Artist Profile #01: Corinne Caza
The Canadian singer-songwriter creates music that provides sunshine for your human ears.
Five years ago, during the global pandemic, Mustard decided to create an account on social media platform TikTok. They, along with their human intern (now assistant) were on a quest to learn more about humans. That quest is still ongoing. With each interview they do they learn more about how complex and messy being a human is.
While seeking this knowledge Mustard found themselves (or perhaps the algorithm was pushing them towards) the independent music community on the platform. It was Hootie and the Blowfish’s “Only Wanna Be With You” that made them fall in love with music. Knowing the power of the algorthim it probably already knew that. Mustard was grateful to discover independent artists from across the world. Without them - Music Shelf does not exist.
There is one artist, five years later, that Mustard still keeps in touch with and listens to almost every day. They are who Mustard would like to highlight in today’s profile: Corinne Caza.
Corinne Caza has always wanted to be a musician. She shared with Mustard that:
Yes. I’ve always known I was a singer. It felt like a very natural thing for me. I think I started singing before I started speaking haha! As for making it a career, I would look at my favorite singers, and think “if they have done it, then it can be done, and I’m gonna do it too.”
Caza is a graduate of Berklee College of Music with a Bachelors degree in Communication Studies.1 They wrote their first song at seven years old about Santa Claus.2 Corinne grew up in a very supportive environment where music was always a constant. That enviroment has helped shape Corinne into the musician (and human) they are:
I’m a huge dreamer. I spend a lot of time in my head and imagination, and even more when I was a kid. So dreaming big, storytelling, songwriting, musicals, dancing- it all was (and is!) a huge part of my life. I grew up in a house where my family loved all kinds of music. It was everywhere all the time, in all languages: French, English, Spanish, Italian! And even though they weren’t musicians themselves, my parents were big fans of music. My mom has a very high sense of artistry and would always encourage and nurture that part of me, being with me every step of the way literally to this day and my dad drove me to all my concerts, from the biggest theatres in the city to busking in the metro. And I was so lucky to be able to experience all of this with my brother who was my first and my favorite duet partner, I always say, if you know me, you know them because they’re at every single one of my concerts.
Being from Montreal Caza’s music is infused with her multicultural upbringing which helps make her stand out. When asked if she could recall the first song she fell in love with Caza said:
I don’t exactly know, but as far as I can remember, it’s I Am a Girl like You from Barbie’s Princess and the Pauper that comes to mind. I was obsessed with this movie. I must have watched in thousand times, and it came with a CD of all the songs and I would listen to it on the way to school every morning. I watched the movie in French but the CD was only in English so I knew both versions by heart.
Now as an adult artists such as Taylor Swift, Salvatore Adamo, and Dalida influence her. You can hear elements of her multicultural heritage in her debut single “So I Dance” which features lyrics in Spanish; one of the many languages she is fluent in. Caza has the ability to transition from various languages in their music without it ever feeling out of place; the rhythm of her music flows fluently.
This is a song that holds a special place in Caza’s heart. It is the first song they released and contains the magic of what makes their music exceptional. There is an underlying warmth in Caza’s music that stays with you. In a time when the world is burning Caza’s music provides us the comfort (and good energy) that is needed to push us through to the next day with more hope than we had before.
Following the release of “So I Dance” Caza released “When We Get Younger” and “Timeless” which she considers to be siblings. In an interview with Moosic Entertainment she said that the song “is all about letting the child in you be, finding your innocence again.” That good energy that Mustard spoke about before can be found in each of these releases. It is a consistent (and welcomed) element within their work. Both of these were released in 2020 during the pandemic.
Mustard remembers coming across Caza promoting “Timeless” while doom-scrolling on TikTok and becoming hooked. Caza, like other independent artists on the platform, did what they could to get their song heard. They used hashtags, participated in trends, and hoped it would reach interested ears.
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“Timeless” is a song that Mustard listened to on repeat. That has not changed five years later. Back when Mustard was active on the platform they would try their best to highlight independent artists such as Corinne Caza in a silly manner. Even though their current account is deactivated Caza still has up a “stich” of one those promotional videos they used to do which she shared with her audience.
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As the global pandemic continued to reshape the human experience Corinne released TILTED which acts as an act of hope of resilience. Even as we continue to experience hardship throughout the world TILTED serves as a battle cry to remain strong. They want us to be exhausted; apathetic to the destruction they cause and create but we cannot allow them to win. As Caza states in the chorus of the song:
Oh, heaven
Give me back my wings
I need a reason
A way of escaping
Somehow, I’ll rise up
When the ground is crumbling
I’m a little tilted but still strong
Like a tower that still stands tall
Oh, heaven
Even though the ground is crumbling it is the responsibility of the human to rise up and combat against fascism and systems in place that do not provide support or benefits for its citizens.
Three years later, during the height of summer, Caza released one of the most relaxing and soothing songs your human ears will have the pleasure of listening to: Following The Ocean Breeze. That is just one condiment’s opinion but they believe listening to Following The Ocean Breeze will inspire you to call your travel agent and book yourself that holiday you have always talked about.
Following the release of this single Corinne shared an exclusive live performance with her band on her official YouTube channel. Caza has amassed a following of 1.52K YouTube subscribers who consistently engage with and support her work. As you will see below Corinne Caza puts on a captivating performance that hooks you in from the first melody.
Caza’s vocals in this performance (and their other work) has a soothing effect; you feel safe and relaxed while listening to her. She could transform something like the alphabet into a song that will emotionally move you.
Following the release of Corinne’s tropical anthem comes the first of three romantic songs that will motivate and inspire you to say something to that human you have a crush on. Perhaps after speaking to them, thanks to Corinne Caza, you will fall in love and adopt 23 dogs and open a shelter. The possibilites are endless.
“To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” is a classic love song with a twist. Caza dedicated the song to “the not-so singles, the singles, and the pringles.” This song is perfect for the hopeless romantic in your human life. Like with the previous single Corinne released another live performance that once again highlights how exceptional she is as an artist.
As Mustard mentioned previously; this was the first of three love songs that Corinne Caza released. Perhaps you did not share your feelings with that human who has caught your eye. Following “To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before” comes “Tempting Too” which could act as your soundtrack to future beautiful mistakes and learning that life has both smooth and rough edges.
You know that you probably shouldn’t but “Tempting Too” gives you that extra nudge to just go for it. It may not go in your favor but that comes with the beauty of the journey. Summer is the perfect time to release that free spirit you have repressed.
All of this leads us to Corinne Caza’s newest release: Wanted Sign. Wanted Sign feels a lot like Caza’s debut single “So I Dance.” It is upbeat, will inspire you to dance wherever you may be, and has that underlying warmth and sunshine that is infused throughout her discography. On “Wanted Sign” Caza is on the search for someone with “wide eyes and empathy.” Mustard has observed that these are valuable traits in a human.
Mustard has learned that humans seek certain traits in a potential partner. Each human is looking for something specific within a human. If a human does not have those traits there is a possibility that a relationship may not develop. On this Caza wonders if you are the one in the million she has been looking for.
For this release Caza put together a super fun music video that matches the vibes of the release. Corinne radiates a genuine wholesome energy that we desperately need to counteract how grim the rest of the world is. As she describes it this song is candy for your human ears.
Corinne Caza is an exceptional singer-songwriter and performer. As Mustard shared in their “Album of the Week” article about Carly Rae Jepsen - pop music is a genre that easily gets written off. Popular may be in the name but because of that it is assumed that this genre lacks nuances other genres are considered to have. Because of this our determined assumption work against the genre.
Pop music is full of life and energy. It triggers dopamine and serotoin within the human mind that makes us feel joy. Mustard believes that listening to Corinne Caza will trigger that dopamine and provide you with that sunshine on those cloudy days.
https://www.corinnecaza.com/about
https://moosicentertainment.com/2020/11/24/corinne-caza-interview/