song. Halo out there! Are you reading this? Unique Monique needs to be paid for her non-smoking hi-Nrg dance song. Who else is going to create campy, healthy dance tunes?
Isaac: If you could create a fantasy band - what would be the line-up and why?
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa: I would want Michael Fry of TheFloorIsAllYours.com to definitely be a back-up dancer. Mike lives near NYC in Jersey City, NJ. He was a dancer for me when I lived on the East Coast. He now temporarily manages me.
It would be great to work with European artists, because they have art in their heart. It's more about the art than the money for many of them...although things are a changing.
I would also love to work with girls, who have been pulled out from human sex slave trafficking. It would be great to see there confidence lift with strong female songs. I'm happy to say I licensed a song to a film, which brings awareness to this debilitating industry. The film is titled Dead End Falls.
But if you are asking me which celebrities I would like, I would say Cher would be number one. She's a great vocalist, strong person, animal activist, and...a cougar. Next, I would want Demi Moore w/ her hubby Ashton to make a guest starring appearance (as long as Ashton behaves, I heard he was very cocky from someone, but sometimes people are wrong. And you never know what a person is feeling at the time to have acted like that. However, humble, confidence is what lifts my spirit, and is a real turn-on.
And some other artists I would like to work with are Gina G. (I met her before - real nice, but a little insecure at the time...Ah what the media has done in the past to females. Cougars roar!) And Jacinta, she's strong and nice at the same time. Pepper Mashay would be great to work with as well. And Paul Van Dyke and Dj Encore.
Okay, so the line-up in this order - Cher, Mike Fry, Demi Moore & Ashton, Pepper Mashay, Paul Van Dyke (on turn-tables), DJ Encore (on turn-tables), Jacinta, & Gina G
Isaac: What CD's do you currently have available and where can they be purchased from?
Some of these songs are:
(1) Older Women, Younger Guys (Cougars And Cubs 'Den'ce Mix) AKA Cradle Robber.
(2) Wo Sind Sie? (Jake "Heartache" Benson Trance Mix).
(3) She Wants No Boyfriend, Just A Wife.
Isaac: Where can fans access your music, videos, blogs, and anything else about you online?
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa: Stay true to your beliefs even if it is hard. Only you can look yourself in the mirror at the end of the day. Also, before believing in someone or something, check out the facts as much as possible. Actions speak louder than words. This applies to love too. Love should never be bought or manipulated. Treat your body & other people's bodies well; it's our temples & the machines we have to get you around on this planet. As a result, Monique promotes intercourse abstinence unless a loving married couple is planning to create a baby. There are other ways to show love, without putting yourself in the position of possibly having an unwanted pregnancy, birth control which causes cancer, & other physical ailments. For committed couples a good kissing / caressing session could be just as passionate.
Monique also promotes raw veganism to help the body, mind, and spirit; to spare our fellow earthlings (animals) unnecessary torture; & to not create more sludge & methane gas, which comes from the "factory" farm system of raising animals, all of which has had an ill effect on our climate, water sources, and the environment overall.
I look for the day when people care more about how their actions affect others than simply lining their pockets. And I am talking about fast food meat companies, pharmaceutical companies, soda companies, and any other company that promotes more negative than good. If companies first and foremost mission was to promote humane & healthy products, IMAGINE the world we would live in...a much more peaceful, and happy place for sure. What's so hard about that?
Thanks to my loving family, most, who are now angels in the sky. I love you dad, grandmoms, and grandpops.
Unique Monique aka Monique Marissa's Official Website
