Interview: A Little Q&A With Adam Barta

I don't think I have ever been more impressed with an artist I've interviewed before. I've known about Adam Bart for a while now and always found his music enjoyable, but after a closer look, I found out that he not only is a talented writer, but also has more connections in the New York area than any body else I've ever spoken to. No, really. If they are on TV and from New England, he probably knows them. It's time for us to drop more names in ten minutes that Pollo Del Mar!

Normally when I speak with an independent artist, I ask them to tell me a bit about themselves, but your resume really speaks for itself.

Thanks. It's been a long journey.
  
You worked with Kathy Sledge on your last single. The song was crazy popular, but how does it feel to release such a solid track on your own again?

The funny thing is, Q&A was recorded two years prior to the song I did with Kathy Sledge. I worked with a music label that went defunct. While there, I recorded Q&A at the same time as VIP, and the record label chose for me to release VIP. I've had the song in my catalog for years, and even though it's been on top 40 radio and shows like Bad Girl's Club, it's never been officially released. I finally gained control of the song, and decided to put it out myself. I knew that after the huge song with Kathy that I had to bring something out that I knew would do really well.

It must have been stressful knowing you had such an amazing song but couldn't do anything with it for two years!

It was doing well on it's own, actually. I view it as a good thing because it was two years that it was able to spread, and I was able to see peoples reactions ahead of time; see how strong it was. For most artists, it takes a song six months to a year to really catch on, and I think that I've already got that process out of the way now.

Q&A has a massive style change from your previous singles, especially VIP. What made you explore R&B styled music?

The record label I was working with at the time didn't want me to be limited by dance music. They gave me the opportunity to test out my vocals and give a hand to my songwriting abilities.

You wrote the song? Was it something that actually happened to you?

At the time I was going through a breakup, and writing was a good way to get out my emotions. Party and dance songs really weren't an outlet because nobody wants to hear about heartache on the dancefloor. The style change and the events in my life lined up and allowed me to write this song.


Have you kept writing since your experience with Q&A?

Everything from Q&A on I have written. I wrote Q&A, VIP, Give Yourself Up, an unreleased track called Rock My World -- most of my set now are songs I've written. The only songs I haven't written in my set currently are I Wanna Hold You and Standing In The Rain with DJ Russ Harris, both of which I am very glad to have in my musical library.

In the future, do you see your musical style more in line with Q&A or VIP?

I think it will be a combination. Dance music is the core of my artistry. It's what I love -- I grew up listening to it and loving it. It's who I am and what I love to do most. There is a part of me that loves that R&B kind of vibe, too. I may not be a great rapper or have the soul of Marry J Blige, but what I do have is the vocal talents and emotion of Adam Barta, and that is what I want to bring to the genre. I want to revisit this style and improve on it.

You are becoming the King of Cameos with your videos. Give Yourself Up had a few, but Q&A's list is huge!

It's been called the gathering of the D-List celebrities, which we all find hilarious, but, yes, the list is pretty big. We got Lisa Lampanelli, Robear, Miguel Allure, Michael Musto, and Kerry Schwartz who I'm surprised you recognized.

I'm a closet Vh1 Celebreality fan.

Yup. She was on Frank The Entertainer's show.


The big name for the video is definitely Lisa Lampanelli. She was a top dog this season on Celebrity Apprentice, which is huge right now. How did you land her?

She and I were both slated to work an event called Night of a Thousand Gowns, a huge fundraiser with lots of drag queens to raise money for PFLAG. Lisa was the headliner, and the two of us hit it off while doing promotions for the event on Sirius XM radio. I knew we were going to be filming at the event, so I went ahead and asked her if she would be in my video. Logically, I figured she was tied up in contracts that wouldn't let her appear, but we made it happen.

And it is such good timing, too, given her great success on Celebrity Apprentice.

We actually joke about the show. There's a line in the video where I ask her to set me up with Clay Aiken. My editors didn't want to put it in because they thought nobody would get it, but I finally convinced them to keep it. The joke is current and relevant and I really think people will think it's funny.

About your other cameos, you were surprised that I knew who Tone Tone was. Let me tell you that I watched Cake Boss religiously for the first two seasons.

He's a good friend of mine. I'll be sure to let him know you are a fan. He has some cool stuff coming up, so be sure to keep your eye on him in the near future.

 I'm also going to have to confess that I have a huge crush on RoBear from NY Ink. How do you know him?

He's become a good friend of mine, too. I don't know if anybody knows this, but I shot an episode of NY Ink last season, which unfortunately never got to air because the show got canceled, and since then we have kept in touch and became good friends. He's also got some interesting things coming up, so don't forget about him, either.

Before we move on, is there anybody else in particular  you'd like got give a shout out to as far as the video goes?

I think the biggest shout out needs to go to my director Loren Christiansen. He has been a superstar producer, director, and editor in this video. The artistic quality has been upped so much from the last video to Q&A, and he is the one to thank for that.

I'd also like to thank Kim G from The Real Housewives of New Jersey for letting us use her condo as our filming location for the alone segments.

Now that we've dropped every name in New York, let's move on to the video itself. What is the plot of the video?

The obvious direction it could go in would be a love song between two people. Instead, we went with the concept of being in love with fame. Today's "fame" is all about having viral videos, being in tabloids, and being on TV. That's what people are in love with, and they will do anything to get famous. The video has two realities: One is me on stage at a grand event in front of thousands of people, and the second is the actual journey. You see me alone and struggling, being rejected by everyone. This causes me to write the song Q&A which boosts my fame in the video.

What has the reception been from those who have seen the video?

Everyone is impressed by the quality of the video itself. It is much more cinematic than my previous works. It's an actual story, and I think people can watch it over and over and find something new and metaphorical each time. Everyone has really been bragging on it, and telling me it's my best video to date.

Well I will be watching it over and over again to see RoBear over and over again.

[Laughs]
I'll be sure to let him know you're a fan.

I know that Q&A is the main focus for now, but what else does 2012 have in store for Adam Barta?

I wish I could give the details right now, but all I can say is that I'm doing a song with a major reality TV star. I can't say who yet, but we are going to come out with a hot summer jam together. I also shot a pilot for a reality show with Kim G, Michael Lohan, Angelina from Jersey Shore, Derek From The A-List New York, and sever others about reality stars being shown in a different light and doing something very unusual.

Check out Adam's amazing new video featuring all the above celebrity cameos and more. Love it? Hate it? See something I missed? Comment below and let me know! And don't forget to follow Adam on Twitter and let him know, too!