Episode 85: Kalysta Flame

Hello magical friends, especially my magical patrons, who make these interview episodes possible.

Today’s special guest is the glamorous Kalysta Flame!

I know you can’t wait to hear what she has to say but we are a music show first and foremost, so here’s “Incendio” by Nnoa.

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You just heard “Incendio,” by Nnoa, Seen and Unforeseen with “Worth Fighting For” [lyrics], Grace Kendall singing “I Was A Mess Before I Put On This Locket” [lyrics], and Bisexual Harry and “Azkaban Abolition” [lyrics].

And now you’ll hear from Kalysta Flame!

Welcome to the show, Kalysta Flame! I am so stoked to talk with you today.

Kalysta: I am so glad to be here. Thank you for having me. I’m excited.

You always put on such an amazing show when I see your virtual performances, I have no doubt that this will be an equally, uh, explosive interview.

Kalysta: <laugh> I will try, I will try my best to be engaging and exciting. Um, and I also appreciate you having, uh, attended so many of my virtual concerts over quarantine, um, because they were my only outlet for performance at the time. So I do appreciate you and everyone else who, uh, who tuned in.

There’s a, a wizard rock community member who lives in Australia, who was like “the COVID quarantine period was the best time of my life. I got to see so many bands perform.”

Kalysta: <laugh> That’s so fair. That’s so fair.

Even if it was at, you know, like 4:00 AM their time.

Kalysta: Worth it. It’s not like they were working, right? So.

<laugh>

Kalysta: You know? Free concerts all day.

So I always start with your history with wizard rock. How did you get into it? What was the first wizard rock you heard?

Kalysta: So, the first wizard rock I ever heard was at LeakyCon, and I’m trying to remember what year it was, which I probably should have thought of already. <laugh> But it was at LeakyCon, um, when it was in LA, and I went with a couple friends of mine who are, are hardcore into it. And, um, it was just such a fun experience that I just got swept up in it. Absolutely. You know, everyone’s singing along and just the vibes were immaculate and it was just so fun. And I was like “I wanna be a part of this,” you know? Um, singing is my job. It’s my background. Um, I’ve been doing it since I was six years old and, you know, um, professionally almost as long. And, um, I also have been writing parody songs for as long as I can remember. So, I just thought “wait a second. Hmm. I can put these two things together and then I can create a, you know, a wizard rock persona and join in on this fun” because it was just such a fun vibe, just electric. And I really enjoyed myself.

It is, I think, the community that sort of captures most of us.

Kalysta: That’s what it is in general. Yeah. Just, you know, with the wizarding community, um, just kind of brings you in and, and takes you in as family. And I was like “yeah, let’s– I wanna get even deeper in it. “

Do you remember who you saw at LeakyCon?

Kalysta: Definitely Draco and the Malfoys, of course. And, uh, shout out to them for being super helpful actually in like, teaching me about Bandcamp and how to, how to release, you know, my music and stuff. And, uh, oh gosh. Um, “Yes All Wizards,” um, <laugh>

Tonks and the Aurors

Kalysta: Tonks and the Aurors, I just blanked on them. Yeah, so like that. I think that specifically was a really, uh, fun one too, you know? ’cause everyone’s just jamming along and, and screaming and, um, and of course there were, you know, snitchwitchces being thrown and just, just ridiculousness. Um, and so I loved it. I, I can’t remember if I had been listening to any Draco and the Malfoys before then. I may have, uh, had some of their songs already. And I was like “this is hilarious.” And so when I got there, it was just, uh, it was just so fun to see them in person.

So you mentioned creating a wizard rock persona, which is of course step one of becoming a wizard rocker. Music later, name first.

Kalysta: <laugh>

Um, Kalysta Flame. Is that your just wizard rock? Is that your…

Kalysta: Yeah, Kalysta is my wizard rock alter ego, I guess. Uh, it’s not my government name.

<laugh>

Kalysta: um, <laugh>, it was funny, I think it was back when I was on, like, Hogwarts Is Here. Do you remember that website? It was like a, yeah, like a virtual Hogwarts and you could take classes and stuff and everyone had, you know, a name. And so I literally just went to a couple websites that were like wizard name generators, and I just pieced one together from different, you know, my real name starts with K. And, uh, I liked Flame ’cause my hair is red and I just put these two together and I was like “yeah, this is a badass name.” So it was, it wasn’t even for the use of wrock. And then when I decided to do wrock, I went “oh, well, I’ve already got a built-in name. This is perfect.”

That’s a lot like how Dream Quaffle’s name came into being. Uh, theirs was from Pottermore.

Kalysta: See? Yeah, it’s, you never know where it’s gonna come from, the inspiration, you know.

But Kalysta Flame isn’t immediately obvious as a wizard rocker. It’s not a book character or a, a spell. Uh, which makes it, I think, a little bit unique in wizard rock names.

Kalysta: I love that. I’m glad, I’m glad to hear it. Um, I’m kind of a unique person, <laugh>, so that fits. Um, and it just, honestly, like, I, I answer to it really easily too. You know what I mean? When someone says Kalysta, it’s like, that’s me, you know? So that’s kind of cool too, that it’s, you know, it’s my alter ego and it’s, she’s definitely me. I’m her.

Did you ever consider any other names?

Kalysta: No, that was literally it. That was, once I started, I was like “oh, yeah,” because I, I had kind of thought of using it as maybe like a, a cosplay character. Um, you know, I was like, okay, what’s like Kalysta Flame’s background story? And, you know, I, I, it was, it was in my mind as, as using her as something, but I couldn’t figure out what, so once, uh, once I decided to do wrock, I was like “oh, well there it is.” I’m Kalysta Flame, you know, uh, International wizard rocker. That’s my persona.

Did you end up with a whole backstory? Does she have a past with a capital P?

Kalysta: I, you know what, I, I kind of like, uh, stopped doing that, but now, now that we’re talking about it, I feel like I really need to, yeah, I really need to get, um, get back on that because I think it’s cool. I actually, um, just produced a murder mystery that was Harry Potter themed. And, um, I’m not in them. I don’t, improv scares the crap outta me <laugh>, but, uh, I direct them and I host them. And whenever I host, I always have a character. So, um, my character was of course, you know, International Wizard Rocker Kalysta Flame, and as I was like hosting, I was thinking I should really have some sort of, you know, backstory just in case. ’cause people will ask, you know, when they go to these mysteries, they are full in it. They wanna know all the tea. So I was like “oh, if someone asks me how, you know, how I started or what my background is, like, I really need to have, you know, have some solid, uh, info.” So, yeah, I think now I’m gonna have to come up with the full, the full Kalysta lore.

That sounds like it’s gonna be a lot of fun. Is she a Celestina Warbeck contemporary? Protege? Very few Harry Potter musicians in canon. The Weird Sisters…

Kalysta: I’ll be, I’ll be the next one. That’s it. I’m, I’m gonna be canon. We’re, we’re making it so. <Laugh>

You are in Vegas. I, I couldn’t remember if that was, you know, born and raised or… But I think you are fairly steeped in it either way. Does that affect your, your wizard rock, your performances?

Kalysta: Uh, so I did move here. Um, I’m originally from New York, um, and then moved around a little bit as a kid. Um, but I’ve been here for 15 years now and it’s, um, it’s something. You know, uh, when I, when I moved here, it was because there were so many, um, chances to perform. Um, I came here from Florida and pretty much if you don’t work for the Mouse or for Universal, you know, <laugh>, you’re, you’re kinda, you’re kinda stuck. So I moved out here and, um, I definitely started performing, um, as myself a lot more, which was interesting. Which is an interesting change from being like a musical theater nerd and always playing a character to just being myself on stage. So that was, that was an interesting transition. Um, and now, you know, Kalysta Flame is me, really, I don’t, you know, uh, she’s just me, but in the wizarding world, <laugh>.

So I don’t have to put on any, any show or anything like that. Um, but I, I’ve definitely had more, um, chances to do things here. And, you know, I, um, attended Leviosa and that’s how I ended up performing at Leviosa. Um, it was here in 2016. I met everybody and then I got to perform there in 2019. Um, so just like having, having the kind of city where, you know, people come to and cons come to, and then I can meet people and, and grow those relationships is really helpful. Um, and we also do have like a, a pretty big nerd bar here that I am hoping to get in contact with. I’ve been kind of ruminating on it. Um, it’s called the Millennium Fandom Bar. And so, uh, they do all kinds of stuff. They have a bunch of Harry Potter parties and stuff, so I’m like, mmm, maybe I should do a, you know, a little Kalysta Flame performance, live performance and get the Vegas crowd in on it. Um, ’cause we do also have, you know, a lot of wizarding fans here. So yeah, it’s a, it’s just a really good place. It’s got a lot of opportunity and, um, I think I need to continue to like, you know, search for those opportunities.

That sounds very exciting. I don’t know if there are other wizard rockers in Las Vegas?

Kalysta: I don’t think so. I know there are fans, for sure. We have fans and I know that, um, someone, it was, it was Tonks and the Aurors maybe, or someone else definitely came here and performed at, um, we have like a, a library that has an, a legit stage, like a beautiful theater. Um, and I know that, you know, they came and performed here, so there’s definitely a, a fan base. But no, I think I am the only Vegas-based wizard rocker.

So maybe a, uh, Millennium Fan Bar performance will inspire some more.

Kalysta: Yes, absolutely. Let’s get them out there. You know, let’s, uh, let’s get the new generation started.

Speaking of inspiring, I was going through, you know, your music to get some ideas and refresh for the interview. Uh, and then as it always does, uh, “Sad Bi,” stopped me in my tracks

Kalysta: <laugh>

So I just want to hear all about everything about that song.

Kalysta: <laugh> I love that. Um, so “Sad Bi,” um, I wrote it and then was like instantly needed to record it. I just knew, I knew it was gonna be a favorite. It was a favorite of mine, you know, because you write a lot, um, like “Horcrux” was my first wizard rock song that I ever wrote, um, and that got recorded. But I mean, I, I had written probably 15 more before “Sad Bi, “and it just, when you write the one that you know needs to be recorded immediately, you, you know, you know it. It’s so hard for me to, like, remember kind of what I was thinking, uh, when I started writing it, because these, they just come to me at the most random times. Like, I joke around that I do my best writing on Ambien because <laugh>, I am an insomniac, you know?

And so I’m like “all right, let’s take the sleeping pill, let’s go to sleep.” And my brain says “absolutely not. We are gonna stay up for three hours and write some music” <laugh>. So, uh, you know, it’s, it’s unfortunate for my sleep schedule, but it’s great for creativity because I, I, I think I just kind of do the, the weird things, um, that don’t come into my brain during the day. Um, but “Sad Bi” was just, you know, uh, I’m bi, uh, I think that Sirius is bi. I think that Lupin is gay as the day is long <laugh>. And I know that it’s such a, you know, WolfStar is such a big ship, and usually what happens is I will not come up with the concept until the song hits me the right way, you know? So I’m listening, I’m thinking “I like singing the song, “Bad Guy”, what could it be?”

And that’s usually what’ll happen because, you know, I am a performer, and so I sing a lot of different music and I know what fits with my voice and everything. So I’ll usually start with the song and go “okay, Bad Guy, what do we got?” Um, and then just the rhyme popped up, sad bi, and I was like “oh, all right, here we go.” And, you know, and it just kind of snowballs from there. Um, and I ended up creating this, uh, very fun and, and funny song. Um, it’s just a, it’s an interesting process, um, you know, the, the writing, the parody music, and, uh, yeah, this one, I love this one so much. I know the Dream Quaffle has it on [their], uh, workout playlist because they said it, they said it gets them pumped. And I, I love that.

You write, I think, exclusively parody. Is that right?

Kalysta: I do, yeah. When it comes to wizard rock, um, I, I write original music otherwise in my muggle, my muggle world. Um, but yes, exclusively, uh, wrock parodies. Honestly, for me, they’re just easier because you already have this built-in melody and music, and then all I have to do is create the lyrics. And I mean, I’m saying all I have to do, like, it’s super easy. It, you know, it’s not for everybody and not, not everybody can do it, but for me it is just a very easy thing. So it comes a lot faster than if I was sitting there and having to create an entire, you know, um, melodic score and everything. This way I can just go “cool, here’s the melody and here’s the, the, the beats as well.” Um, what I think makes a perfect parody song, and I mean, I’m not perfect by any means, but, um, the closest to perfect parody song is when the lyrics, um, rhyme with the original and the, the cadence is as close to the original cadence as possible.

That’s why Weird Al is so good at what he does. And I, I don’t think that I ever tried to like purposely mimic what he does, but just from a musical standpoint and using a musical ear, I, I listen to these songs and I’m like “all right, you know, this has to rhyme with the original” because then you hear it and it’s like, it’s a, it’s a surprise because you’re waiting, ’cause you know the real words and you’re going “okay, what word is she gonna replace with it?” And so it’s kind of fun and, you know, exciting to go, oh my God, that’s really funny. Instead of saying this, she said this, you know, um, which is why like “Sad Bi” is just too funny ’cause you’re like, you’re waiting to hear Bad Guy and you’re like, oh, that’s, nope, that’s not at all what she said.

Do y’know, I don’t think I’d heard of Billie Eilish before.

Kalysta: Really?

Yeah. So I knew that “Sad Bi” was a parody, and I went and looked it up and that was how I discovered this whole new musical experience I’d never had.

Kalysta: That’s hilarious. I love that. See, it’s usually the other way around. You know, you, you hear the music then find the parody, but. Oh, cool. Now my, my parodies are opening up a, a new world of, of music education. <laugh>. That’s fantastic.

I think I’ll put some more music here. How does “Not a Dry Eye in the Crowd” by Snape44 sound?

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That was “Not a Dry Eye in the Crowd” by Snape44, Slytherin and “Hogwarts Sorting Hat,” and “Bleach Night at the Malfoys’” by Salazar and the Gryffinpuffs.

Here’s some more of my conversation with Kalysta Flame.

My patrons, knowing that you are a performer, first and foremost, wanted to know a little bit more about that. What was your first gig? I guess, wizard rock, not wizard rock… And I don’t know how we would differentiate singing as you versus musical theater. So I guess just any and all.

Kalysta: Oh boy. Um, well, like I said, I think probably the first time that I did something semi-professional, I was literally six years old. Um, I was in the St. Louis Children’s Choir and you had to audition for that and <laugh>, yeah, at six. I, I don’t remember auditioning. I remember having a great time doing it. Um, so I’ve been singing for as long as I can remember. My first like professional musical theater gig was right out of college. I was in a band when I was 18… So it’s just, it’s been a constant in my life. Um, I’ve been performing forever. Um, I don’t even have a degree in it. I kind of decided that, um, I knew a lot about it, about performing and that I wanted to get some other, you know, knowledge. So I actually went to film school, so that’s a whole ‘nother thing.

Um, but yeah, I’ve, I’ve never stopped performing. And then my first, uh, live wrock performance was Leviosa, uh, 2019 in LA and it was wonderful. And just, you know, seeing everybody dance and, um, and have fun and, you know, uh, start to sing along. And that’s the fun part, you know, is when you see people singing, singing your lyrics or, you know, just enjoying what you’ve written. Um, because of course I can’t take any, um, any credit for the music itself. You know, I try to pick songs that are already really fun. You know, I pick the Lady Gaga and the Pat Benatar and stuff, so people hear it and they get excited ’cause they’re like “yeah, I love this song.” And then they start listening to the words and they’re like “oh my god. And I also love this song!” <Laugh>. Um, so yeah, so I’ve been performing for many, many, many years. Um, I kind of don’t wanna admit how long ’cause uh, that’ll age me. But <laugh> we’ll say, we’ll say over 25 years <laugh>. And yeah, and I mean, like I said, being Kalysta is being me, honestly. It’s just, uh, my wizard side and I love doing it. I love this new kind of aspect that it’s brought to my performing life.

We’ve gotten, uh, some wild performance stories, uh, over the last few years that I’ve been doing this, uh, including, you know, child hecklers–

Kalysta: <laugh>

–uh, instruments breaking… So my patrons are also curious, do you have any like, horror stories from performances?

Kalysta: Um, okay, so this is really funny. So I have the opposite of child hecklers. One time, a little boy, like a toddler walked up to me while I was singing and like threw a ketchup packet at my feet, which I feel was like his version of a rose. I don’t, I don’t know. But it felt ver- I was, I cherished it. And also I used to joke that I am huge with the under-two crowd because, uh, when I used to sing at this restaurant, people would literally tell me they would come there with their babies because it was the only time that they could get a full meal with just quiet, because the baby would either fall asleep listening to me or be like, enraptured and they could actually just eat their dinner <laugh> in peace. So, uh, yeah, so I, I feel like maybe <laugh> a lullaby album at some point may be, may be something I need to do.

Oh god. I mean, you know, doing musical theater, there are so many, not even horror stories, but just the most ridiculous things will happen. Um, I did dinner theater for a while and it’s, it’s wonderful. We were doing Cabaret. It was this very dark, you know, revisionist version and, and everything. And you know, we would do like a matinee on a Wednesday and it would usually be a big old bus of the elders from one of the nearby, you know, senior centers <laugh>, and just trying to perform this incredibly heavy, important, you know, material. And you’ll just hear like “what did she say? What- did she say Nazis?” And you’re like, on stage just trying to keep it together and oh god, yeah. It’s a, that, it’s a whole thing. It, it really just makes the experience, uh, <laugh> 10 times better.

Yeah. The second you said that, uh, toddlers love you, I was like, well, you have to do, uh, a lullaby album. Dream Quaffle just released one.

Kalysta: Right? I know, I know. Maybe, maybe they and I will do another duet, like we did, uh, we did for MISTI-Con, we’ll do a little lullaby duet ’cause Yeah. You know, they love it. They, people will come in and be like “thank you so much. We <laugh>, we love coming here.” I was like “that’s great. All right, cool.” You know–

What a very specific talent.

Kalysta: I don’t even like kids, but they love me. So, you know, that’s fine. <laugh>.

So you’ve been wrocking for a little bit now and you made it through the worst of the pandemic. What kind of advice might you have for newcomers to the genre?

Kalysta: Oh gosh. Um, well, it is funny because like your friend said, the pandemic actually was kind of fantastic, um, for me personally in a creative way because I just had so much free time to do, do creating, you know what I mean? And to, um, perform what I wanted and when I wanted and get out there to a, a big group of people. So, um, I think probably having, you know, an online presence, um, maybe starting with some virtual concerts and, you know, meeting new people that way, because I’ve, like with you, I’ve, you know, online met many people and I made a lot of online friends before I ever, um, met them in person, um, from performing online. So I think if you’re new to the genre that you should, you know, try to just reach out that way and, you know, just show off what you have because it’s, it’s not cheap or easy to record.

Um, you know, that’s why I, I only have two songs recorded, um, because I have a, a, you know, I’m a perfectionist and so I want them to sound a specific way and, you know, have the production value be very good. And that requires time and money. And so, um, you know, as a newcomer, if you don’t have that, which is entirely understandable, then get it out there live, you know? Um, do some concerts, do that kind of thing, you know, or perform if there’s a nerd bar in your area, like in mine, you know, perform there. Just get it out there and get comfortable. You know, if you’re not a performer, you know, for a job, um, that’s something I didn’t have to do. I didn’t have to get comfortable on stage or, you know, used to crowds and stuff. But if you’ve never done that, um, you know, it’s, you definitely need to get out there and maybe go to like an open mic, you know?

Um, and they may not understand your song <laugh>, but you know, there’ll be a few Harry Potter fans in the crowd. There will be fans, they will get it, you know, and just go to an open mic and be in front of a crowd and, and see how it feels and just get used to it because that’s the last thing you wanna do when you get up there is be nervous. You wanna have fun, you know, you just wanna get up there and, and have fun and, and enjoy the experience. So yeah, I think that’s my advice. Get out there in person and get out there on the internet and just get as many people to hear you as possible.

My listeners will also know that I like to get really practical advice, like a vocal warmup or recording tool or just something that, you know, would help at the beginning as a thing you might not just automatically know or be able to learn.

Kalysta: Oh my gosh. Okay. Well, I’m <laugh> I’m the worst person to- do as I say, not as I do, because I am the worst at vocal warmups. Um, I don’t drink enough water. I’m terrible at it <laugh>. However, I, the best thing that I’ve gotten for myself recently, if you are gonna be singing a lot or even if you talk a lot for your job, um, I got a nebulizer, it’s called a Vocal Mist. Um, and you just put the saline in it, it come, you know, it comes with the saline water and you suck on that guy for a little bit and just get yourself nice and, you know, moisturized, it makes your vocal cords happy. Um, because I mean, as you can hear, I’m a little hoarse right now because allergies, so, you know, so many things can affect your voice, um, from the outside, you know, allergies, smoke, smog, whatever.

Um, so honestly, like the Vocal Mist is a savior. I was doing a show, uh, four times a week last year, and it, it saved my, my life. Um, so yes, take care of your voice, please. Uh, like I said, do as I say, not as I do. I’m awful at it. But, um, I, I do know, you know, as a professional, um, it’s so easy to just overwork yourself. And like I said, with, you know, with how I write my music, I choose songs that are in my key or I change the key so that they are comfortable for me. So make sure you do that. You know, if you’re writing your own music, write it in your key, write it in the notes that you can sing. Don’t, don’t try to be, you know “oh, this is like a song Adele would sing,” okay, but if you can’t sing like Adele, then don’t write it like Adele.

Um, you know, I sing Adele, but I also drop that thing like <laugh>, you know, two steps. Be, so just know yourself, know your voice, be gentle. It is a muscle and it is a, it is a delicate muscle as well. Um, so if you ever feel like something’s weird, go to the ENT, you know, just, yeah, just take care of your voice please. And if you can afford to get a little nebulizer, they also have ’em on Amazon for like 25 bucks. Um, it’s so good for you and it just keeps you moisturized and, and all that stuff. And you can bring it to gigs with you. You can just like sit in bed and, you know, just steam yourself. It’s like a little spa treatment for your vocal cords.

I’m trying to envision it. And I don’t know if it looks like an inhaler, like a little gas mask, or like one of those misty steamy machines.

Kalysta: It’s, it’s both of the first, so it’s like an inhaler, so you can like, hold it up to your mouth or you can put the little gas mask on and just like breathe it in. Um, but hey, also humidifier, great idea, also a great idea. Just keep yourself lubed up, <laugh> as they say.

Do you have any like performance prep that you do that might be uncommon?

Kalysta: Yes, probably that I <laugh> I have none <laugh>. That’s uncommon. Most people should have some sort of prep. The only thing I can think of that I do on a pretty regular basis is like when I’m, uh, putting on my makeup, I will play, I have a little ‘makeup time playlist’, and it’s all like, kind of hype pop songs and songs that I like singing, so that, you know, while I’m doing my makeup, I’ll be encouraged to sing along. So that’ll be my warmup. And it also just gets me kind of hype to get on stage. Um, otherwise I’m just like, I call myself the laziest performer. And I know lazy is not the word, but honestly it’s just so second nature to me at this point that you could be like “oh my God, we need you to sing in 10 minutes.” And I’ll be like “all right, let’s go” <laugh>. You know, like “let’s go, like, whatever comes out’s gonna come out.” I’m like an old curmudgeon <laugh>. But yeah, no, the, the hype music does really help though. Like, I gotta get in the, the head space to perform and, and be ready to, to kind of get energetic. And then, uh, that works for me.

So you just need that 10 minutes for the, the music and then you’re good to go.

Kalysta: Yep, exactly. Yep. The makeup, the music, and, you know, I look at myself and I go “okay, you look ready to perform,” you know, “you got the lashes on, it’s time to go.” And then that gets me ready for it. Um, otherwise I just kind of, you know, I just think about– you know, what I do. I, um, I do kind of go through things mentally. Um, obviously with wrock there isn’t much, I’m not doing a lot of like, movement or anything. But, you know, when I do something, um, in my muggle world that involves like choreography or something, I’m a, I’m a very much a mental, I’ll just sit there and like stare at the wall and I’ll go through the whole number in my head and I’m like, “okay, now we’re good.” I don’t physically do it, you know, I am not like physically practicing. I just practice in my noggin. And then I’m like, “all right, cool, we got this.” And then of course, if there’s like a, a note or something that I’m kind of sketchy about, I might, uh, I might go, you know, just sing that kind of part of the song a few times just to make sure that it’s, it’s in my, uh, it’s in my head.

Sounds like a, a very useful skill.

Kalysta: <laugh>

So what are you working on now?

Kalysta: Well, here’s the thing. I am very bad at forcing myself to work <laugh>. It really is just an inspiration thing. Um, you know, I’m very, very much the tormented artist in that way that I, uh, I can’t just sit down and write. It has to be something that, that hits me. Um, I do have like a folder of unfinished wrock music, um, you know, bits and pieces of songs. So normally if I’m just kind of in a head space where I’m like, I feel like creating, I’ll go in there and I might write another line, another two lines, and eventually that might become a whole song. And it, it may not, you know, um, that’s unfortunately the process is just so hit or miss. Um, and then, you know, I, every time, every time I, I listen to my, my two recorded songs ’cause that’s all I’ve got <laugh>

But every time I listen to those two recorded songs, I think “okay, all right, yeah, this, this is really good and I really want to keep, you know, keep at this and keep doing it.” Um, I think the next, the next thing would be to just record another song. I think that’s my, my goal, um, is to get one of the finished ones out there. Um, it’s always hard to choose. I did kind of a poll, um, for “Sad Bi” last time. And, um, I did, it was, it was almost tied with a few other things. So I’ll try that again. You know, I know that “I Don’t Give a Puff” is quite popular. Um, “Ginny Weasley” is quite popular, so, uh, yeah, I think that’s gonna be the next thing is just like getting with my, um, recording guy who’s amazing and just getting another one down. ’cause I, I really like having those tangible, um, tangible records and stuff that I can, I can share. Um, I don’t see, I don’t see a full album coming anytime soon, but as I trickle out these singles eventually one will, you know, <laugh> one will come together. Um, but yeah, but even just talking about it now, it’s, you know, it’s making me want to, um, wanna do new things and, and write some new stuff. So maybe, maybe I will start, I will start to do that more.

That’s probably a good, uh, train of thought to be getting on now, because once the interview goes out, there will be other people going, “New music, you say?”

Kalysta: <laugh> Uh oh. Yep. I know the demand will be out there. Um, I do, I, I see a doggy every day and her name is Ginny and I sing “Ginny Weasley” to her every single day. So I am thinking, you know, if I keep singing that enough, I’m gonna go, all right, all right, fine. Let’s record it.

Do you think you’ll do any original wizard rock or all parody?

Kalysta: I think for now I’m gonna stick to the parody. Um, like I said, I, I do actually have a songwriting partner. Her name’s Jennifer Carpenter, and she’s incredible. And we’ve been working together since high school. Um, we wrote our first song together at 15. So, uh, we do write music together. Um, but she is across the country and it’s, it’s already difficult enough to just write muggle music that I, I feel like, um, this would be a whole ‘nother thing. And there are just, there’s so many talented people doing original songs already in the community that like, I feel like they’ve got it covered, you know? Um, they’ve, they’ve got that covered and I can cover this, um, kind of silly, but, you know, different genre, um, of music and that, that can be my kind of contribution.

If you were, strictly hypothetically, uh, what do you think it would be about? What area or subject or character or event would get you, like “I need to write my own thing to express this?”

Kalysta: Oh gosh, that’s such a good question. Um, I mean, I’ve written a lot already about the things that I really love. You know, I’ve written a, a Sirius Black song, um, and I’ve written a song about the twins. Um, honestly, it probably, it probably would be about the twins. Like, I’m not gonna lie, uh, I feel like they, they need more love, first of all. And second of all, I feel like I could get some really fun and punny and I don’t know, maybe sexy lyrics out of a song about them, you know, um, my ginger boys. So, yeah, I mean, that would be fun. I could always, you know, I can always just pen the lyrics and kind of have them ready to go if, if a melody pops into my head. Um, but yeah, probably them and then maybe like… Maybe, um, like the animals, ’cause I’m a huge animal fan, so maybe just about some of the, uh, the different wizarding animals, all of Hagrid’s pets and, uh, hippogriffs, we love us some hippogriffs. Hippogriffs and Thestrals. I think that would, those would be my, uh, my wizarding animal song, uh, what do you call it? The word just went outta my head.

Inspiration?

Kalysta: Oh my god. Yes.

Muses?

Kalysta: Inspiration. My brain. But yeah. Yeah, I think that would be it. Um, like I said, I’m not gonna, I’m not gonna get into that anytime soon, but I like that question. That’s a, that’s a good thinker.

I like that the twins were the first thing. ’cause there does seem to be a lot to work with there because they’re very clear characters, but also, you know, secondary, so we don’t know a lot of what they were doing.

Kalysta: Exact- Yeah. You can come up with all kinds of stuff, you know, and we don’t know if it’s true or not.

Yeah. Who’s to say?

Our final music break is here, bringing with it “Everybody Loves Voldemort” by Sister Dumbledore.

~*~

That was “Everybody Loves Voldemort” by Sister Dumbledore, Sam with “Tom Marvolo Riddle” [lyrics], and “Trigender Tournament” by Totally Knuts [lyrics].

“Trigender Tournament” was a special request from my dear patron Geoff, who dedicates it to Lan: “thank you for always reminding us what’s so great about wizard rock. I’m grateful every day that it brought us together.”

And now here’s the last bit of my conversation with Kalysta Flame.

Thank you so much for talking with me today. I was right. This is fabulous.

Kalysta: <laugh> I am so glad to be here. It’s, it’s so great. And it was so great to finally meet you in person this year.

Yes. Yeah, I got to go to two conventions this year and seeing people in person for the first time was really exciting and a little overwhelming. There’s a lot of people out there.

Kalysta: <laugh>. Yes. Yeah. It’s, it’s a lot. Um, but it was so fun. It was so nice to meet you and, and to finally get on here and just, uh, just chat because I love doing this. It’s so fun. Um, it’s such a creative outlet for me and, um, it’s just, it’s a little thing I’ve been doing since childhood, writing parody songs and, and now that I get to share them and have people enjoy them so much, uh, that makes me really happy.

Where can WZRD listeners find you and your music online?

Kalysta:Well, listeners, you can find me on, uh, Instagram at @SinCityFangirl. So that’s just gonna be pictures and maybe some videos, maybe we’ll post some videos and then you can find, uh, “Horcrux” and “Sad Bi,” my two singles, on Bandcamp under my name, Kalysta Flame.

If you heard a song today and you thought “I could listen to that again” then go to the transcript at WZRDRadioPod.com, follow the link and buy a copy of your very own. It’s the best way to support your favorite musician, and without our wizard rockers, we wouldn’t be here.

If you want discounts on WZRD merch, the inside scoop on everything that’s coming up, and bonus gifts and episodes, then you want WZRD Radio’s Patreon at Patreon.com/WZRDRadioPod. It’s just two muggle dollars a month and also supports the Yes All Witches grant as they give money and mentorship to queer and BIPoC wizard rockers.

If you want to keep up with WZRD between episodes, you can find me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok  at WZRDRadioPod. If you don’t believe in social media, you can also comment on the transcript or email me at WZRDRadioPod@gmail.com.

And now, here’s Kalysta Flame!

Kalysta: All right, ladies and gentlemen, theydies and gaydies, here is my song, “Sad Bi”. It is a song about WolfStar and I wrote it because I ship it, you ship it, we all ship it. And I thought it would be a really fun, uh, little ditty. And it was also on the Wizrocklopedia Compilation. Um, and it was an all, it was Alphabet Soup, so it was all, um, LGBTQ themed songs. And, uh, this was my offering. So here is “Sad Bi.”