JVNA talks debut album “Hope in Chaos”

Words and photography by Jina Kim

“”Hope in Chaos” is written about a time of instability where I was going through so many rapid changes at once – breakups, death of father, graduating from college, entering the entertainment industry. I’m now at a pretty mentally stable part of my life and in a way, writing this album is my way of processing my journey to adulthood.”

Although Jana alias JVNA and I are friends, prior to meeting her I was simply a fan of her music. Our friendship evolved almost serendipitously and I’m thankful to have been able to watch her grow into the incredible artist she is today. I can unbiasedly say that she poured her heart out into writing this album. Not only has her work evolved but she has also grown tremendously as a person and was able to incorporate that growth into each one of her songs.

Jana and I sat down together in Mexico as she explained the meaning behind each track and I hope she was able to convey her story in a way that touches you in the manner she intended.

Tracklist

Where You Are
JVNA: Where you are is about wanting someone back in your life even if they’re gone. It’s a track about questioning what went wrong and overthinking if you could’ve done something different in the relationship to keep it from falling apart. Where You Are” is my personal favorite because I just think the drop is so beautiful. This was the most precious song on the album to me since I spent so much time on it trying to get it to sound exactly the way I envisioned it. When I produced the drop, I thought of wildfires, bursts of emotions, screaming off into a cliff, and a kaleidoscope of chaotic colors. It was important for me to get the sound and the feeling right and thus is also my favorite song from the album.

Ghost
JVNA: This song is about the feelings I get when I first start dating someone. I don’t know if they’ll stay in my life or disappear like a ghost. We’ve all been ghosted by people we care for in our life. It’s painful but as long as we keep our heads up and ourselves surrounded by true friends and family, we’ll be ok

Breakdown
JVNA: Breakdown is about being in a toxic, controlling, and draining relationship where the relationship only works if it’s one sided where you have to overcompensate for them.

Sins
JVNA: This track is one of the darker/harder tracks of the album. It definitely is difficult for me to be extremely honest and detailed about the stories behind my lyrics, which is why sometimes I like to keep it a bit more metaphorical and vague through the lyrics and production. For example, “Sins” is actually about my relationship with my parents. They grew up fighting and so, I naturally had a very disoriented relationship with my father. For a while, I struggled with guilt because the last conversation I had with my father was a fight. In the drop of “Sins,” I produced sounds of pans and dishes clashing – like a child hearing their parents fight in the kitchen. Towards the end of the song, I transform the song from a minor to a major key to evoke that I have emotionally come to terms with it and sing “in my heart you will live on.”

“…we all live in a dystopia in some way in our phones. It’s a norm we have to live through but as long as you can keep your head in reality and remember to love yourselves and take it easy…”

18
JVNA: As of now, there aren’t that many female electronic producers who make electronic melodic bass/pop so I always try to write music and tell stories in the EDM scene through a female voice and perspective. The song that has the most emotion behind it is probably my song “18”. This song is about the dangerous box of impurities that come with turning 18. You are immediately legally able to be sexualized by others. My lyrics ‘will you cut your face just to be pretty?’ is about the plastic surgery industry and the unrealistic beauty standards that many young women like myself have wanted to attain. ‘You say I want to be naughty’ is a really direct line about the cringe messages I’ve gotten in my DMs as a high schooler from older men. It is an overall song about how I felt transitioning into adulthood as a woman and also a turning point in the album.

Bullseye
JVNA: As a producer & singer-songwriter, it is crucial me to try new things with my music so I am so excited to share my first Psy-Trance inspired song with you all! ‘Bullseye’ is about going through a rebirth from a dark place in your life and letting it fuel you with ambition and passion.

Hope (Interlude)
JVNA: Starting from this point of the album, the healing process begins. I use this song as a transition this song from Bullseye to At Least It Was Fun. When I composed this, I thought of a dreamy sunrise dawning light into the world. The sounds are very inspired by video game soundtracks … almost zelda and kingdom hearts like haha.

“We all face troubling situations that may break us down at the moment but these experiences build and shape who we are today. It’s just how life is.”

At Least it Was Fun
JVNA: At Least It Was Fun’ music video out now. I wrote this song while I was going through a stressful time to calm myself down. At the time I felt like I had no one but myself to seek comfort. I had to tell myself “calm down, it’s gonna be ok. These feelings will go away” and “no you’re not weak for crying”. This song is about facing the unknown, battling your inner demons, handling anxiety, and moving on to new chapters in your life. We all face troubling situations that may break us down at the moment but these experiences build and shape who we are today. It’s just how life is. As long as you try to keep a positive mindset & move on with whatever hurt and pain you’ve been through – when you look back you might laugh in retrospect and say at least it was fun.

Dystopia
JVNA: This song is about being online, watching the news and media, and experiencing the consequences of the internet. Whether it’s comparing yourself to someone perfectly photoshopped or seeing the news in utter chaos, we all live in a dystopia in some way in our phones. It’s a norm we have to live through but as long as you can keep your head in reality and remember to love yourselves and take it easy, we’ll be ok!

True Colors
JVNA: “True Colors” is about getting to know someone, experiencing feelings of joy, having butterflies in your stomach, and getting ready and excited to know the person’s true colors. It’s a feeling I get when I start to fall in love and is probably the happiest song of my album!

Fly
JVNA: “Fly” is the last song of the album! In the first song of my album “Chaos”, I speak the lyric “Hope and faith for if I ever fall off, I’ll soar among the chaos”. I wanted to write a song inspired by the imagery of flying to evoke feelings of freedom, peace, and happiness. “Fly” lyrically is about being okay with yourself, doing whatever you want, taking it easy, and letting your soul fly to wherever it wants to go.

Listen to “Hope in Chaos” on Spotify

“Hope In Chaos Tour”
(more dates TBA, info and tickets here):

Feb 19 – The Republik – Honolulu, HI, United States
Feb 26 – Fonda Theatre – Los Angeles, CA, United States
Feb 27 – The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco, CA, United States
Mar 03 – Sessions Music Hall – Eugene, OR, United States
Mar 04 – Neumos – Seattle, WA, United States
Mar 05 – 45 East – Portland, OR, United States
Mar 12 – The Loft – Minneapolis, MN, United States
Mar 24 – Mod Club Theatre – Toronto, ON, Canada
Mar 26 – Liquid – Madison, WI, United States
Apr 02 – The Studio at Webster Hall – New York, NY, United States
Apr 08 – The Church – Denver, CO, United States