Marina Diamandis

Froot photoshoot (edited by me)https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/froot-97825/As we go through life, we always have someone we look up to, someone whom we admire and wish to imitate. When I started growing up—around age 13—Marina Lambrini Diamandis became that exemplar for me. She is a Welsh singer, songwriter, and record producer, and as soon as I listened to just seconds of one of her songs, I fell in love with both her knowledge and her soul.

Diamandis as a childhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vS7lEkDvGJEMarina was born in Brynmawr and raised in Abergavenny, a small community in Monmouthshire, Wales. She recounts having a simple, idyllic, normal, and poor childhood—remembering she shared a bedroom with her sister, and that her parents split when she was four.

Diamandis as a childhttps://www.pinterest.com/pin/147633694011489208/?lp=trueIllustration of how Marina felt at school Original workAs a kid, despite her passion for singing, she avoided classes like choir due to feeling extremely noticeable, just because she came from a lower income family than other girls at the school she attended. However, by her late teenage years, she had become obsessed with the idea of being a singer, “almost as if it was a disease,” she said—reason that led her to work at a petrol station in order to earn money to move to London. When the move finally happened, Marina tried school several times in an attempt to please her conservative father, who wasn't fond of the idea of her being a singer — first dance, and then classic composition— but always ended up dropping out. However, she’s always been hardworking, and up to this day, she believes she’s always been destined to be a performer—as she remembers being an extremely observant child, and her love for writing and singing when no one was watching—so soon after the whole school situation, she decided to finally start moving towards her “performer” goal by teaching herself to play the piano and applying for auditions listed in the newspaper.

Excerpt from "Are You Satisfied?"We Heart ItImmediately after becoming noticed, Marina created the stage name “Marina and the Diamonds,” saying that “the Diamonds” was established as a reference to her fans—which is actually the fact that made me want to listen to her music. A Saturday afternoon, and a 13-year-old sitting in front of the computer, looking for nothing in particular, that’s when an article pops up—an interview in which she expressed her love for her fans, referring to them as “her Diamonds”—the article that led me to search for her name and ended up with me listening to a song that is, still today, one of my favorites, titled Are You Satisfied? A song that talks about how people shouldn't be telling her how to feel all the time because her feelings and concerns like how fast she'd succeed were her business. As soon as I listened to it, I knew she was a nonconformist, and I wanted to hear more—I needed more.

By virtue of being a nonconformist, this amazing soul’s overall musical career hasn't been easy at all. Despite having debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart, her first album, The Family Jewels, was roasted by music critics, mostly because  the lyrical themes included unpopular issues regarding the seduction of commercialism, modern social values, family and female sexuality, vulnerability, and other topics that are usually avoided by those involved in the industry.

Illustration of Diamandis "going against the flow"Original workFor her second album, Electra Heart, the label she was recording with, started pushing her harder towards success. At that moment, she was told to work on the album with the aid of many famous co-producers, co-writers, and collaborators, including Dr. Luke and Diplo—who, because they “knew what they were doing,” wouldn't listen to what she had to say about the writing and production. But like I said, Marina doesn't conform, and not long after having started the process, she was speaking up—reminding her production team that commercial songs are not part of who she is as a human being, which allowed her to bring the project to a compromise and add a part of her own touch to it before the album came out.

Excerpt from her song "Oh No!" https://www.pinterest.com/pin/140806213840696/?lp=trueSoon after touring, she still expressed being creatively dissatisfied with the results and realizing she wasn't “desperate to succeed anymore.” At this point, Marina decided to go into a “semi-isolation” for a few years, which she wisely used to write her next project all by herself, an album titled Froot—album that is reflective and contains songs that go from celebrating happiness, to dreary heartfelt ballads, for which she says to have put all of her passion to work.

Marina’s world views, creativeness, and nonconformism have caused me to perceive her as a luminary in my life. She’s demonstrated courage, honesty, caring and confidence. These are the qualities that truly reflect the beauty of her soul. I feel nothing but admiration for her and wish to be able to follow her steps—although not as as performer—someday.

This woman has managed to stand up in brave ways, risking all she always fought for, to simply remind those around her that the kind of messages she desires to convey as an artist are different and therefore stay true to her own values and principles. Her honesty is clearly reflected on her music—as, in her songs, you can notice her opinions on humanity, men, religion, vulnerability, real life situations, and even other people’s opinions, no matter how unpopular these topics might be.

She’s a determined woman, who’s certainly not afraid to include the complexity of life and reality in her music— and one who strongly believes being truthful is far more important than selling records.

Illustration of Diamandis' impact on my feelingshttps://sharpbrains.com/blog/2017/01/25/update-survey-of-scientific-technological-market-trends-revolutionizing-brain-health-in-our-digital-age/Illustration of Diamandis' impact on my feelingshttps://www.lingokids.com/english-for-kids/feelings-and-emotionsI think of Marina as my hero because her music has had a profound impact on my feelings and on my outlook to the world. She’s helped me come to terms with things that are of great importance, like the fact that it’s okay to be an introvert. And most importantly, her music has allowed me to feel—which is something I’ve always had trouble with, as I’ve strived to bottle my feelings up inside of me, fearful of being vulnerable in front of others. She has created lyrics that I—and others—can relate to on a personal level.

The messages she shares in her music shows her awareness of knowing that life is not always happy and colorful, and they show that she cares. Marina is my hero because she is real, because she is not afraid of being vulnerable, and because the passion she puts into her music is something I can feel, something that makes me feel alive. From the beginning, she has striven to inspire people, and I can happily say that she has—and continues to—achieve this.

Diamandis in different occasions - Twitter 

References

Express. America's Sweetheart: Marina and the Diamonds, 'The Family Jewels,' at 9:30 Club. The Washington Post, 6 September 2010, https://www.washingtonpost.com/express/wp/2010/09/06/marina-diamandis-marina-and-the-diamonds-family-jewels-930-club/?utm_term=.a601a2953fa4. Accessed 14 April 2019.

Marina and the Diamonds. Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia, Edited: 11 April 2019, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marina_and_the_Diamonds. Accessed 14 April 2019.

Nicholson, Kate. 'It's a shame we don't cherish her': Marina, British pop's nearly woman. The Guardian, 13 February 2019, https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/feb/13/marina-diamandis-british-pop-nearly-woman-no-1-album-fanbase. Accessed 14 April 2019.

Savage, Mark. Marina: 'Co-writing is killing pop'. BBC News, 11 March 2015, https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-31838270. Accessed 14 April 2019.

The Family Jewels (Marina and the Diamonds album). Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia, Edited: 20 January 2019,  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Family_Jewels_(Marina_and_the_Diamonds_album). Accessed 14 April 2019.

Wood, Mikael. Marina And The Diamonds reclaims her music with third album ‘Froot’. Thestar.com.my, 21 April 2015. https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/entertainment/music/news/2015/04/21/marina-and-the-diamonds-takes-on-a-different-approach-in-new-album/. Accessed 14 April 2019.