Check out our interview with talented young singer and songwriter from Long Island New York Maria Labate. She has gone viral many times on social media singing at home, often with a ukulele or guitar, and has reached over 80,000 Instagram followers. She has collaborated with many different artists and Maria is releasing a new song titled “The Judge” on March 18th 2022.
Follow Maria @itsmarialabate
Hi Maria, Please tell us a little about you?
Hi I’m Maria Labate a 15 year old singer/songwriter from Long Island New York!
Describe yourself in three words
I would like to say i’m a pretty happy person haha, also ambitious and hardworking.
How did you get started in this business?
At 11 years old I had performed at a talent show on Long Island. I sang the “Circle Of Life” from The Lion King, dressed up as Rafiki and everything. I ended up winning 1st place and one of the prizes was the opportunity to visit a recording studio and get a free vocal lesson from one of the judges. I went to the studio, loved it, and decided I wanted to film a real video there. I recorded “Stone Cold” by Demi Lovato and posted it online, just for fun not expecting it to get anywhere. I noticed it started to get a lot of views and was put on huge repost pages, it ended up getting hundreds of thousands of views, and at that time that was HUGE for me. Today I have continued posting music content on social media and have been successful with that. I have had many more viral videos, and have surpassed over 85,000 followers.
How has this changed your life
It has changed my life a lot, but definitely for the better. It has given me a lot of confidence, a lot of self discipline, and a lot of motivation. Considering I have been juggling school and consistently creating content for the past few years I would say it’s given me good work ethic as well.
We’re sure you have been asked this million times but how did you get in this industry?
Sharing music online has really grown my audience and given me a lot of opportunities.
Describe your sound in three words
Low, powerful, soft
Those all sound like VERY different words but I would say they all apply to my sound in a way. I have a pretty low range for a female haha, I’ve always loved to belt out powerful songs, and recently the last year or two I’ve been really into singing soft songs as well!
Who influenced you and why did you choose to make music
Someone who really inspires me right now is Tate Mcrae, I think she is amazing and not too long ago she was just like me posting videos online singing in her bedroom so she definitely is very inspiring to me, and I’ve always loved singing and the idea of working on social media, so when that first video I posted did so well, I knew I wanted to continue with it and it was perfect for me.
Do you play any instruments?
Yes I play ukulele, guitar and i’m learning keyboard
Do you ever get nervous?
I am in public school and I definitely get self conscious a lot about people in my school seeing my music, and I think that is because I have been talked about negatively/ made fun of behind my back, I get nervous that people are going to think i’m conceited or a wannabe but honestly, I know what I’m doing, people can say whatever they want haha I really don’t care.
Tell us about your new single “The Judge”
“The Judge” is about overthinking, constantly worrying over unnecessary things, feeling like you are always messing up and in this song your brain is referred to as the judge.
What’s the story behind the song?
I tend to overthink a lot, I’m just always unnecessarily worrying about like irrational things. I even overthink my thoughts haha, so I wrote “the judge” about that struggle because I know a lot of people can relate.
What’s the most rewarding part of your work?
Ahhh probably all of the love from my supporters and seeing the hard work pay off.
What would you say are the greatest lessons you have learned so far?
Never let people stop you from working towards your goals, stay dedicated, and this quote sums it all up pretty well “ there is no elevator to success, you have to take the stairs”
Whats next for Maria Labate 2022?
A lot more original music!
Where can we follow you?
Instagram @itsmarialabate
Tiktok @marialabatemusic
