YourMusicNews- One Year Later

 What a difference one year can make. What started out as a little side project has grown into more then I ever dreamt possible. YourMusicNews has interviewed and reviewed dozens of bands from many countries around the world. As a result, we have received views from all around the world. There are so many people I have met that along this journey that have made it all the more special.

 I would like to thank all of the bands, artists and record labels we have had the pleasure of working with. Without all of your support and involvement, we would not be where we are today. You are all incredibly amazing and talented. Thank you for taking the chance with us and helping all of us to grow. I would like to wish all of you the very best in everything you do and I hope that we never lose touch.

 To all of our readers, followers and fans, we thank you for all of your support you have given us. All of your patience when we had delays or were backed up was tremendous and we can not even begin to express our gratitude. Every time you read on of our articles, leave a comment or send an email or tweet, this is what keeps us going. The knowledge that there are like minded people out there that care about new music and undiscovered artists as much as we do makes this whole journey worthwhile.

 Thank you for everything and we look forward to another year of continued growth and development. It could not be possible without your support. From everyone at YourMusicNews, thank you!

-Matt

Blog Stats II

Welcome to the second edition of 'Blog Stats'. As a bit of a stats freak myself, I feel compelled to share these with you. I hope you enjoy, if there is anything you would like to see added, feel free to leave a comment below.

- Our busiest month (in terms of posts): February 2012, 8 posts.

- Viewer traffic has been steadily increasing as the months go by:

   February: 63 views

   March: 231 views

   April: 255 views

   May (One Day): 85 views


- Top three most viewed posts:

   Interview with “Dark Beauty”: 92 views

   Interview with “My Brother The Doctor”: 65 views

   Interview with “A Story Left Untold”: 52 views


- Out of our 30 posts, 8 of them (26.6%) are interviews.

　
- Top referring source: Facebook.com, 77 referrals.

- We have received views from over 14 different countries.

- 57.5% of our readership comes from the United States. In second place is Canada with 23.7% of our readership

- 19% of our page views come from mobile devices, including 10% from Android devices.

-YourMusicNews

Interview with "Dark Beauty"

How and when did you decide on a career in music?

I think in my 20’s as I started to really develop my voice, I knew it would be great fun to turn this my favorite pastime in to a career.


Who are some of your major influences?

I have so many.  As far as vocals I absolutely love Opera Singers like Natalie Dessay, Inva Mulla, and the dramatic style of Anna Netrebko just to name a few. 
I also love melodic heavy metal like Metallica, Disturbed, Dream Theater, Porcupine Tree, Epica, Tarja, and Evanescence.  I enjoy mixing genres in my music, and aim to create a true epic feel with the Dark Beauty concept album through these different styles.

Where do you draw your inspiration to perform music from?

I am really inspired by my entire family who continues to believe in me! I have a tremendous support system and they are such a strong force in my life.  I always loved watching great actors, comedians and singers, and went to Broadway shows as a young adult. As a young child I was always on stage even when there was no stage, trying to make people laugh. I think I was performing even before I knew what performing was.


Care to take us through your song writing process?

Well, sometimes the lyrics come first and sometimes it’s about the melody for me.  This can be difficult when writing a concept album, because the story doesn’t always come to me in the right order…so what happens is I have to figure out where an idea fits into the story and work around that.  The most important thing is for it to fit and make sense for the storyline.  If I have an idea that doesn’t fit than…I’ll change it until I find what works best.


Are you planning to release more music in the near future?

Yes right now we are working on the Dark Beauty concept album which is currently in production and we are planning on releasing the full album by the end of 2012.


What is some advice you would give artists who are just starting out?

I would really advise anyone starting out to work hard at being the best at your skills whether taking voice, or playing an instrument in order to become the best musician you can be.  Try to develop whatever is unique about yourself as an artist and work on enhancing those skills. Learn the market, talk to people, and never stop believing in your dreams!


Anyone you would like to give a shout out to?

I would love to give a shout-out to my family, my fans, and the incredible musicians on this project.  I also would like to give a special shout-out to Coral Rose Radio for believing in my style and for her constant support towards my music! Thank you all for believing in the Dark Beauty project!


Finally, where can fans buy your music?

Dark Beauty selections can be heard on the following sites:

http://www.darkbeautymusic.com
http://www.reverbnation.com/liztapia
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/liztapia
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/dark-beauty-single/id514491469