Just to start off, take us back to how you first discovered music and why you ended up a singer!
I have always been surrounded by music. At home and in my hobbies. As a little girl, being a singer was the first profession that interested me and I have been singing since the age of five. But it was in my early 20s that I decided to become a full-time professional musician, leaving my secure job for the great unknown.

You formed your band Ad Infinitum in 2018 and had your debut album out in 2020. After that, you’ve released a new album every calendar year. In addition, you’ve launched another band – The Dark Side of the Moon – with an album out in 2023. Being a songwriter and lyricist, how do you find inspiration to be so productive?
The pandemic gave us a lot of time to write new music and we seized that opportunity. After that, we continued to be creative but a bit slower, I would say. I am surrounded by many great musicians and everyone is very creative. When we are together in the same room, magic happens. Whenever we manage to block out a songwriting retreat to immerse ourselves into that creative zone together, we do it. I personally find inspiration everywhere. In the music that I listen to, in movies, nature, sport and in the ideas that are shared with my bandmates.

To top it off, you’re also releasing music under your own name as a solo artist. This, however, is musically a little different from what you’ve done in your band constellations. How come you ended up doing more of a pop and rock vibe?
Writing music as a solo artist gives me the possibility to experiment freely. When you are in a band, the style is kind of defined even though we grant ourselves a lot of freedom. For me, as long as I have a clear goal and direction with my bands, I feel like my solo music can be my playground.

Being a singer, is vocals and melodies your main “instrument” when writing songs? Walk us through your creative process! How does normally a song go from idea to ready-to be-recorded and where does Toontrack come in?
My process depends on what inspires me. If I have vocal melodies in my mind, this defines the rest. But if I have more of a mood as a starting point, I will usually begin by finding some drum grooves and build on top of this. In both scenarios, I like to start by creating a base to build on and this is where Toontrack comes in. One of the first steps of my process after finding the right tempo and key for the song is to find drum grooves for the different parts of the song and to adapt/edit them to fit my idea. For this, I have been using Superior Drummer 3 for a while now. It is very inspiring to record my demo vocals on top of a good-sounding, groovy base, and to continue building the song with the other instruments after that. I have also been using EZbass a lot. When inspiration strikes, I need the idea to be nicely demoed as soon as possible before it gets old and abandoned. With Toontrack, my process has become a lot more efficient. All this later serves as a guide for the actual recordings.

What is your process like when writing lyrics? Do you go with the flow and let the song tell you what it should be about or do you decide on a theme before-hand and go with that?
For me, the rhythm of the sentences and their melodies are what matter the most. Usually, I write the lyrics last or, if I have ideas before the song is shaped, I’ll adapt the lyrics to the song’s final form. The vocal lines have to be catchy and flow nicely, the lyrics have a more secondary role even if I like to spend a lot of time on that eventually to make them meaningful.

Seeing as you’re traveling and touring a lot – are you a songwriter who can work on the road? If so, how does that process differ from when you’re at home? Which of the two do you prefer?
I find it very difficult to write music on the road. The days on tour are so busy, my mind needs to be in songwriting mode for me to work efficiently. I usually bring my portable studio with me, but it is rare that I find the time or the energy or the inspiration when the schedule is hectic every single day. I definitely prefer writing at home!

Aside from your main bands and your solo stuff, you’re also touring with other bands, like Kamelot and Feuerschwanz, and doing guest performances on various albums. How do you balance your time? How well in advance is your year planned out?
I usually have a plan for the next couple of years with my main occupations. It requires very good communication between all the people involved as well as prioritization. I had to learn to be realistic with my time and with my reserve of energy. Today, I try to only accept what really makes sense to me and what makes me happy.

What’s next on your agenda?
A few studio recordings, some video shoots and then back on the road in January! Oh, and some playdates with Toontrack of course!