Beyond the Music: Getting to Know ColorMeKrazy!
ColorMeKrazy! is an electronic pop-punk and alternative rock band from Raleigh, North Carolina, known for blending the energy and emotion of pop-punk and emo with modern electronic and hyperpop influences.
I recently had the opportunity to sit down with ColorMeKrazy! for an in-depth Q&A and get to know the people behind the music: Mia, Tom, and Drew. We talked about their individual musical backgrounds, the experiences that shaped them as artists, how their paths eventually crossed, and the story of how ColorMeKrazy! came together.
The band also took us behind the music, opening up about the stories and meanings behind their songs, the artists and influences that have helped shape their sound, and the creative process that turns their individual ideas into ColorMeKrazy! songs. Along the way, we discussed the challenges and memorable moments they've experienced as a band, their latest music, what they hope to accomplish next, and much more.
Get to know Mia, Tom, and Drew—and the story behind ColorMeKrazy!—in our interview below.
Every band has a beginning, but every musician’s story starts long before the first rehearsal, performance, or song. The places we grow up, the people around us, and the experiences we have early in life can quietly shape the artists—and people—we eventually become.
Amit Ahuja: Mia, Tom, and Drew, take us back to the beginning. Where did each of you grow up, what were you like as kids, and what were some of the experiences and communities that shaped who you are today? How did music first enter each of your lives, and when did you realize it was something you wanted to seriously pursue?
Mia: The first part of my childhood was spent in Long Island, New York. I grew up going into the city for Christmas to see the Macy’s window display. Then we moved to Virginia where I went to middle and high school, and that’s when I discovered my love for singing. My great grandmother, grandfather, and mother all sang, my grandfather even had a band in the 60s and 70s. So that musical background led me to having a proclivity for music somewhere deep inside that was just looking for a reason to come out. Growing up I had parents who were always listening to all kinds of music, disco, salsa music, 80s dance, hair metal, 70s / 80s rock, 90s dance, pop music, rap music, you name it. Not to mention, my older brother who was listening to early linkin park, eminem, disturbed and others, my eclectic tastes were already blossoming in my early childhood. I even grew up playing games like Ocarina of Time, Final Fantasy, DDR and Sonic Adventure which have some of the best gaming soundtracks of all time with a heavy emphasis on music. I think it was all a catalyst for what I gravitate towards while writing now: sparkly catchy synths and soaring vocals are my bread and butter. Anyways, that all led to me starting bands in middle and high school after discovering some of the bands on warped tour; Bands like paramore, panic at the disco!, Killswitch Engage, Scary Kids Scaring Kids etc. A couple sidequests into a Black Keys / The Shins / Dr. Dog hipster band, a prog rock ‘failure to launch’ project, and a self produced solo venture later, and CMK is the greatest thing I’ve ever been able to be a part of musically. I’m back home in my alternative music roots!
Tom: Originally, I’m from a resort-town in northeastern Pennsylvania. Up there, skiing & snowboarding are huge. If you don’t do either of those, your options for keeping yourself entertained during long winters are limited. Fortunately, my father was & still is a gigging musician, so I grew up in a household with a recording studio & practice space in the basement. He taught me some basic things on guitar & bass, & I fell in love. From the time I was 9, playing music, writing songs, & being in bands has been what I’m all about. As I got into my late teens & early 20s, that only grew further as I began tour managing different acts, traveling & seeing the industry (beyond VFW halls & art spaces) in motion. But when COVID hit, all of that ended so abruptly. I feared the worst for live music, for good. I found, although it served as a necessary outlet, just writing by myself left me feeling unsatisfied & incomplete. So as live music returned, I felt more compelled to chase this forever than I ever had before.
Drew: I grew up in Greensboro NC and the surrounding rural areas. I wasn't really into music as a kid and instead spent most of my time outside playing sports. It wasn't until early high school when I was really exposed to music. I had a friend who got a bass guitar. I was over at his house and he told me to pick it up and to play a few notes. When I felt and heard the rumble in the room is when I knew that I wanted to learn to play as well. Within a few weeks I had my first bass guitar and started teaching myself how to play. A year or so later is when I got my first electric guitar and started to teach myself how to play that as well. I was in several different bands in high school (or more accurately, the same band over and over with a different lead singer each time haha). Then in college and the first few years out of college I wasn't really active with music beyond just continuing to play by myself at home. Then when covid hit in 2020 I was bored and decided I would spend some time learning to properly record myself at home and that led to writing a lot more and eventually to me stepping out and trying to find a band again. I bounced around through a lot of different projects between 2020 and 2023 when ColorMeKrazy! formed.
It's interesting to look back at who we imagined we'd become before life actually unfolded. Childhood ambitions can be wildly different from where we eventually end up, while others somehow point directly toward the future.
Amit Ahuja: Before ColorMeKrazy! existed, what did each of you imagine you'd be doing with your life? Did you always picture yourselves becoming musicians, or were Mia, Tom, and Drew once dreaming about completely different careers? Would your younger selves be surprised by where you are today?
Mia: I've wanted to sing since I watched American Idol at 6 years old. I don’t think I’d be surprised but I definitely think I wouldn’t have imagined my day job in tech!
Tom: Music entered my life so early, it’s hard to remember a time where I didn’t see this as the ultimate dream, with anything I have to do in between being a necessary stepping stone. The younger me knew where he was headed!
Drew: I definitely wanted to be a professional athlete. Basketball was my dream but I stopped growing and never got tall enough. My younger self would definitely be surprised by where I am today as I never had aspirations of working in tech or trying to do anything with music.
Some friendships develop gradually, while others seem to happen because the right people cross paths at exactly the right time. Every band has its own story of how those individual journeys eventually become one shared adventure.
Amit Ahuja: How did Mia, Tom, and Drew first meet, and what ultimately brought the three of you together to form ColorMeKrazy!? What were your first impressions of one another, and when did you realize there was genuine creative chemistry between you?
Mia: I’ll take this one. We’ve told this story many times, but we met on a site called Bandmix. Basically, I had just moved to the Raleigh area to be able to form a musical project, and I hopped on this ancient myspace looking site to do so. I messaged Tom at 3am during a bout of insomnia, and he was working the night shift and replied back right away. We sent some demos back and forth, working on Losing My Head, and that was the demo we sent to Drew to try and get him on board. We saw pictures of him performing and thought he looked cool, and luckily he’s way more than cool! From there, we all just kind of clicked. I think every project and friendship has their ups and downs, but at this point 3 years into all this, I think we’ve gotten past each other's quirks. The thing that glues us together is our shared dream, our creative chemistry, and the mutual respect we have for each other's differences. We each bring something important to this project, and you don’t find that kind of synergy every day. We’ve traveled a bunch together, and the thing that sticks out to me is that we have fun every single time. I struggle to think of times on the road where we aren’t sharing fun stories, swapping favorite songs, and overall just making great memories together. CMK and our surrounding friends Shanna, Masato, and our drummers have become like a family.
A band's name eventually becomes much more than words on a poster or streaming page. It becomes an identity attached to every song, performance, memory, and chapter that follows.
Amit Ahuja: What's the story behind the name ColorMeKrazy!? Who came up with it, what did it originally mean to you, and has that meaning changed as the band has grown? What do you hope someone feels or imagines when they encounter the name ColorMeKrazy! for the first time?
Tom: A conversation with a coworker at my old warehouse job. He used the phrase, & I ran to write it down. I just liked the phrase for the alliterative quality, but I feel like it’s evolved into so much more since we began. Our music is eclectic in influence, the “color” of our sound. Those who listen to us know we’re not afraid to experiment in every direction, which is a “crazy” move when the music scene can, at times, feel so categorized & rigid. I hope people pick up on that.
Every band has its own internal chemistry. The different personalities, strengths, habits, and perspectives of its members can be just as important as the instruments they play.
Amit Ahuja: We'd love to hear from each of you individually. How would Mia, Tom, and Drew describe your own personalities and roles within Color Me Crazy? Who's the organizer, who's most spontaneous, who keeps everyone focused, who overthinks things, and who can usually make everyone laugh when things get stressful?
Drew: I am the organizer and do my best to keep us focused and pointed in the right direction. I quietly overthink everything but don't really present that overthinking to the group and try to only bring completely thought out ideas to the table. I really only spend about 5% of my band time actually playing guitar (practicing and playing shows). The rest of the time is spent organizing things behind the scenes.
Tom: I’m blessed to be in the company of two insanely talented & hardworking bandmates, let alone the rest of our crew who help make ColorMeKrazy! a viable thing. Therefore, most administrative duties are out of my hands. I have the responsibility of writing & arranging songs, steering the creative direction, & producing visual art. Even then, I couldn’t do a lot of those things as well without their help.
Mia: I won the position of leader after a game of ‘Not It!’. But, I tend to end up the leader in a lot of situations in my life anyhow. What that means is that I kind of bridge the gap between what Drew and Tom have going on, and kind of have my fingers in everything. My main responsibilities involve assisting with producing beats / songwriting, writing lyrics and vocal melodies, and arranging how we sing our songs live. I also collaborate with Tom on our creative direction, helping to pick which songs we release and compile into a project to create a narrative cohesion with my lyrics. I direct and edit our music videos. I also put together our live sound. That means building and maintaining our in-ear rig and backtracks setup, producing our interlude tracks that play in between our songs, and creating our stage plots based on our equipment. Lastly, I handle our online presence, running our social media and editing / posting content EVERY SINGLE DAY. That also means advertising our shows and selling tickets. I kind of just do a little bit of everything, and I’m sure there’s things that I’m forgetting here. I’m an idea person so if Drew brings complete ideas to the table all of mine are fleeting impulses! That’s why I’m fun! :D
Being part of a band can become such a visible part of someone's identity that people sometimes forget there's an entire person behind the musician they see onstage or hear on a recording.
Amit Ahuja: If we took ColorMeKrazy! and music completely out of the conversation, how would Mia, Tom, and Drew introduce yourselves? What qualities, values, interests, experiences, or parts of your personalities do you think someone needs to understand to really know each of you?
Mia: Like I said previously, I’m a pretty impulsive person, so if you’re hanging out with me just know I never stick to a set plan! I'm happiest when things are malleable, and I hate a set boring schedule or being told what to do (sorry Drew!). I’m also big on the idea of try everything, do it all, so I probably overschedule myself. I’m surprisingly introverted despite my excitability though so when I burn myself out I recluse and watch anime / play videogames.
Tom: Introducing myself is unlikely to even happen. I am withdrawn by nature. I’m not a misanthrope by any stretch, but I value solitude & the peace it brings. Polar opposite of the performer who steps on stage, I know, but it’s the truth!
Drew: I try to always bring positive energy to the room. It's really tough sometimes when times are difficult, but I do my best. I spend probably about 50% of my time being sarcastic to get cheap laughs.
Bandmates experience sides of one another that audiences rarely see. After rehearsals, recording sessions, performances, difficult days, celebrations, and countless ordinary moments together, you often learn what makes the people beside you truly special.
Amit Ahuja: Let's have you answer for one another. Mia and Drew, what do you genuinely admire about Tom? Tom and Drew, what do you admire about Mia? Mia and Tom, what do you admire about Drew? Beyond what each person contributes musically, what does that individual bring to your friendship and to your lives?
Mia: For Tom it’s his compositional talent. He said to me once that the most important thing a song should be is catchy, and I appreciate that he approaches song writing from the listener’s perspective instead of from a selfish place. He also encourages me musically when I need it. I often get easily discouraged, but he reassures me every time. For Drew, I admire his organizational skills of course, but more important for me is his ability to take whatever half baked random ideas Tom and I have for the band and turn them into actionable steps. Drew also has a totally underrated quality: the emotion he pours into performance! He’s so fun to watch.
Tom: I admire Mia’s uncanny ability to catch my vibe when writing. She’ll bring ideas to the table that elevate our songs perfectly & turn them into something I never knew they could be. I admire Drew’s risk calculation. I’ve lived my entire life impulsively, & certainly haven’t come away unscathed. He keeps that kind of energy at bay within the group & is widely responsible for the band staying glued together.
Drew: For Mia, I admire her perseverance. In music, for a band starting out, there is like 1 good thing that happens for every 100 let downs. She powers through the 99 let downs to keep pushing us forward to the 1 good thing. For Tom, I admire his creativity. He is able to hear a musical idea and turn it into something that I wasn't even able to imagine. IMPERMANENCE_ is the perfect example. It started as a simple piano and strings composition and he somehow heard what we eventually released.
Every musician carries pieces of the artists who first made them fall in love with music, even as they eventually develop a sound and identity of their own.
Amit Ahuja: Mia, Tom, and Drew, who were the artists or bands that had the greatest impact on each of you growing up? Who inspires you today, and where—if anywhere—can listeners hear pieces of those individual influences within ColorMeKrazy!'s sound?
Mia: I have a pretty interesting background as I stated earlier. There are a lot of performers and singers that have inspired me from all across the musical spectrum, but to name a few: Awsten Knight (Waterparks), nothing, nowhere, lil peep, Charli XCX, 100 gecs, Crush, Oliver Francis, Amy Lee (Evanescence), EDEN, Howard Jones (Killswitch Engage), Jon Bellion, DEAN, Courtney Laplante (Spirit Box), Zayna Youssef (Sweet Pill) and so many others. I try to critically watch performances of other artists all the time to try and analyze my own performances. I’m always trying to improve.
Tom: The Ramones turned me onto punk music initially, thanks to my dad’s cassette collection. Pretty quickly, video game soundtracks & the internet turned me onto more 90’s & 00’s punk & pop punk bands like NoFX, The Decendents, Blink-182 & Green Day. When I was 14, Suicide Season by Bring Me The Horizon dropped. My tastes & my life essentially changed from that moment. At the same time, my older brother was already deep into heavy music, so I was exposed to bands like Emmure, Stick To Your Guns, & Shattered Realm through him. Although we’ve only really begun to discover a heavier facet of our sound, my love for drop tunings & breakdowns has always permeated ColorMeKrazy!
Drew: For me, all the bands on Drive-Thru Records in the 2000s were my inspiration. The first real show I ever went to was the Drive-Thru Invasion Tour where I got to experience The Starting Line, Senses Fail, The Early November, Allister and Home Grown. I didn't know much at all about any of the bands before going, but after that night, these were all my favorite bands. And this slowly evolved into me liking a heavier sound with the bands that started adding breakdowns to the pop punk sound like A Day To Remember. So my main influence lies somewhere between metalcore and pop punk.
Creating music can reveal things about ourselves that ordinary life doesn't always uncover. At the same time, every creative journey includes setbacks, sacrifices, doubts, disagreements, and periods when moving forward isn't easy. Those experiences can test confidence, patience, friendships, and the willingness to keep going.
Amit Ahuja: What's been the biggest challenge you've faced as ColorMeKrazy!, and how did you navigate it together? What has being part of this band taught Mia, Tom, and Drew individually about yourselves, your strengths, your insecurities, perseverance, and your friendship with one another?
Tom: Outside of us three, our cast has rotated or shrunk several times over 3 years. The cost of getting to work with so many creative, talented people is that they’re in demand everywhere else in their lives too. If anything, this has only shown us how committed we are, because we never lose steam when these changes take place. We’ve become very efficient at finding a path forward, & it becomes less daunting every time.
Every song begins somewhere. It might be a lyric, melody, riff, rhythm, conversation, emotion, voice memo, or an idea somebody simply can't get out of their head.
Amit Ahuja: Walk us through the ColorMeKrazy!’s songwriting process. Who typically introduces the first idea, and what happens once Mia, Tom, and Drew begin adding their individual perspectives? How do you work through creative differences, and how do you collectively know when a song is finally finished?
Tom: The majority of our releases have started with an idea that I have demoed out, & from there, all creative input is fair game. Drew has also brought song ideas to the table, & those have become some of our favorite releases. Mia does the majority of our electronic production, as well as all of the lyrics & vocal melodies! We mesh very well when writing, but differences in opinion happen in any good group. We respect each other’s creative sensibilities enough to talk through our visions & make a decision that ultimately benefits the greater creative vision.
An EP can capture an entire chapter in a band's life. More than a collection of songs, it can preserve the emotions, relationships, experiences, and creative mindset the artists were living through at that particular moment.
Amit Ahuja: Take us inside your EP, “WE KNOW THE TRUTH.” Where did the project begin, what inspired the title, and what does We Know The Truth mean to each of you? What chapter of ColorMeKrazy! does the EP represent, and what did you hope it would communicate about who you were when you created it?
Mia: WKTT is our sophomore EP, and with it we wanted a more cohesive project than what we brought forth with Paint The World. PTW was more of a collection of our first songs we wrote together, WKTT is a representation of who we want to be in the future. As a cohesive project, it explores a lot of themes that we’ve explored together as friends, in heated discussions: the state of the world, the AI takeover, hardship and uncertainty at a time when most of humanity is filled with a collective unease about the future. We wanted to capture the microcosm of those maladies that’s happening in our own lives, and deliver it in our signature danceable format while taking a heavier approach with songwriting that we think fits how we were feeling throughout 2025.
Listeners experience WE KNOW THE TRUTH as one complete ColorMeKrazy! project, but behind the finished EP are three individual musicians bringing their own ideas, instincts, strengths, and creative fingerprints to the record.
Amit Ahuja: We'd love to hear from each of you separately. Mia, what did you personally bring to WE KNOW THE TRUTH? Tom, which parts of the EP carry your creative fingerprint? Drew, what were your biggest contributions? What is one moment on WE KNOW THE TRUTH that each of you feels particularly proud to have helped create, and how did your three individual approaches ultimately become one cohesive record?
Tom: Many of these songs are ideas that I’ve sat on for over a decade. At this point, it feels like a culmination of my entire creative journey from 19-32. That makes it hard to pick a standout moment, & I couldn’t be happier about that. Transcribing a noodly guitar-tapping riff that had no place for 12 years into the synth line for PRESSURE_ felt great. Hearing BIDE_ fully realized with our friends in American Theory helping is still surreal. The entire EP feels like a standout moment, not to toot my own horn.
Drew: My contributions to WE KNOW THE TRUTH are fairly minor. Most of the songs, Mia and Tom got them 99% of the way finished before I even got involved. I just did a deep dive into them once they were close to finished to see if I thought anything needed to be added. My favorite contribution is changing up the delivery of the line "We know the truth" leading into the second chorus in the song ERROR_. It was originally much more subdued and I thought it would improve the energy of the song if it was belted. And we eventually decided to make this the name of the EP.
Mia: Okay, but Drew is being so modest here. He failed to mention the piano and orchestra parts he wrote for IMPERMANENCE_, a song that ended up being our collective favorite on the record. Really thankful for that cause without it, I wouldn’t have had an outlet for what turned out to be a REALLY hard year, not only for me but for the band as a whole. 2025 was a huge test for us, and the fact we stuck together through thick and thin says a lot about our dedication to the band, and each other.
Every track has its own story, while the recording process creates another collection of memories entirely—breakthroughs, mistakes, experiments, frustrations, inside jokes, and happy accidents listeners may never know happened.
Amit Ahuja: Take us through the songs on WE KNOW THE TRUTH. What inspired each track, and what does each one mean to you today? Along the way, were there any memorable recording moments, unexpected creative decisions, funny stories, or small details hidden within the songs that you'd encourage listeners to pay closer attention to?
Mia: If you listen closely, you can hear a couple references to songs on Paint The World as a cool callback, like in BIDE_ when Devyn (American Theory) sings “I’m Losing My Head”. There are some more subtle things but
I want listeners to hear it themselves. I also connected BIDE_ and IMPERMANENCE_ together as sister songs; in the second verse of IMPERMANENCE_ the backing vocal sings “I’m biding my time”.
Tom: 2/3rds of the band are avid gamers. There are a few iconic video game sound effects that are used as percussive elements in several of those songs. The most notable one being the “Sonic-losing-his-rings” noise on the chorus of YOUR FAVORITE BAND_
Every new release captures where an artist is at a particular moment, and sometimes one song can signal that something new is beginning creatively.
Amit Ahuja: Tell us the story behind your brand-new song “IMPERMANENCE_.” Where did the original idea come from, what inspired the title, and what does the song mean to the three of you? What emotions or ideas were you hoping to express, and why did this feel like the right song for ColorMeKrazy! to release now?
Mia: IMPERMANENCE_ explains the feeling of doom that can overwhelm you when you’re being crushed by times of psychological and financial hardship. Like I touched on, 2025 was a damn hard year for us as a band and personally. We’ve already put out a lot of the songs that are about stressors larger than ourselves, so it felt right to end the promotion cycle with 2 songs (IMPERMANENCE_, ANGEL_) that delve more into our personal struggles. All the wrong that happens in the world ultimately ends up affecting us personally. I know that other people can relate to those day to day struggles with uncertainty surrounding the future, and that’s what IMPERMANENCE_ is all about.
Listeners hear one finished track, but behind “IMPERMANENCE_” are three people making individual creative decisions that eventually became one song.
Amit Ahuja: Take us through its creation from each of your perspectives. Who introduced the earliest idea, and what did that version sound like? MIA, what did you personally contribute? Tom, what ideas came from you? Drew, what did you bring to the track? Did one person's contribution unexpectedly change its direction? And when each of you hears the finished song, what moment makes you think, “That's the piece of me in this”?
Drew: This is one of the few songs that started with me. I keep my guitar on the couch beside me almost all the time when I'm at home and I will quite frequently just pick it up and start noodling around without even realizing I'm doing it. And some small percentage of the time I will end up playing something that I think sounds cool. This is how the primary piano part on this song came to be. I immediately converted it to a piano riff and started playing around with some chord progressions on violins, violas and cellos. I ended up arranging it into an entire song that was mediocre at best. When I sent it to Mia and Tom, they loved the piano and string parts and Tom got to work completely flipping the song to what you hear today.
Tom: I heard Drew’s arrangement, & knew that I loved it as-is. However, there’s an element that we always try to keep at the forefront when writing: Contrast. The slow, somber piano & strings made me want the song to explode into a tight, bouncy rhythm. So I sped up what he sent me a little & went from there! There’s also a high synth that comes back several times, for which I actually sampled one of Mia’s vocal takes from a previous release of ours, “Bittersweet” & created a melody.
Mia: Once I heard Tom’s rehash I immediately was like “I could write a killer vocal melody for this!” So I did the most logical thing and put the instrumental on loop while I took a shower and just started vocalizing different melodies over it. I even wrote the first few lyrics of the hook there, every time I repeated my melody I started with “And the worst part is, that no one can save me”. I knew exactly what emotion I needed to get out, so as soon as I finished I made a voice memo of my idea and practically ran to my computer to write the rest.
Growth can often be heard most clearly when earlier work is placed beside what an artist is creating today. The space between releases can reveal changes in sound, confidence, perspective, and identity.
Amit Ahuja: When you compare “Paint the World” with “WE KNOW THE TRUTH,” where do you hear the greatest evolution in ColorMeKrazy!? What did creating Paint The World teach you that influenced the new EP, and how have Mia, Tom, and Drew individually grown as musicians and songwriters since that EP?
Tom: That first EP feels much more experimental, because at the time, we were still getting our bearings on working with each other. We still are very experimental, but this time around it feels more deliberate. The first EP was a great showcase of what we can do, & our latest feels like a more cohesive, directed version of that.
Lyrics can reveal thoughts and emotions that are difficult to express in ordinary conversation. For many artists, songwriting becomes a combination of storytelling, observation, imagination, and processing real experiences.
Amit Ahuja: How much of Color Me Crazy's music comes from your personal lives, relationships, emotions, observations, or experiences? Are there ever subjects that feel too personal to turn into songs? How do you decide what you're comfortable sharing with listeners while still protecting parts of yourselves that you want to keep private?
Mia: As the lyricist I really thought long and hard about what I was going to say on this project. I always write from my own personal experiences, or the personal experiences of my friends and loved ones, because I think part of what brings people together in music is reading a lyric that perfectly describes how you’re feeling in the moment. Those are the kinds of lyrics you get tattoos of, ya know? I try to keep it vague though, especially with situations where I don’t want to be too specific about who I’m writing about. :P The main piece driving this record is my increased unease with how AI is slowly taking over our lives, explored on songs like ERROR_ where I call the audience to actively rebel and say no. Then in YOUR FAVORITE BAND_ I sort of poke fun at fellow artists who are much bigger than us using AI despite the fact that it’s killing their own industry, but giving them enough grace to see the error in their ways and change (no pun intended). Meanwhile we have songs like PRESSURE_ exploring feelings of anxiety and overwhelm from being on a treadmill at our day jobs, offering more subtle criticisms of AI and how it causes a larger workload and anxiety around employment. ANGEL_ was actually supposed to be on Paint The World, but it didn’t seem to fit at the time. It definitely has a home on this record, as it can tie back to all the other struggles explored on the album. The lyrics of ANGEL_ were penned as I was learning to manage my anxiety and stop catastrophizing about the future, which definitely ties back into songs like IMPERMANENCE_ PRESSURE_ and BIDE_. In short, I wanted all of these songs to feel like they were telling a collective story, OUR story. To do that I made sure that even if songs were about separate struggles, that it all tied back to the central theme: We Know The Truth about this world, and we can either be empowered by that knowledge and make a difference, or let it eat us alive.
Music can be an escape, an emotional outlet, and a source of healing. At the same time, pursuing something you care deeply about can bring its own pressures, doubts, and difficult periods.
Amit Ahuja: How has music affected your mental health and overall well-being individually? When one of you is struggling, how do Mia, Tom, and Drew support one another? How do you try to maintain a healthy balance between your personal lives and ColorMeKrazy!, and what would you say to someone who may currently be struggling with their own mental health?
Tom: It’s a double edged sword. Music holds me together & I can’t imagine a world where this isn’t what I’m chasing. However, chasing this is also why I don’t commit to careers long-term, or return to school, or whatever other positive choices I could be making to create stability in my life. But when I imagine a life where I do those things & leave music behind altogether, I can’t imagine anything bringing back the joy that music gives me. With that in mind, I invite anybody who is struggling to take a personal inventory of where they’re directing their energy, & what joy they are receiving back from those places. You may find that things that aren’t actually important to you are taking most of your energy & giving you nothing in return.
Mia: I agree with Tom on this. Part of what drove us together was my quarter life crisis where I realized that I was mostly living for other people’s expectations of me, instead of what I expected for myself. When I thought long and hard about what I would have wanted back when I was 6 years old watching American Idol, I realized that music was the only thing that I was ever truly passionate about. It’s certainly tough, essentially working two jobs including helping to run the band, but I am so much happier now than I was when we started. I’ll keep going not only because I found 2 people who make it easy to chase the dream, but also because I know this is truly what brings me joy. If you’re out there struggling with depression like I was, take Tom’s advice. Once I started taking some risks to change my life, everything got so much better. I still struggle sometimes, but therapy and having things to look forward to is a game changer. Oh yeah and play Dark Souls, trust me.
One of the remarkable things about releasing music is that something created from your own experiences can eventually belong to a stranger in an entirely different way.
Amit Ahuja: Has a fan or listener ever shared a message, story, or interpretation of one of your songs that genuinely stayed with you? Was there ever an interaction that made you realize your music had affected someone more deeply than you expected and reminded you why you wanted to keep creating?
Tom: We played a show in Winston-Salem once, & there was this group of kids, probably 12-14 years old. They loved the show, & afterwards, one of them approached us & asked for advice on starting their own band. It was this weird full circle moment, because I remember being that young at shows, seeing older bands blowing the roof off the place, & wanting my place among them. It was an honor to pass off knowledge to someone who’s young and inspired.
Mia: I remember how we met our friend Damien who made our anime keychains, shoutout @notdamienart. He told me it was going to be his first concert ever, and he didn’t really go to concerts and thought it might be overwhelming. When I met him that night it was not only so cool to see someone exploring things outside their comfort zone, but we also created a lasting friendship that night with someone I deeply respect as a fellow artist. Of course praise from anyone feels nice, but having a network of fellow artists who not only appreciate our music but actively listen to it while creating makes me feel seen as a creative.
Some of the memories that best define a band happen nowhere near the spotlight—during rehearsals, long drives, backstage conversations, late nights, ridiculous jokes, and situations nobody planned for.
Amit Ahuja: What's one behind-the-scenes story that perfectly captures what it's really like when Mia, Tom, and Drew are together? And while we're exposing each other a little, what's one harmless habit or personality trait each person has that occasionally drives the other two crazy—but that you probably wouldn't want them to change?
Tom: Nothing drives me crazy about these two. That’s saying something, considering all of the time we’ve spent together. The worst thing I can say is: They hold me accountable, which is annoying, but so necessary when it comes to me.
Mia: I don’t have any big complaints either. We say Drew is the band dad for a reason. He’s always double checking we’ve dotted our i’s and crossed our t’s and although I really WANT to do every crazy idea that pops into my head, I’m secretly thankful for him bringing me back down to earth when I need it. I guess the only thing for Tom would be that he isn’t afraid to state his opinion, and that’s really great but also scares me sometimes. But I feel like I naturally understand him to a degree as a fellow chaotic aligned gremlin. In fact, let’s assign DnD style alignments: Tom is chaotic neutral, I’m chaotic good and Drew is Lawful Good. I assume he didn’t write anything in this section because what I just described is probably self explanatory ;D
Music may be a huge part of your lives, but it isn't the whole story. Sometimes the things artists love away from the stage tell us just as much about them as the music they create.
Amit Ahuja: When you're not writing, rehearsing, recording, or performing, what does life look like for each of you? What hobbies or interests help you relax and recharge? And give us one thing about Mia, Tom, and Drew—a hidden talent, unusual interest, unexpected obsession, or completely random fact—that fans would probably never guess.
Tom: I’m an avid graffiti enthusiast. Every major city in the world has its own unique style. Seeing how that develops differently in different places feels like an honest, unobstructed view into the collective conscience of that area’s artists. The illegality of it serves as a barrier of entry, leaving only those who are the most compelled to go out & paint. It is, in my opinion, some of the most honest art there is.
Drew: I spend most of my free time watching sports, going to see live music and hanging out with my friends. I also love sitcom re-runs. I basically always have a sitcom going on the TV that I've already seen a million times.
Mia: When I’m not doing music I’m probably playing video games. I like to achievement hunt games, and currently have 26 perfect games on steam (and counting). Most recently I got all 44 achievements in Resident Evil HD Remake. I also have over 4,000 hours in Counterstrike. Ask me about my Corki in League Classic.
A recording allows people to live with a song, but performing it creates an entirely different relationship between the artist and audience. No two nights can ever be exactly the same.
Amit Ahuja: When someone walks into a ColorMeKrazy! show for the first time, what do you want them to experience? What do each of you personally love most about performing, and is there a particular live moment or show so far that you'll always remember?
Tom: We keep having these cool experiences that commit themselves to memory, & each of those memories get topped all the time. Packing out our first show in DC was an incredible experience, considering how early on that was. Selling out Cannonball music hall locally also comes to mind as well.
Drew: I want people to experience high energy and positive vibes. I will always remember: the first time someone asked me for our handwritten setlist after the show, the first time someone brought us a gift to a show (handmade friendship bracelets), the first time someone asked us to sign something for them and every time a small pit breaks out while we are playing (especially in a city we have never been to before and we don't really know anyone).
Mia: I want people to go home and say “I had so much fun tonight”. The best shows are ones that completely immerse you, let you forget about whatever you have going on in your personal life, and make you feel excited for the first time in a long time. I’ll name a specific instance: we played a festival called Jermfest in Baltimore. Before our set, people kind of just passed by our table, paying us no mind. I expected that; we'd never played in Baltimore let alone Maryland before. After our set Drew tapped me on the shoulder as I was packing up, and said “Mia, you gotta get to the merch table right now, there’s a line!!!” And I signed all sorts of stuff that night. Converse, Hats, CDs, you name it! It was unforgettable meeting everyone, in a city that had never heard of us.
Every new chapter creates another horizon. There are new songs waiting to be written, stages waiting to be played, people you'd love to create with, and dreams that may currently seem far away.
Amit Ahuja: What can fans look forward to next from ColorMeKrazy! following “IMPERMANENCE_”? Beyond your immediate plans, who would each of you dream of collaborating with, what festival or venue would you love to play, and what's one seemingly impossible goal you'd love to see ColorMeKrazy! accomplish someday? Ultimately, what legacy do you hope the band leaves behind?
Tom: My dream collaborations are all over the place. American Theory will be hard to beat, but I do want to continue to invite people into our circle who are that innovative & inspire us like they have. As far as impossible goals & dream festivals? Throw us on the lineup of Taste Of Chaos ‘05, baby!
Mia: I want to collaborate with CHEEM, go on tour with Davvn and Glimmers, and if we can swing it, I want a tour with Waterparks. Other than all that, I want CMK to be a band that helps people through the hard times, gives people hope, and inspires the next generation of musicians to pick up an instrument and learn it. During an age with AI, I want more and more people to realize that the human spirit is what makes great music, and it’s inside all of us.
Every musical journey leaves something behind—not only for the people creating it, but also for those who discover inspiration, comfort, connection, or a sense of belonging through the music.
Amit Ahuja: As we wrap up our Hawk-IT Interview, we'd like to give each of you the final word. MIA, Tom, and Drew, what message would you personally like to leave with ColorMeKrazy! fans and our Hawk-IT Media readers? Whether someone is chasing a dream, going through a difficult season, trying to find the courage to be themselves, or simply figuring out where they belong, what would each of you like to say to them?
Tom: No one’s going to live your best life for you. I think the number of people who lay on their deathbed, soaked in a lifetime’s worth of regret is higher than any of us are comfortable acknowledging. We owe it to ourselves to live our own unique, best truth.
Drew: It's extremely cliche, but YOLO. We've all only got a short time to live this life, so you should spend it doing what you love and being who you are.
Mia: LIFE IS SHORT SO LIVE! Charge head first into mistakes and learn from them. That’s what In My Arms is about. I spent so much time wishing I was who I wanted to be, instead of taking action to live it. We never know when it’s our time, so if you’d die with regrets tomorrow, start changing your life today! All I did was move to Raleigh and send some DMs, and now I have Tom and Drew! And we’re going to be best friends forever whether they like it or not!!! :P
Please explore the ColorMeCrazy link below to listen to their music and follow them on social media:
***All photos and video used by Hawk-IT Media are property of ColorMeCrazy***
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