Hana is the artist who live-streamed the process of writing, engineering, and producing her album on Twitch – for a truly 21st-century experience.
Hana is an American electronic musician and producer who is also known for her collaborations with Grimes. She recently had the idea of writing and recording her new album in front of a live audience on Twitch.
Speaking on the idea, Hana described how it was people’s assumptions that she didn’t put much work into her art – or rather it was her male collaborators who did most of the heavy lifting – that sparked the idea.
“I noticed that people don’t necessarily comprehend the work that I put into my music/art,” Hana reflected. “Many assume collaborators that I work with, especially if they are male, did most of the work. Making an album while live streaming the entire process seemed like a perfect way to combat this and show my process, while also creating a body of work in a really interesting and experimental way.”
In case you don’t know, Twitch is a live streaming service for gamers that allows them to watch and chat with millions of other gamers around the world.
It’s an interesting idea and one very much only possible in the 21st century, with all our current technology. Whilst streaming the album-making process, there were often more than a hundred people in the chat room.
Hana’s viewers often piped in with feedback, and Hana herself sometimes asked for the viewers’ opinions on things like song structure and track names. Ultimately, the whole thing made for a fascinating, interactive, and inclusive experience.
One of the upsides of the process is the viewers got the chance to witness Hana’s process of writing, engineering, and producing her music in her home studio – as well as getting an insight into all the gear she uses.
With Ableton Live as her DAW, she uses a Shure SM7B dynamic microphone through a Universal Audio Apollo 8 interface. She has numerous guitars including a Taylor PS14ce acoustic, some Fender Stratocasters, a Fender Telecaster and Fender Mustang.
Synth-wise she has a Dave Smith Instruments Prophet 08, Moog Sub37, plus some analog Eurorack synths from Intellijel Makenoise, Strymon, Erica Synths, Industrial Music Electronics, and more.
Of course, another benefit of the whole thing is it’s great inspiration for any aspiring female musicians and producers that are watching.
All in all, it’s a fascinating idea and if you want to learn more, head over here.
Hana plans to release her album on November 8.
