What’s Real Is Enough: Janita on Music, Meaning, and Survival

There’s something undeniably magnetic about Janita, an artist whose presence feels both cinematic and intimate, like stepping into the pages of a noir dream. Born in Finland, reborn in New York, and forged in the fires of relentless self-discovery, Janita is more than a singer-songwriter – she’s a force of nature.

With her tenth album “Mad Equation” freshly released on ECR Music Group (a label she co-owns), she invites listeners into a sonic world shaped by stark realism, existential wonder, and a refusal to compromise. We caught up with her to explore the philosophies, obsessions, and slow-burning rituals behind her music and to discover what it truly takes to craft beauty from chaos.

I’m sure fans would love to know more about your backstory. How did you all come together, and what was the journey that led you to form this band?

Well, I did have to put myself together to get where I’ve gotten to, but it’s just me, isn’t it? Janita. But seriously, I started my career in Finland as a teenager, moved to New York at 17 to continue pursuing my career internationally, and have been making records throughout. My tenth record, “Mad Equation,” was just released on ECR Music Group, a record label I’m a co-owner of.

Although I’m a solo artist, I do perform with a band of extraordinary NYC musicians–an all-star band, really: my producer (and recording artist in his own right), Blake Morgan on guitar, recording artist Miles East on drums, and the incomparable Justin Goldner on bass. And I myself play guitar and piano too.

What’s the elevator pitch for your music? In a few words, how would you convince someone to listen to your music for the first time?

Someone (well…SPIN Magazine) just recently called my music “noir rock”, and I like that description. I’m a fan of film noir myself, and in my opinion, the word ‘noir’ emphasizes that this isn’t just any old kind of rock music; it’s got a mysterious melodic and musical angle to it. My music is my own concoction, my own melange of inspirations and influences, with some unexpected and surprising combinations. Go ahead, investigate, you stealthy detective you.

Is there a specific philosophy or worldview that influences your music? What do you want people to think about or feel when they listen to your songs?

I’m into facts and reality. I think that what’s real is so much more interesting than any dreamed-up fantasies and religions that people have come up with over the centuries and millennia. I only have to look around me at the natural world, or at staggeringly beautiful photos of the cosmos that surrounds us, to experience wonder.

Look at the magical world we live in! Nothing additional is required. And yes, my worldview does influence my music – even if these ideas aren’t necessarily overtly stated in it. Who I am and the thoughts I harbor are intrinsically woven into the fabric of my lyrics and my music. I simply hope that my music resonates, connects, and speaks to people in a personal way. Other great artists’ music has meant so much to me over the years. I, too, want to contribute in a meaningful way.

When you start working on a new project, like “Mad Equation,” do you already hear the music in your head, or do you prefer to experiment and see where it takes you?

I imagine that someone like Mozart had the whole opera in his head when he started composing it. Maybe. My songs come to me one by one, usually over a longer period. It can feel like a jigsaw puzzle putting it all together, but in the end, songwriting always feels like a process of discovery to me.

It feels like uncovering what was supposed to be there all along, as if the thing already existed somewhere in the ether, and I just needed to pull it out and put it all together. Kind of like Michelangelo said about his statues: “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it,” or this: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” That’s exactly how I feel about the process – not just of songwriting, but of production too.

For this release, what was the creative process like? Were there any unexpected twists or challenges that shaped the final outcome?

The songwriting process is time-consuming. It takes space and time to come up with fresh ideas, and also to come up with the right answers to the problems and challenges that present themselves in the process. You can’t rush it. Well…I can’t rush it. I do have a monthly Artist Night – a get-together with a couple of close artist friends who I have a lot of respect for, where we each get to workshop our songs, poems, or whatever it is we’re working on.

It really helps, so I don’t feel so alone in the process. They may help me figure out what still needs to be worked on, or if I need to switch around some parts in the song, etc. They also help me to realize it when something really works! Sometimes one can get a bit blind/deaf to one’s own work, and it helps to share it with others to get a clearer perspective.

Do you have any reference tracks or artists that serve as your creative compass when producing new material?

Absolutely. There are many artists and bands whom I admire, and whose work I know deeply, that I refer back to when it feels appropriate. If I have a particular drum idea in mind, it may be helpful in communicating the spirit of it to my drummer or my producer through playing a particular track that’s relevant and similar in some ways to what we’re working on.

The references tend to be different for each of my albums, but the artists often get revisited. Some of my creative compasses for ‘Mad Equation’ were The Smile, The Beatles, Blonde Redhead, Serena Maneesh, Bjork, Meshell Ndegeocello, The Police, The Prodigy, Elliott Smith, and Radiohead. That’s a short list.

Do you have any personal rituals or habits that get you into the creative mood? What role do things like food, lighting, coffee, or even literature play in your process?

Honestly, no. The important thing is to get to it and to do the work. There are no tricks, gadgets, or special foods that come into play for me. I like a good cup of coffee, but it’s not required to get the creative juices flowing. Getting into a routine of working creatively and artistically is important, though, because once your brain is wired that way, it starts happening automatically.

During a songwriting process, for example, I may be working on a lyric everywhere I go. I can’t get it out of my head. If I’m walking down the street, going to the supermarket, taking a shower, it’ll be there, in my mind, and I’ll be working through the kinks. But none of that happens unless I’m in the right mindset, wired that way for a lengthened period.

The routine has to be built over time. One can fall out of it easily, too, and the creative juices stop flowing. It requires consistent work to keep it going, and frankly, there are long periods in my life where other things take precedence, and I don’t have access to that songwriting headspace. And that’s ok. Life goes in phases, and each phase requires its own focus. That’s my experience.

What would you say are the biggest distractions for you when trying to create music? How do you overcome them?

These are interesting questions! I would say that life and its daily requirements are the biggest distractions. Every day, there are expected and unexpected constraints on my time, and time is the most important requirement when it comes to the artistic process. You have to be able to carve out time. And if I can go all artist advocate on your ass for a moment: us artists have been put into a precarious place, in that we don’t get paid fairly for our work.

This leads to a problem regarding time. We have to juggle so many balls simultaneously that it can be very challenging to find time to do the artistic work. It’s a real problem for a lot of us. And actually, I don’t know how to overcome that particular “distraction.” Developing and maintaining a career as an artist is genuinely challenging.

Time for a little fun! What are some of your guilty pleasures? Whether it’s a song, a food, or even a quirky hobby, share with us something that people might be surprised to know about you.

I’m a big fan of pastries and cakes, and I have quite a sweet tooth. I indulge it regularly, in celebration. For example, after a successful concert or tour, I will always have a Day of Jubilee, during which I’ll reward myself with delicious food and drink, pastries and/or cakes included. And chocolate, of course. But are these really guilty pleasures? Not really. I’m owning them.

What are some unexpected things – be it a book, a film, or an activity – that inspire your creativity and keep you motivated?

My favorite film is ‘All the President’s Men.’ During Trump’s first term as president, I watched it regularly to soothe myself. Currently, I’m beyond soothing, and I don’t know that this film would do it. Nevertheless, I love the look of it, the feel of it, the style of it, and it’s an escape to a different time for me. That allure will never go away. The world of this film is one I’ll always want to go back to.

And artistically, it inspires me, right down to the movie’s font. On the book side of things, Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations has been a source of perspective for me, over and over again. Every time I go back to it, I discover something new, or I look at the thoughts and ideas presented in a different way. The book stays the same, but I change and see it differently.

What do you envision for your future as an artist?

I’ve grown a lot as an artist, and that’s what I intend to do in the future too. I look forward to doing exciting, interesting work in music, reaching the top of my capacity in my craft, and staying there for as long as I can. Music and art have always been the things that have sustained me and brought my life meaning and hope. They’re going to have to drag music out of my cold, dead hands.