Quick Q and A with Danielle Miraglia
 by Kathy S-B  ·  14 November 2009

Danielle Miraglia is one helluva blues singer and songwriter. Watching her perform — her blonde hair flying from side to side, her stomping feet, her growling yet angelic way with lyrics, and her forceful way with a guitar all add up to one dynamic performer not to be missed.

Find out more about Danielle by going to her website. Check out this video of her in performance.

You have a background in creative writing. Did your college writing courses prepare you for lyric writing?

I’d say they contributed to the story-telling aspect of songwriting. The basic rules — each detail should bring the story along, show don’t tell. But I had to change the way I thought about writing when I started focusing on songwriting. There’s repetition and rhythm that you don’t get with straight prose. The challenge in songwriting is to say a lot in few words.

Tell us about your musical inspirations.

I’ve always been inspired by the ones who pour every bit of their heart and soul into it — no filters, pure and honest. I think music should get you in either the heart or the groin. The order of influences, not by importance, but more of a timeline from childhood up would go Prince — Guns n Roses — Janis Joplin — Beatles and Stones — Dylan — Mississippi John Hurt — Big Bill Broonzie… There are of course many more, but these are the ones that come to the top of the list as most significant. I found blues by way of classic rock and classic rock by way of hard rock. And Prince, well he’s just another thing altogether, but I’d say he falls into the “gets you in the groin” category. Probably shouldn’t have been listening to him at 8 years old.

Can you remember the first time you really “got” the blues?

I think it was a Sunday night and I had to get up early for school the next day. That gave me the blues.

But seriously, I don’t think it’s possible for anyone who didn’t experience what the originators of the blues did can truly “get” the blues. We can only be moved by the heart of it and express it in our own way.

Do you enjoy performing or recording more?

Without a doubt, performing. It could be that I do that a whole lot more often, but it just feels more natural.