Interview with Krystal Meyers
June 21, 2005

Read the album review here!

With the bitter peer pressure to fit in, today’s teenage girls must laugh at the phrase "sweet sixteen," but Krystal is one 16-year-old who isn’t afraid to stand her ground. She’s a rock vocalist, musician and songwriter who stands up for her morals and refuses to walk the lines she doesn’t believe in just to follow the crowd. This conviction, which is so prevalent in her personal life, echoes through her edgy rock ‘n’ roll style and lyrics. Full of energy and punk attitude, Krystal gives her peers an anthem to live by with her self-titled Essential Records debut.

Dennis: Just to let you know, we typically pick hard core bands as artist of the month but after I read about you and listened to your album I decided to put you as artist of the month. Your music was very fresh and had a much harder edge than I expected. And after talking to your label they said you were a hard core girl at heart and even had a story about the pick necklace you are wearing on your cover.
Krystal: Yeah yeah, last year for my birthday my best friend took me a Blindside concert. They are one of my most favorite bands in the whole world and I love them so much! We are up front and their guitarist, Simon, comes by high fiving everyone. He high fives me and then flicks his pick to me.  So now I am wearing a Blindside pick and that makes me very happy! I have been wearing a pick necklace even before that and have been for years. So many people were like, 'Who's pick is that?' and I was always like 'Uhhh, is it supposed to be someone's?' So now I have my own on there but I also have Blindsides on there. 
Dennis: That's cool.  I love Blindside also and will be doing a live interview with them next month in St. Louis. So, here you are 16 and you have a record deal, a number one song on Christian radio and you are all over the nation on tour.  What was it like hearing yourself on the radio for the first time? 
Krystal: Hearing it for the first time was really crazy.  I mean people kept calling me saying, 'Oh yeah I heard you on the radio,' and I still hadn't heard it.  I was like this is so weird, is this for real.  I have an alarm clock that sits by my bed on my night stand and keep the radio on at night and it helps me fall asleep. I woke up one night and heard myself and I was like 'It's 12 o'clock and night and that's me on the radio!' But then I started hearing it, I would wake up at 7 or 8 in the morning and it was me on the radio. I was like, 'That's really me. This is so weird.' Then it hit number one and I totally lost it and just thought 'This is so cool.'

Dennis: How did you go about getting discovered by Essential? 
Krystal: Well, it's really funny.  Me and my church went to a summer camp before I was going in the 9th grade. While I was there me and a friend wrote the song "Anticonformity" in our spare time.  At the end of the week, they tell us we are having a talent show and to showcase what you did in your free time so I thought 'cool' since we wrote a song.  So we play the song and a month later I get a call from someone that was at the camp and he was like 'Well, we would love for you to come in and record the song for a benefit cd we are doing.' He said it was going to include Pillar, Audio Adrenaline, Skillet and others. I was like oh yeah and it was my first time in the studio. Some of the guys that played were the drummer from Audio Adrenaline, Jars of Clay and one of the guys from Caedemon's Call and stuff. I was surrounded by all these cool people and here I am in the studio for the first time ever. I had a blast and it was like a live type opf thing.  Here are all these great musicians and stuff and it was taking them like one time and then it took me much longer. That made everything blow up and then I had a showcase at an event where Essential was at and started talking with them.  I signed with them in September and flew out 2 days later to Hollywood to record. It's crazy and like a whirl wind.
Dennis: What was that like going back to school and telling your friends you were leaving for Hollywood to record an album? 
Krystal: Well, it was crazy.  I mean so many kids my age dream about being a singer or actor.  I was in the 9th grade and saying like, 'Yeah I was in the studio recording my album' and they were like 'sure that will really go somewhere.' But you know, I was totally trusting God and it is such my passion. By the time my single hit people started realizing I was really doing this.  

Dennis: Many young artist like yourself sing but have nothing to do with the production or writing. You mentioned you wrote "Anticonformity', what other songs did you write? And did you play guitar?
Krystal: I actually wrote on every song on the album and "Sing For Me" was a song I wrote 100% my own in the 9th grade.  That was cool to get that on the cd.  I've written on every song and had a part in making the entire cd. (On the guitar) No, I mean I didn't even bother because our producer did all the music and then just being there while me, Ian and Liz were in the other room writing. Andrew was setting up the tracks and laying down the instruments. I didn't even bother but I do play live. 

Dennis: One of the problems I have with the Christian industry is we are reactive and seem to play second fiddle.
Krystal: Oh gosh yes.
Dennis: And I know you know where I am going with this. And yes you will see her name in my review because there are some vocal similarities with you and Avril Lavigne but that's it.  I don't find that as a copy.  What is your response to people that are calling you the 'Christian Avril Lavigne"?
Krystal: I was extremely irritated when it first started.  The thing is there's not so many solo girls in rock. People are going to compare and even though I dont like it, it is going to keep happening.  It makes me want to push that much harder because I am not the Christian version of Avril. If you are going to look at me as an alternative then great but I want people to listen to the music and get the message. I worked with her producers and they were like 'you guys could not be anymore different.' It was an advantage working with them because they knew I did not want to be the Christian version of Avril. I've learned to live with it and people are always going to compare someone to someone else.  Hey, whatever. (laughs) I am totally different. I don't have her second album but on the first I know she had a lot of acoustic guitar.  We only have one song with that. I listen to bands like Blindside, Underoath, Further Seems Forever and I'm like this rock n roll chick.  Next cd, I want to be much harder. 

Dennis: Speaking of hard rock bands, you were just on tour with Day of Fire. There you were in school and then you are off touring the country.  What was that like?
Krystal: It was great.  Josh is a total rocker. It was awesome and he is so on fire for God.  It was inspiring watching him relate with the crowd. Next month, we jump back in with Day of Fire and Seventh Day Slumber. In the fall I will be on tour with Kutless and Disciple. 

Dennis: There is such a growing trend with girls wearing hip huggers, half shirts and things like that. Appearance seems to get more 'out there'. How do you hope you can change perception with your style and approach?
Krystal: The whole underlying message of the album is anticonformity.  I want to me a person that God wants me to be and not like the world wants me to be. The world is like 'hey lets look like Britney and party every night.' When I was in the 9th grade everyone was like 'hey Krystal let's get a 6 pack and go party. Instead of running away they respected me for it and would say 'hey there's Christian preacher girl' (laughs).  I just explained one I didn't drink and two I don't party. My friends that weren't Christians would ask what the Bible said or what God said about things so I was able to use it as a witnessing tool. I am saying that there is a Godly rebellion, if it compromises your morals in the world then rebel against that and do what God wants us to do. 

Dennis: We tell teens to 'not take off their shoes' meaning to not take a first step towards sexual impurity. What message do you want to give to teens listening to you about 'not taking off their shoes'? 
Krystal: You know it has never been an option.  Sexual purity is black and white and is supposed to be in the boundaries of marriage like God made it.  I don't see why it is the cool thing to do.  I had a friend that was being pressured to have sex and asking me what to do.  I told her God doesn't want us to do that and our virginity is something we have only once.  Don't get yourself into any compromising positions.  I mean his motives, my friends bf, are obviously there and anytime you make out that is going to be the objective.  I mean as soon as you meet a guy just be upfront and say if you are looking to do whatever then that isn't for me and I am going to stay a virgin.  The key is no getting yourself into any compromising positions. 

Dennis: How do you think we can combat a barrier of Christian music going more mainstream? 
Krystal: Oh yeah, I hope to do that and we need to break down the barrier.  I mean we are supposed to jump into the deep end and bring more people to Christ. I want to be a positive alternative to all the crap that is out there but it's still rock.

Dennis: "Anticonformity" is a big push from you and a song, can you tell us more about it?
Krystal: Yeah, www.anticonformity.net,  is a place with a bunch of message boards and a place where people can go online and talk with me and other kids about pressure or anything that is hard to deal with.  Being able to get advice and spread a message of anticonformity. 

Dennis: Thanks a ton for your time!