We caught up with the busy Cha Wilde to chat about all of her projects

What's your inspiration behind your music?

I’m inspired by epic nature, the wilderness, and feeling so small in this universe. I enjoy watching humans interacting and discovering themselves. When I’m creating music, I’m searching for a feeling of spaciousness and relief. The creation of music is a spiritual experience. It takes us inside ourselves and connects us to each other in the mysterious space in between. I’m most interested in unity, in embracing the reality that we are all one, and in exploring how this feeling can be amplified through sound.

If you could change anything about the industry what would it be?

I’m not interested in changing the world or the music industry. The only thing I’m focused on right now is improving my skills and my understanding of how sound affects human beings. I feel like I’m going through a hardcore training to become a shaman -- a wizard or something magical like that -- a being who has the ability to harness the power of emotion and sound to guide others on a healing journey. I would love to meet more artists adventuring on this path with me. Let’s have more fun working with music as a healing tool, a form of magic, and a portal into more interesting planes of reality.

What song of yours is your favorite song to perform?

Tough question. It changes, and it’s usually whatever song is most fresh for me. It depends on the audience and the mood in the room. I love singing acoustic songs on the piano when the room is quiet and people are listening closely. I enjoy using my voice to release the built up emotions in people and making them cry. Lots of these acoustic songs are unreleased so you can only hear them live. “Chill Mother Fucker” and “I’m the Light” are two of my favorites to perform because they’ve got a lot of attitude and I love hearing my fans sing along. The lyrics are sassy and confident, so they just feel great to sing.

If you had to choose two of your songs to sum up your sound, which ones would you choose?

“Delivered to Earth on a Rainbow” is one of my most popular songs. It really demonstrates how I blend poetic lyrics with dance beats. My songs are usually a blend of soulful vocals and lots of vocal chops in the chorus or drop. My songs are playful fantasies with depth and bass. “Lose Myself in The Song” is a newer release that captures this light dancing energy. I’m creating music that is fun to sing and dance to, and I’m envisioning people free at a music festival in the sunshine or a road trip when they’re listening to it.

If you could go open for any artist, who would it be?

Odesza

What first got you into music?

How far back are we counting? My first encounter with music was singing lessons at 3 years old and some piano lessons when I was 10. However, my heart really got called towards music when I was in college and was obsessed with Taylor Swift’s first couple albums. I bought myself a guitar and started learning to play. When I was 26 though -- that’s when I threw my hands in the air and admitted to the world that I came to this planet to sing. I decided to start writing songs and performing. It’s a long trail of little breadcrumbs leading me along the way that felt most inviting and joyful. I eventually realized that I just couldn’t hold back anymore. I wanted music more and more, and, when I was at music festivals, my imagination was on fire. I saw myself on the stage and got so lost in the music. I was so pulled into it that, I felt like I really had no choice. My soul wanted to create music, to be immersed in it. Ever since then, I’ve been dedicating my energy to music and yoga -- they balance me out.

What is it about music that makes you feel passionate?

It’s the natural rhythm of the universe, time travel, space travel, mind and soul travel. It’s medicine and playtime. It creates any mood I want to feel and changes my energy in whichever direction I steer it. I can express feelings in sounds that can’t be expressed in any other way so precisely. “Music is how feelings sound,” is an apt quote. I also have a quote in my studio that says, “Believe in the power of music.” It’s so much greater than almost anything I know. It’s mysterious and I’ve seen it heal, save lives, bring moments to life, bring people together. It’s magic.

Do you ever get performance anxiety and if so, what’s your process for dealing with it?

Yes. Yoga, meditation, journaling, feeling all the sensations in my body. The anxiety is the mind running out of control. As I mentioned above, I dedicate my life energy to music and yoga. My spiritual practices keep me grounded so I feel clear and free to enjoy creating music. My music is intentionally created with awareness of how energy flows through the human body. I’m creating a bridge between body and mind. So, if I feel anxious, it just means I’m too in the mind and need to come back to the body. It’s all about unity, everything coming together as one. When we’re one, we’re peaceful and able to enjoy flow.

You have quite a few projects going on. What do you think connects them all?

Everything I do revolves around waking up consciousness, being comfortable and alive in my body, and connecting to other life forms. I’m life, and I’m expanding and exploring this universe that I am. Whether I’m composing, performing, painting, writing, dancing, running, roadtrippin, or in conversation with people, I’m tying everything back to be right here and right now. I’m observing what is coming through me, embracing all the emotions and letting them wash through. What needs to be cleared away so creative energy can flow more freely through me? That’s the power question. I just want to be a channel and feel the energy moving effortlessly. I want to feel that rush of smooth vibrations. It’s just like surfing on waves. I suppose making music is kind of like an adventure sport. I live for the thrill of being overtaken by the rush of creativity.

Can you give us a quick timeline of how you got started in all of your ventures?

(see question above about “what got me into music”)

What is the toughest thing about having so many things going on?

Being able to laser beam my focus on the task at hand. It’s easy to feel scattered or distracted, worrying that while I’m working on one project another isn’t getting the attention it needs. That’s just how it is though. Focused energy is what makes the project move forward. It’s like making love to one person while thinking of another. That’s not ideal. It feels better to be fully present with the project or person I’m with. When it’s time to switch, the transition needs to be honored. I like to take a walk or meditate before moving onto the next task. This breaks up the projects into time blocks and each project gets my highest quality attention.

What made you decide to start a podcast? What can you tell us about it?

I wanted to befriend other artists and get to know them and their creative process intimately. With a microphone between us and a solid chunk of time, our conversations went much deeper than they would if we were just chatting at a bar. I wanted to deep dive into the experiences of other creators so I could better understand what I was getting into. It’s how I got my first taste of what’s out there in the local music scene, what to expect from the music industry, and what being a working musician was actually like. After a year of intervening musicians I started using my podcast to monologue. I was doing solo episodes, sharing my own creative process behind the songs I was creating. I also shared some yoga and business advice I was learning along the way. During COVID quarantine I started DJing and now my podcast is like a music and talk show radio station where I’m publishing mixes that I’m creating.

What’s the best piece of advice another musician has given you?

At the Sasquatch music festival in 2017, I convinced a security guard to let me speak with Saint Claire -- an artist I had just seen perform on stage moments before. At that time I was afraid to sing in public, and I had been blown away by his singing. It felt like he truly let everything go. He was totally open, and his voice was the epitome of freedom expressed in song. When Saint Claire came out of the artists’ tent to give me a moment of his time I asked him, “How do you sing so freely?” His answer has stuck with me forever. He said, “It’s the only way.”

What do you look for when taking on a lifestyle coach client?

I work with women who are spiritually curious and eager to develop their confidence as creators. I work with artists who are ready to bold steps for personal growth so they can show up in their art with deeper connection and present it to the world from a place of grounded power. As artist we don’t need to prove ourselves, strive to impress or burn out from working ourselves to the bone. It’s so not about that. The artwork we’re creating is the beauty of humanity and it’s more beautiful when we are created from a place of peace and joy. I coach humans who are finding this balance between their personal health and happiness and the work their exploring and contributing. All of my clients are very powerful women who are looking over the fence, wondering what else is out there, curious to find out what they’re capable of. They just need someone to listen deeply and see the light inside them. I believe in them before they believe in themselves, and I get to watch them blossom. They inspire me to be bigger and bolder myself. We influence each other because we’re all part of the same system. We are showing up for ourselves so we can show up for each other and as a result we’re showing each other what is possible.

Do you feel that your yoga practice influences your music and art?

Yes, absolutely. They’re intertwined because I am the instrument. The better I feel as an animal, a mammal, the better the energy can flow through my body, and the better the art feels to create and consume. The body comes first because without it, there is no art.

What is the biggest piece of advice you can give to someone looking to enter the music industry?

Build your relationship with music as though she is your lover. Your connection to life, to source energy, to the sounds, and to the way the keys or strings feel under your fingers is all you have. Weave the skills into your being so you can wield music as though it’s a magic power. I like to think of Dr. Strange and the way he spins golden light with his hands. Take your personal relationship with music more seriously so you’re one with it. People will sense this power in you and be drawn to what you’re creating. People crave this; to be in the company of an artist utterly alive inside their work. I see artists getting sucked into social media, whirlpools of stress, caught in their daydreams, tied down by doubts and insecurities as they try and grab the world’s attention. I’ve been there. I’ve found my life is much more enjoyable when I turn my attention to the music itself and constantly remind myself that it is a gift I’m simultaneously receiving and giving. I’m creating music for us to enjoy, to make life feel better, so I create from a place of joy and connection to good feelings. Let go of the distractions.

Is there one thing you recommend, or tell, all of your lifestyle coach clients?

Breathe. We don’t talk, move or play music until we have taken 10 deep breaths. Everytime we’re flustered, stuck or stressed...breathe. When we’re creating, we’re breathing. Match the breath to the beats of the music and the movements of your body. I can’t emphasize it enough, and yet, it’s the most innate and simple thing we do as humans. It’s sacred. Breathe and move your body.

If you want to check out any of creative project, visit her official website