Interview with Kaya Stewart
Kaya Stewart can tell you the moment she knew she wanted to be a performer. “I was watching The Grammys and all these artists were getting up onstage to perform, one after the other. I remember saying to myself, ,I want to do that. I want to be able to perform the songs that I write live to a real audience, not just the people sitting in my kitchen who Im forcing to listen,” the London-born, L.A.- bred 14-year-old says with a laugh.
That captive audience included Kayas father, songwriter-producer-musician Dave Stewart, her musician brothers Sam and Django, her photographer mother Anoushka, and whichever artist her father was working with at the time. Sometimes the audience included family friend Annie Lennox, her dads former musical partner in Eurythmics and a musical mentor to Kaya. “There were always huge personalities and creative people coming in and out of the house,” Kaya says. “My favorite time was when theyd get out a guitar and Id sing with them. But I think the fact that there were songwriters living in the house really made me want to write my own songs rather than just sing other people’s. All we talked about were lyrics and songwriting. That was how I learned to appreciate what it takes to come up with something good.”
