Meet Dreya Starr | Soprano. Artist. Songwriter.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dreya Starr and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dreya, what’s the end goal, career-wise?
I have been moved by music my whole life and I want to move the world with my music. I want to bridge the worlds of Classical music with Pop music, meaning bring classical elements back into the mainstream. By combining both vocal and instrumental styles of the classical and pop genres, I can fusion the best of both worlds: the catchy heartening melodic completion of pop with the dramatic dynamics of classical phrasing. I wholeheartedly believe music has the power to influence our emotional and physiological state of being and we can use it to our advantage. I want to make music that helps people process complex emotions and causes physical reactions like goosebumps and tears. My end goal with this is to promote the potential of music as medicine. My wildest fantasies about my professional career include but are not limited to: Grammy awards, Honorary Doctorates, Nobel Peace prize, Halls of Fame, I am not afraid to desire this magnitude of positive impact in the world through my musical mission.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My artistry is unique to say the least, I am much more than meets the eye and the same can be said for my music. There are so many complexities and nuances in the musical arrangements and my interpretation that all tie in to one thing: the fusion of classical elements into pop structure. Other classical crossover artists when they perform a song, it is either a song entirely classical or entirely popular, I on the other hand, combine the two into one interpretation going back and worth between vocal textures. This is something that developed naturally through the production process of my album with the musical direction from my producer and I pleasantly surprised myself with the outcome. I am so proud of the way I’ve thrown myself outside of my comfort zone to find new facets and grow past the lines I thought to be limits. I am most excited to see how my sound continues to evolve as I write with other incredible musicians like Jorge Luis Chacin and his daughter Natacha Chacin.
I got to where I am professionally because of musical discipline and god-sent connections. I believe working on myself and my voice made me a vibrational match to the people that are now supporting me in the industry. It is incredible to look back at just a year ago and see how far everything has come. Although it has not been easy in the slightest, between budgets and algorithms I have felt trapped in a dystopia of popularity contests and invoices. As an independent artist, it’s hard even when you have the right connections because the industry is just like any other business in the world: a machine that runs on coins.
I have overcome the challenges by jumping through one flaming hoop at a time as my manager says. I am extremely fortunate to have her guidance and management, it’s thanks to her and Lucas Valeti that my following on Spotify has reached 1.2 million total streams in just 5 months. For an independent artist with no previous releases or editorial playlist placements, this is a miracle!
Along the way I’ve learned that you just have to trust your process and never forget why you started. Nowadays, an independent artist has to be basically everything from musician, to influencer, to public figure and it’s all exhausting but at the end of the day, for me, the music makes it all worth it and a smile is the best shield.

I want the world to know that I have hope for a better future and I want to transmit that through my music. I want to be a positive force of healing through complex music that helps people cope with emotional wounds and disheartened spirits. I also have a a concept called Down to Glam which is down to earth glamour. DtG is the crossroads of beauty and nature, it embraces authentic beauty and appreciation for the planet and the miracle of life on earth. I think music is a powerful tool that we can use to inspire higher frequencies of wholesome manifestation.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
My SoFlo getaway would be full of beach time and good food. I personally love spending time at the beach no matter what time of day it is, so needless to say the first day we are sleeping in, spending the afternoon at the beach by Hugh Taylor Birch State Park and then we are having grilled oysters for dinner at one of my favorite spots in Ft. Lauderdale: South Port Raw Bar. Day 2 would start with Argentinian empanadas from La Estancia in Aventura followed by a stroll at the mall, it’s so big and there are so many stores, they have one of my favorite places Lush, I adore their bath bombs. After a little shopping we would get dolled up for dinner at another great restaurant Carpaccio in Bal Harbour, they have the best grilled calamari with a heavenly red sauce. We would probably end the night with some star gazing at Sunny Isles beach.
Day 3 would be super musical, I would take them to the studio to have a little tour and meet the team, some of the most interesting people in my life, and then we would go to Wynwood and have some artisan paletas from Cielito and then go out and find a karaoke bar and end the night with sake bombs.
Day 4 would be a spa day, one of my middle school friends opened up Gaia spa in Weston so we would go do a full day of pampering with massages and facials and they even have salt rooms and other awesome amenities and then we would go have an early dinner at another awesome spot in FtLaud., Pirates Republic. This place feels like the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney, they even have a live parrot at the entrance. The food is delicious and super filling so we would end the day in a happy food coma.
Day 5 would be spent in the Keys with my parents and their catamaran VidaMar. We would get to watch the sunrise on the water and spend the day snorkeling and exploring the amazing underwater world and get the perfect tan.
Day 6 would be the most Miami day out of the whole week, we’d get brunch at Little Hen and then spend the day putting together the perfect outfits to go clubbing because if you can why not? lol
Day 7 would be a chill artsy day to wrap it all up. We would check out the Old Florida Bookshop in Dania, which is actually where I filmed some amazing scenes for my last music video. We would get boba tea at my favorite spot called Gong Cha and check out the Flamingo Road Nursery, its the biggest plant place I’ve ever seen they even have a bonsai garden and offer workshops. Then we would go to the Hard Rock guitar hotel, because its worth seeing and we would end the day painting canvases once again at the beach.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
They say it takes a village and let me tell you, that’s so true. There are so many amazing humans who worked together to bring my album to life! I would love to thank all of them starting with my manager Marlene Cassidy. I met Marlene because we used to be neighbors and her friendly dog Joshua got in my house one day. When Marlene and her husband Peter came over to finally get to know ourselves as neighbors, I sang a couple of Arias for them, like I tended to do for our dinner guests at the time. Being moved by my tone of voice, Marlene offered to help me brush up my resume and get me into contact with some potential connections. As she read my resume she gave me a call because she wanted to understand what I meant by fusing opera and pop. This resonated with her so much so that she started to develop me as an artist and helped me find who I am today.
I would also love to give a shoutout to my fantastic producer Julio Bague! When I met Julio, I had the strongest déjavù moment of my life. I felt like I had known him forever and when we finally got to flow in the studio, we created music so magical and genre-bending it blows my mind. Some of our recording memories are the most incredible moments I have experienced as of yet. The energy in the studio is incomparable and through this album I have been able to find my voice at the crossroads of Opera and Pop.
I’d also like to thank Flavio Carrillo, Cynthia Bague, and Manu Manzo. Flavio is the wonderful composer behind the heart touching melodies and Cynthia and Manu are my co-writers. Cynthia and I wrote the Spanish versions of these six songs in early 2022 to the themes and melodies Flavio would compose. We wrote the first song in February then in mid-Aril we met every week to write a new song before June. Thats when I went to Sicily for six weeks to participate in the Mediterranean Opera Studio & Festival. Once I got back, I met Manu at the studio and we started working on the translations. Finding the right tone to translate with was an adventure and a challenge but we found the best outcomes for the english versions of each song and I love them.
Another couple of incredibly talented humans I’d like to thank are Alfonso at RedDotRecording and German Landaeta at Phaseland Studios. These are the audio engineers behind the signature and luscious sounds of the songs on my album. It would not be the same without them. And of course a big shout to my parents for supporting every step of the way and the friends who believe in me, you inspire me every day.

Website: https://dreyastarr-epk.com/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/iamdreyastarr?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-garcia-b8b315179

Twitter: @iamdreyastarr

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iamdreyastarrs?mibextid=b06tZ0

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@iamdreyastarr

Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZEVXbMDoHDwVN2tF?si=GUw-ys0PRcexaZh4lt-QAQ

Image Credits
Carlos Rodriguez, Vomba