Kallie Marie of Astoria on Life, Lessons & Legacy

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Kallie Marie. Check out our conversation below.

Good morning Kallie, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What is a normal day like for you right now?
A normal day for myself varies at the moment. Some mornings I am rushing out the door to pilates class, and other mornings are slower paced. Every morning, no matter what, I start my day by studying Italian on Duolingo- while I get caffeinated and wake up my brain. On days when I dont have to rush out the door, I often write down any dreams I had the night before, as soon as I wake up, and then start my day. I do my writing in the morning, so if I have any music or journalism work to do, I do that first thing in the day while I am fresh. I’ll usually break mid morning to practice guitar. Right now I am trying to practice twice a day; the first one being learning something new, and the later in the day, when I’ve got brain fog, will be speed exercises, and practicing my own songs that are already written, and awaiting recording. My afternoons tend to be a mixture of admin work, emails, and following up on little chores around my home. My evenings are sacrosanct. I will usually have an early light meal, catch up with friends- or spend some quiet time reading. Usually around 7pm I stow my phone away in the kitchen and it stays there for the rest of the night. A few nights a week I might be out and about in NYC, for music industry events, networking, checking out bands, or sometimes a recording session.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am a record producer, film/TV composer, and author. I’d say what makes me unique is my approach to each of these things. As a record producer I am known for my approach to pre-production, and the great care I take with the stewardship of an artists’ work. I oversee many aspects from their songwriting and sound design, to the recording engineering aspects in the studio, all the way through to post-production, including helping guide the artist to find the right mix and mastering engineers to suit their sonic vision. As a composer, my style is a unique blend of all things dark, textural, and it varies from electronic and minimalist, to modern classical and industrial rock. As a writer I am most known for my book, Conversations With Women In Music Production: The Interviews, which takes an intersectional feminist lens to the recording industry, which garnered a research award from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections. I am an active member of both the Audio Engineering Society and The Recording Academy’s Production and Engineering wing. Presently I am working on a re-mix EP of my recent album, Uncanny Valley, and am planning an acoustic EP in the coming year.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
I think this would have to be my teachers. My teachers all throughout my life have always seen my potential and I am forever grateful to them for investing in me. Whether it was a ballet teacher, or my middle school English teacher, all the way through to some of my high school teachers in both music and visual art, I’ve always been fortunate that they saw me, supported and encouraged me. When I got to university I continued to be blessed with wonderful instructors and mentors who really pushed me to my best.

When you were sad or scared as a child, what helped?
Thinking back, what helped was often one of my pets, a book, or sometimes my Game Boy. The pets were obviously the most comforting. They provided softness and warmth, some sort of connection, peace, and quiet. I had many pets over the course of my childhood-everything from dogs, cats, hamsters, to doves, lizards, snakes, crows, and ducks. I’d have to say my cat was closest to me, and often slept next to me. Sometimes when things felt like too much, I would retreat to wandering the backyard and climbing a tree. I would often like to read in a tree, or write little poems in a note book while I was up there. I have always loved reading and would spend hours daily with books. I even spent a lot of my school recesses in the library reading science fiction, horror, or poetry. As I got a little older I also found great solace in playing Tetris or some other video game to pass the hours until I felt better.

Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
I guess they might say music and integrity? I think they all know how dedicated I am to music, and how passionate I am about all its facets, but also that I care about all of the arts really. I care about the plight of artists and the arts. Maybe they’d say I care about fairness, and that I believe in doing the right thing, which is very often the hard thing, instead of the easy path; its that mixture of grit and kindness. I’d hope mostly that they’d say I care deeply about them, because I love them so much.

Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
I’d stop wasting time on my phone! In fact I should stop regardless. I think I would try very hard, if I had only 10 years left, to spend as much quality time with people I love, and finish as much music as possible. Honestly I really try to do this now, because there is no promised tomorrow.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kalliemarie.com
• Instagram: @DoomGolly
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kallie-marie/
• Twitter: @DoomGolly
• Soundcloud: https://www.soundcloud.com/kallie
• Other: www.patreon.com/kalliemarie

  https://kalliemarie.bandcamp.com

  Bluesky: @DoomGolly

Image Credits
Personal Photo: Joel Hamilton at Studio G

Image 2: Anon at Shelter Island Sound
Image 4 & 5. Joel Hamilton at Studio G
Image 6 Anon at Shelter Island Sound
Image 7 Dream Dont Sleep at Hyperballad Studios