Tiffany Nicole Roth Throws A Party For The Weirdos
Tiffany Nicole Roth is a Sagittarius and the lead singer of Midnight Magic, a theatrical bi-coastal disco band that seamlessly weaves classic sounds of a recent past into modern moods of the near future. Jacques Smith recently caught up with Tiffany, who just moved back to her hometown of Los Angeles, to pick her brain about disco today and hear more about their new Album ‘Free From Your Spell’ that was just released on Soul Clap Records.
First off, what’s your favorite color ?
Seafoam Green
Why did you end up moving back to your hometown of Los Angeles ?
I returned to LA because all my family are here as well as friends that are basically family.
When did you begin your singing career?
It started when I began taking lessons from my grandfather. He was an opera singer first, and then he began to teach. He taught all of my cousins, aunts, uncles; my mom kind of forced me, but then I got super into it. My older sister is a singer as well.. and my mother. Its in the family, we all sang. In the kitchen, in the shower.. we all sang.
How was Midnight Magic formed ?
I met Morgan Wiley in Los Angeles, I am really good friends with his sister and they introduced us. We started to make some music together, kind of joking around, just the two of us. Then he moved to New York and told me to come too. So I moved there in 2005. Midnight Magic was first called Fidelio, which was the password that they say in Eyes Wide Shut. So bad.. Then it went into a direction we didn’t want it to go, and in 2008 we formulated Midnight Magic.
Tell me a little bit about your song writing process.
Morgan is very prolific so he’ll start with a beat and a bass line. And then i’ll sing over it, coming up with different melodic ideas. The lyrics are mainly me; Morgan starts with a beat and then I will let the feelings and emotions of the music influence my ideas and poetry.
What is your most memorable tour moment or performance?
This one time we were in Copenhagen, we just played an outdoor show in a small amphitheater. Then afterwards, they told us there was this underground party in a pedestrian tunnel sub-street nearby and that we should play. So we set up and plugged into this faulty outlet underground in this tunnel, and literally, it was so faulty that almost every time I put the mic up to sing i was electrocuted ! It was so fun, one of the best shows that I’ve experienced. This was around 2012.
What are some of your biggest creative influences ?
Yayoi Kusama, Sylvester, Buster Keaton, Dali, Mae West, Anne Margaret, Divine, John Waters.. wow.. I have so many…
What does Disco mean to you ?
My personal definition for disco and what I hope it means for other people is party for the weirdos. Everybody. No exclusivity or elitism. Including everybody, all the freaks. It has been redefined these days; It means celebration.
How many band members have you slept with?
None! Zero! I don’t shit where I eat.
Fuck Marry Kill: Cher, Donna Summer, Rihanna.
Marry Donna Summer, Fuck Cher, Kill Rihanna
What is the concept behind this new album that you are about to release?
The album is called “Free From Your Spell,” and i think thats symbolic of the next chapter, growth, moving on, and allowing yourself to get beyond all of your neuroticisms and free yourself! And see what kind of new shit comes out of you.
After this album release, what’s next ?
I hope we have the pleasure of touring really. That is my favorite thing ever, is touring. We have a really good time.
Any last words?
Free your mind, and your ass will follow.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Sequoia Emmanuelle @sequoiaemmanuelle
STYLIST: Alexandra Mandelkorn @mandelkorn
HAIR: Sabrina Burns @sabrina_rana
MAKE-UP: Debra Macki @debramacki
PRODUCTION + INTERVIEW: Jacques Smith @kunstmode
