Marina posts her first original song "this is what a broken heart feels like", accumulating over 3 Million views. Previously posting only cover songs, this was her first time taking a chance at releasing an original.
October 30, 2018
This Is What A Broken Heart Feels Like
"This was the first time I was able to share my artistry and love for music beyond being a cover artist. This song was super special to me because I wrote it about a really difficult and unexpected breakup. I wrote it in 20 mins on a Friday night; all the lyrics and melodies just kinda came together. I didn't think anything of it when I uploaded it onto YouTube. But, to my surprise, millions of people were touched and were going through similar things. I gained more confidence to share more originals after I shared this song. And the rest is history."
Following the success of putting out her original song, Marina opens up about her struggles with mental health through her song "this is what depression feels like". This video resonated with her audience, as they too, faced similar struggles. To date, the video has received over 2.5+ Million views.
December 20, 2018
What Depression Feels Like
"Again, this song resonated with so many people. I was going through a rough depression after a breakup and had to double my antidepressants dosage. I shared how I lived through that experience and began creating a community where people were able to share their hardships in the comments. It was really eye-opening reading other people's stories – I know the song made them feel less alone, but I also felt less alone reading their comments."
Following the path of putting out original music, Marina released a lyric video to go with it. This was her first time ever putting out a video with animation, and was able to draw on her audience's love of anime to create it. The video has over 4.7 Million views.
December 27, 2018
This Is What A Broken Heart Feels Like (Lyric Video)
"I had never had a lyric video for any of my songs before. I commissioned an affordable artist on Fiverr because I had a really low budget, and it actually turned out really cool. It was so nice to see the words come to life through animations. I noticed a lot of my fans were interested in Anime and I saw my song being posted on nightcore, etc., so I decided to make the video anime-style, which really resonated with my audience."
Marina began exploring other creative mediums, and directed her first short film, "To My Future Girlfriend (LGBTQIA+ Short Film)", expressing her feelings towards her comfort with her sexuality and identity. This video has over 1.8 Million views.
April 9, 2019
To My Future Girlfriend (LGBTQIA+ Short Film)
"This short film contains everything from my feelings about love, to my identity. It was the first time I explored other creative mediums apart from music to share my experience about relationships and the things I looked for in a future partner. This video is super special because it was almost like a 'coming out' video. I really pushed myself out of my comfort zone to be on camera with another woman, and officially let my subscribers know, 'hey, I'm gay!'. It was a proud and very sentimental moment."
Following her original music on YouTube, Marina releases her debut album "a work in progress". This was the first time her fans were able to connect with her on platform outside of YouTube. Along with it, she released her first official music video "this is what self destruction feels like", which has over 200k views.
Spotify curated playlist support: Contemporary Blend, indie pop & chill, New Music Friday Canada, Fresh Finds: Indie, Fresh Finds, New Music Friday Malaysia, New Music Friday Iceland
February 7, 2020
A Work In Progress
"My album is super intimate and special to me…the collection of 10 songs and the theme 'this is what ___ feels like' contains really honest and vulnerable experiences I went through surrounding relationships, mental health, and self-esteem. I decided to share these songs because of the overwhelming response I got when I uploaded live/original versions of me singing them in my bedroom."
The album certainly connected with existing and new fans upon release, and has since amassed over 10 Million streams across all platforms globally. The song "this is what a broken heart feels like" has over 4 Million streams on Spotify alone.
February 7, 2020
A Work In Progress
"I didn't realize how many people were going through the same hardships I was. People started commenting that my songs helped them feel better, and that's when the idea of the album clicked. My inspirations came from my own personal experiences, and from other artists who talked about similar struggles. I really look up to JP Saxe, Sody, Sara Kays, Clinton Kane, etc., who write songs similarly to me."
During the pandemic, Marina continued to make music videos and covers "3 Minutes" by JP Saxe. She is recognized by him as he shares the video with his fans.
May 20, 2020
A 3 Minute Love Song for My Girlfriend
"During the pandemic, my girlfriend and I isolated up north in Quebec. It gave me lots of time to be creative and film this little music video. I covered a song called '3 Minutes' by JP Saxe and dedicated it to my girlfriend. JP actually tweeted out the video and loved the cover. I look up to him as a songwriter and his music really influences my lyrics and melodies."
Post-album release, Marina worked on music production and finding motivation in the midst of the pandemic. She started rediscovering her sound and found inspiration through her cover "you were good to me" by Jeremy Zucker & Chelsea Cutler.
July 17, 2020
You Were Good To Me
"Last year this time, I first faced a creative rut / a lack of motivation during the beginning of the pandemic. But after watching and listening to my favourite artists, I spent more time than ever writing music and even learning how to produce them. I really thought about what my next steps would be as an artist in terms of my sound. I started to write music inspired from artists like Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler. I decided to go back to my roots a bit and just do an intimate cover of one of my favourite songs called "you were good to me", and it helped me take that next step in terms of figuring out what kind of music I really wanted to put out there."
Marina teamed up with FRTYFVE for her song "this is what overthinking feels like", where she saw great DSP success, being added to their curated playlist of over 200k+ followers each and Spotify playlists as well.
FRTYFVE curated playlist support: Calming Acoustic, Songs To Cry To, Breakup Songs, why did these songs hit me so hard?, pov: you're crying in bed
November 20, 2020
This Is What Overthinking Feels Like
" 'this is what overthinking feels like' was a song I wrote that really resonated with me throughout the pandemic, even a year later. It was a step forward artistically after releasing my debut album, because some percussion and production elements made its intro to my usually acoustic/stripped music. PS: I hand-drew and animated all the animations in the lyric video myself! I teamed up with the team at FRTYFVE for this song and the Deluxe album. They saw a lot of potential in my music and signed the entire 'a work in progress' record. From there, a bunch of my songs were on their curated playlists and started gaining traction on Spotify's playlists."
Marina announces her new partnership – a label and management deal with Black Box Recordings. The launch single from her upcoming project is called "Anxiety Attack", and is coming August 2021.
Next For Marina
"My new music is still very much raw and real. I'm exploring new production elements that are really helping me shape my music and the story and message I want to get across. My connection with my audience is stronger than ever because they've witnessed me go through a very dark time in my life and make it out the other side. I still receive tons of DM's from people who are looking for advice and ways to cope with heartbreak, depression, and just life in general. These next few songs touch on all those things, and I hope it'll help even more people out there."