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Please explain what just happened.
Alanis Morissette came on the radio playing a hit from 1994, and then a very beautiful song came on. It’s called “All I Want,” by Kodaline. Pretty.
What is your earliest memory?
I think I was in some kind of oxygen tent. I remember the color yellow, and my mom.
If you weren’t a musician, what other profession would you choose.
Writer.
Describe a typical work day.
Like a lot of my other days.
Is there a time you wish you’d lied?
Can’t think of one.
What would you say to yourself if you could go back in time and have a conversation with yourself at age thirteen?
You have time.
If you could have only one album to get you through a breakup, what would it be?
So much of that depends on time and place but after one particular breakup I found a lot of comfort in the Ghostface Killah album, Ironman.
What are three websites—other than your email—that you check on a daily basis?
The Sartorialist, The Face Book, Democracy Now!.
From what or whom do you derive your greatest inspiration?
From being alive.
Name three books that have impacted your life.
Marjorie Morningstar, by Herman Wouk. It was my first novel, you know, that wasn’t a book for kids or adolescents. Needless to say, I never went back.
Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger. Maybe it’s a cliché, but I read this as a teenager and had never really read anything like it. The dialogue, the style, the language and the poetry of it, I was quite taken.
On my way to where, a book of poems by Dory Previn. Again, I read this in my early teens and boy, did it ever impact me. I think Dory Previn had a big influence on me actually. Such simplicity and such depth.
If you could relive one moment over and over again, what would it be?
I think the magic happens because moments are fleeting. Nothing lasts. That’s the beauty of it.
How are you six degrees from Kevin Bacon?
I know a bunch of actors so I’m easily 1 or 2 degrees away. I’m sure someone I know has been in a movie with the guy.
What makes you feel most guilty?
Being a jerk.
How do you incorporate the work of other artists into your own?
The work of other artists just seeps in. Thankfully.
Please explain the motivation/inspiration behind Exactly Nowhere.
I wrote some songs. I wanted to record the songs. I wanted them to sound certain ways. I wanted to release the songs.
What is the best advice you’ve ever given to someone else?
Drink water! That’s usually good advice.
List your favorite in the following categories: Comedian, Musician, Author, Actor.
Impossible. Too many faves. Thankfully.
If you had complete creative license and an unlimited budget, what would your next project be?
I’d probably plan a world tour. Get a bunch of sweet musicians involved and tour the world. Play all kinds of crazy places all over the planet. If we ended up making money we could donate it to a good cause so we’re not being totally selfish. There’d probably be a big arts festival involved as well.
What do you want to know?
A thing or two. Or three or four.
What would you like your last words to be?
Goodnight, my love.
Please explain what will happen.
To me? I’ll probably go get a drink and play some music.
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GENA PERALA is a multi-talented Vancouver songwriter, singer, poet, youth worker and bike polo player. Her style of music has been accurately described as “Jewel meets Peaches.” Her first solo album, This Ain’t Pretty, was released in 2008 and her solo album Exactly Nowhere is scheduled for a June 16th release.
Perala started by performing in the Vancouver Poetry Slam before bringing her love of writing and her love of singing together. She was cast as herself as a slam poet in the 2009 feature film Love Happens, starring Jennifer Aniston and Aaron Eckhart. Around that time, she won the “Rock the Vote” audio contest for her poem expressing the importance of voting. She has since performed for the United Nations, on the PNE Main Stage, at the Stanley Theater, up the East Coast, and all over Vancouver.
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