Gia Koka is a songwriter and artist with credits of over 1 billion streams. Best known for her records with; DVBBS – ‘Not Going Home’ ft. Gia Koka’, and the hit record ‘Crazy’ by Lost Frequencies & Zonderling which was #1 on European Airplay and charted all over the world, going Gold and Platinum in multiple countries. Some of her latest releases include Gia Koka & gnash – ‘Cry Baby’, Sam Feldt & Sigma feat. Gia Koka – ‘2 Hearts’ and Brooks feat. Gia Koka – ‘Say A Little Prayer’, Imanbek x Afrojack feat. Gia Koka – ‘Hey Baby’.
We took the opportunity to speak with her.
You were born in Poland but now live in The Netherlands. This must be a great location for you and your music, being based in one of the popular countries for EDM?
GIA: I mean, I don’t think I would have been where I am today or made the choices that I’ve made if it wasn’t for Amsterdam. EDM is like a religion over here. But to be honest, at this point I mostly just write at home in my sweats, so it doesn’t really matter where I am.
Your single ‘2 Hearts’ with Sam Feldt and Sigma has over 43 million plays on Spotify. That must be an amazing feeling! How did the collaboration come about and When you first wrote the song did you feel it was going to be a hit?
GIA: I went to London for a week to write with one of my favourite people to work with: Joe (Sigma). I just found out I was pregnant, but nobody knew. Every time Joe turned around from his computer to speak to me, I was trying to hide my belly while munching on chocolate, crisps, cookies, fruit and EVERYTHING else. Or crying. I was crying a lot. lol. He’s so nice, would never say anything, but MUST have thought I was going insane or something.
You followed up the single with a collaboration with Afrojack and Imanbek, both hugely popular artists. Has it been crazy watching your name attracting more and more attention from fans and artists now?
GIA: I don’t really think about stuff like that. These days I just try to stuff being a mom, a writer, an artist, a publisher, a manager and a housewife in one day. Quite a challenge I must say. Doesn’t leave much time to think about yourself or if people think you’re dope haha!! I’m just really thankful I can call this my job. I never take that for granted.
Separating yourself from the front of house artist. What’s it like being part of the process writing a song for someone else and how does it feel to watch those projects take a life all of their own?
GIA: Sometimes it’s amazing when an artist really respects the song, the way that it was meant. Sometimes it sucks when you don’t agree with how its executed. It’s like giving someone a gift from the bottom of your heart, and they throw it away in the trash. But again: thankful that people want to take my songs. If you bitch about small stuff like that, you don’t really deserve to be in music in my opinion. It’s not like we are saving the planet, this is a luxury job.
Do you have a wish list of artists you want to work with? Any names you would like to share?
GIA: I have a list of idols of mine that I adore, but those are not the people Id want to work with. I don’t want them to become human in my head haha! Like Jai Paul, Lykke Li, Robyn, Rihanna, Bon Iver, Beyonce, MIA… They’ll always be alien angels to me, and that’s how it should be. Actually, worked with MIA once, and I was way too in love and drooling to be truly focused. But it was still beautiful. Who would I want to work with…? I think I would do a good job for Calvin Harris, Miley Cyrus, Camilla Cabello, Dua Lipa. just posters you know. In dance, I would love a track with Topic, Oliver Heldens, MK, people like that.
In an era of singles, do you think albums are still relevant and if so, will we ever see a Gia Koka album?
GIA: I don’t. I would love to do it just for my own pleasure, but I’d have to go to some cottage in the middle of nowhere up in the mountains, where I can really think about, I want to say and do. But this is the thing about me and why I’m mainly a writer: I grow & change quickly. An album takes a long time and commitment to one thing. I would probably go insane and hate it by the time it’s finished. I would overthink everything and wouldn’t be able to really have a perspective. I don’t know how artists do that. I tried it a couple of times in my life and nearly drove myself crazy. So, I think right now just singles for me 😀 But who knows. I for sure have enough songs for 20 albums on my computer.
What are your top 3 favourite songs? (always a tough question we know..)
GIA: EVER???? Oh my god, I can’t choose 3, the once that really matter will probably come to me after this interview, but here are a couple of songs that never bore me and always stay relevant to me, and move me are: Rihanna – Higher, Bon Iver – 666, Sia – Elastic heart, Kanye West- Selah, Jai Paul- Zion Wolf, NAO – In another lifetime…
As an artist who has grown on her success and worked hard to get to where she is today. What guidance or tips would you like to share with people looking to get into the music industry?
GIA: Get in touch with your intuition. You’ll always know what to do.
Don’t compare yourself to other people. Your uniqueness is your superpower.
Don’t blame other people for your failures. You are the only person responsible for your life.
See music as music, and business as a business. They’re two different things. It’s your responsibility to protect yourself, there are some greedy ass people in the world so know who you’re dealing with and be ruthless. Kind but ruthless too.
Know your worth. The biggest issue usually is that naive creatives don’t actually know what they’re worth, and people on the business side can smell that shit from miles away. And they WILL take advantage of it. There are no friends in the game. Everyone is in it to win it. Be smart and wise about it.
2020 has been a very tough year for all of us but looking at it in a more positive light. What has this year taught you? Have you used the time to learn something new or reconnect with old hobbies?
GIA: This year has been the most important year of my life. I became a mom. It put EVERYTHING in perspective for me. I don’t even know the person I used to be before Kaia anymore. Being a parent forces you to get real with yourself, admit your flaws, try to do better every day, your ego has to go. It hasn’t been easy, but I have never felt more alive. Or a deeper love.
What this year also taught me is that everything we are so attached to can disappear just like that. So, I don’t take things so seriously anymore. It’s whatever, you know? 😀
And what days life and your career looking like moving ahead? Any goals you want to achieve or dreams you want to pursue?
GIA: I want to learn more about martial arts, go to India to meet Sad Ghuru, go to the Maldives and do nothing for a couple of weeks, keep writing – I love it so much. Some of my dreams came true this year, and I didn’t really make me feel anything new, so my one and only goal right now is to be happy and enjoy the moment. It’s all there is.
Thank you, Gia. Take care and we look forward to hearing more amazing music from you!
Gia Koka’s latest single ‘Sad Song’ with Zwette is out now.