The lyrics of Dimash Qudaibergen’s recent premieres – compositions “When I’ve got you” and “Smoke” came from the pen of a young American author of lyrics Candice Kelly.
Speaking to DimashNews, Candice revealed that she was born in New York City and moved with her family to Florida at the age of 2 to the small town of Titusville:
“My town’s existence was credited to Kennedy Space center, where I witness numerous shuttle and rocket launches from NASA. Take off from my backyard. I transferred to my dream school to finish my Bachelor’s degree in Songwriting at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. The same as our producer, Dmytro Gordon.”
Candice learned about Dimash from her friend and colleague from the projects “Saints of Augustine” and “Only Saints” Dmytro Gordon. The Only Saints project was a mix of epic cinematic power ballads. Candice revealed that she has a few favorite Only Saints songs, including “Lions Den,” “Take me Alive,” and a few yet-to-be-released works.
“Dmytro mentioned he had been working with him, and show me Dimash’s live cover of that epic operatic song on the blockbuster movie “The fifth element”. Of course we were all blown away by his range and control over his voice. I think my jaw hit the floor after hearing him for the first time.
I was fortunate to meet Dimash in the studio when Dmytro had suggested we meet and possibly see if Dimash was “digging my vibe”, It was kind of a trial run to see if he liked any of my lyrical ideas and style.”
Candice said that before they started working together, she watched some live performances of Dimash on the Internet to catch his style. But by and large, everything was almost from scratch. However, it was the newness of perception that allowed her to have a fresh approach to creating something different from what Dimash had done before.
Two songs by Dimash, the lyrics to which were written by Candice, have already been released. The compositions “Smoke” and “When I’ve got you” were first performed at Dimash’s solo concert in Hong Kong and immediately caused a storm of emotions among the fans.
We asked Candice how working together on the song “Smoke” went:
“Dimash knows exactly how he wants his melodies to go and how he wants them sung. With his wide vocal range and complex rhythms, it was definitely a fun challenge to fit each word to sit just perfectly.
Once Dimash gave us a “thumbs up” on the concept . I would go in my quiet space and write. I always shared my initial lyrics with Dmytro and he would make suggestions, which helped me get the words to fall nicely, while making sure the lyrics would be acceptable to the demographic of Dimash’s listeners. Dmytro who is able to bridge the gap between the language barriers was a huge asset to the song’s success.
Dimash was very flexible with concepts, which made me really happy that he felt he could trust me to do his songs justice.
“Smoke” was led with the idea that he wanted a bad boy or gangster vibe. Again, he really gave me freedom to take this visual and run with it , especially learning how “hands on” Dimash is with every decision, regarding his songs.
My intentions for “Smoke” was to introduce a male character who is warning whoever he comes across, that he’s not to be reckoned with. This includes his love interests. He’s not claiming he’s going to save you or treat you right. It’s the complete opposite. It’s more of a warning of “enter at your own risk”. The character is upfront regarding his intentions and what your expectations should be. He’s a bad boy, and he definitely will break your heart.”
Comparing “Smoke” and “When I’ve got you”, we asked Candice if these works are from the same “opera” or are they completely different things? Is the main character of the lyrics Dimash, his alter ego, or is it a separate fictional story with no connection to his personality?
“I’d like to think there is even more to Dimash then we all have seen thus far. Each song exemplifies either another side or maybe a character. Dimash’s performances are magical and transports his listeners to different worlds in their imagination. I think he’s continuing to do that very thing with these new songs. His versatility is one of his major strengths.
I am more partial to the character in WIGY because it’s shows a masculine man who is showing that small vulnerable side to his love interest. For me, as a woman I find that seeing those small moments of vulnerability is the greatest form of intamacy.”
Candice also talked about working on some accents in the texts that have special meaning:
“I wasn’t present during the recording of the vocals, but Dimash is very intelligent and was able to execute the delivery of each lyric with the intention I had anticipated. I always try to throw in a few gems in the lyrics, for those listeners who really listen.
One particular moment we had to think about the words “Gateway to Heaven” from WIGY. We had to make sure we didn’t want to associate that phrase with death or dying, as I’m some cultures would associate. We had to consider the strong religious influences of the audience as well, as that can vary in different parts of the world.”
At the end of our conversation we asked Candice if there are any plans to continue working with Dimash.
“I would absolutely love to continue working with Dimash. I love working with International artists. I enjoy expanding my knowledge of different cultures because it can change how you approach writing for a particular audience.”