Musician Zachary Ray on his Latest Single ‘Cloud 9’

Those of you interested in the indie music scene will be aware of the exciting things currently happening in it across the board. A number of talented singers and musicians have been belting out single after single and keeping us music lovers thoroughly entertained. Mumbai-based Zachary Ray, an independent artist, just dropped his new single called ‘Cloud 9’, which is a peppy upbeat number he has made in collaboration with Shreya Bhattacharya and Bernard Dafney.

Zachary’s last release titled ‘Danger’ which featured Siddharth Basrur, did quite well and even spawned a remix version for which he collaborated with Jeanne Merchant. He is a prolific musician who releases and performs his original music consistently. ‘Cloud 9’ is his latest offering in English, and is a pop number which has been produced by Brandon Bee and Nelda Studios, best known as Justin Bieber’s producer.

Speaking about the song, Zachary says, “Cloud 9 speaks about the feeling of living through the hardest of days but being able to hold onto joy through them; thriving and not just surviving it, with the help of family and friends. One of my favourite lines in the songs is, ‘So I’ll hold up my head, no matter where I have been. So hold onto joy, it’s the best medicine’.”

Zachary Ray developed a passion for music and singing at a young age. This passion led him to study vocal performance and the business of music at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in USA. He sees music as a tool that can be used to bring transformation and healing for people around the world. For 12 years, he’s been using the gift of music to teach and train aspiring musicians. 10 out of those 12 years have been spent in India, using his experience and education to teach at the Calcutta School of Music. In 2015, he started a company called Chaitown Creatives which is now the Chaitown Community.

Zachary’s love for music led him to song writing and recording his original music, along with friends and artists like Jody McBrayer (Avalon), Nathan Walters (PlusOne), Angie Miller (Zealyn), and Brandon Bee. He lived in America for two years where he wrote and recorded his original music, but he’s now back in Mumbai, India and is working with multiple artists here and representing the Global Music Institute.

The other contributors on ‘Cloud 9’ are Bernard Dafney and Shreya Bhattacharya. Bernard is an actor, singer, director and acting coach. He has performed in several events and is featured in the TV series called ‘The Great Indian Murder’. He owns an acting training studio called Dafney Productions in Mumbai.

Shreya is a close friend of Zachary’s. She’s a vocalist who graduated from the Swarnabhoomi Academy of Music and is known for her versatile singing techniques in Jazz, RnB, Gospel, and Western Classical. Shreya prefers to sing Jazz, RnB and Neo Soul. She currently lives in Mumbai and is a very active performer there and around the country.

On the occasion of the release of ‘Cloud 9’, I spoke to Zachary in an exclusive chat. Here are some excerpts:

Q. Please tell us about ‘Cloud 9’ and your intention behind making it?

Ans: I wrote ‘Cloud 9’ with two of my friends Brandon Bee and Angie Miller in a studio in Seattle. We had this one phrase running in our heads, which was ‘Joy is the best medicine’ and that turned into a song we wrote about dealing with days when you just don’t want to get out of bed. Through the song, we wanted to share the idea of overcoming those days and feelings. I brought the song back with me to Mumbai unfinished.

Q. How did the collaboration with Shreya and Bernard happen?

Ans: I’ve known Shreya for a while and met Bernard recently in Mumbai. We’ve all sung together at different times, and I knew that ‘Cloud 9’ needed their voices on this track.

Q. What was the experience of working with them like?

Ans: It was a seamless and fun process. They are both incredible vocalists and are fun to work with.

Q. What do you do when you are on ‘Cloud 9’?

Ans: I mostly relax and enjoy the moments. Life is full of ups and downs and when Cloud 9 moments come, it’s good to cherish them and remind yourself of those moments when you’re not on Cloud 9.

Q. How has the single been received so far?

Ans: It’s done well and there’s been a lot of good reviews of the song.

Q. Would you like to share a message for the audience?

Ans: Above all, love each other, and ensure that joy is your best medicine.

Watch the video of ‘Cloud 9’ here and do share it with others who may enjoy it too:

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This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla.

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