Tyler: First of all, congratulations on signing with Tooth & Nail. How did this come about? Was it a long process or did it just come out of nowhere?
Elle: We have always been playing music cause we’ve grown up in a musical family, but this past year and a half, we got really inspired (mostly by listening to kids that write music; Jonas Brothers, Taylor swift, etc.) and we started to write music! It wasn’t succesful at first but after a while, the songs started getting better.
Shealeen: We met a tooth and nail A&R on a mini tour in November, he loved our music and he set up a showcase for us in january… it all started then.
Tyler. When news first came out about Poema being signed, a lot of the instant reaction seemed to be that people wanted to compare you to acts like Meg and Dia or Aly and AJ or maybe Eisley, but where do you see yourself compared to such groups?
Elle: I don’t really like being compared to other bands. I don’t think any bands do. I mean, its obviously gonna happen cause we’re two sisters that harmonize and there are other groups that do the same, but we try to be as original as we can be. For example, we saw that on most myspaces, they have (under “Band Members”) a picture of each person and what they do. and we thought, that’s kinda boring…let’s do videos instead! And we color on each CD that we burn to make them all different and unique.
Shealeen: I agree, those are great bands, and it’s an honor to be compared to them, but at the same time, we want to have our own sound and style.
Tyler. What are your plans for recording? Do you have a producer picked out and a target release date or is it all done already?
Elle and Shealeen: We’re going to be recording our EP in September with Aaron Sprinkle. No release date has been set yet.
Tyler. How about for touring, do you have something lined up for people to see you around the country before the album hits stores?
Elle: We are trying to get some shows set up around the southwest and we’ll probably be traveling and playing shows for the next few months.
Shealeen: These next months will probably not be to heavy with touring, but as soon as the EP’s released we’ll start touring probably full time.Tyler. What role do you think that your faith has in your music?
Elle: Without God, none of this would have happened. We didn’t even try to get signed and a record label (that we love) offered us a record deal! and so many other examples.
Shealeen: Everything. He’s made everything happen, we haven’t even tried. We know that all things are through through Him and for Him. We’re so blessed and honored to be in the place that we are.Tyler. What goals does this band have? Are you in it for the long haul, trying to make it big or just having fun while it lasts?
Elle: In for the long haul.
Shealeen: 100% long haul!
Tyler. When people talk about Poema, what do you hope they say about you?
Elle: I hope they like the music! we’ve gotten a few haters, like most bands do, and it sucks, but you need to accept that not everyone is gonna like the music you make.
Shealeen: We hope they love us!! We hope they think we’re original and fun! We want to make people happy with our music.Tyler. You just finished up your first Cornerstone Fest, how was it?
Elle: AMAZING! i loved it!! met some awesommmme people and we had so much fun.
Shealeen: Awesome! most fun i’ve had in a long time for sure!! we met so many people and saw so many bands we’ve never been able to see in new mexico.
Tyler. Thanks so much for answering our questions, is there anything our readers can pray for you?
Elle: Pray that we don’t fall into the temptations of the world and that we (i) stay grounded. Its hard to stay humble when all day you’re just reading “omg i love your music, you guys are awesome!”
Shealeen: Thank you! Definitely motivation and determination. Pray that we wouldn’t let anything stop us or slow us down.. The enemy always goes for people who are doing what God has called them to do, so we need strength and like Elle said, we need to be grounded in our faith.
You can check out Poema’s music at their myspace.
Used with permission from www.christianmusiczine.com