BY: DINO TAKASHI

Ralph is an enigma. The Toronto-based Juno-nominated singer songwriter’s name gives a punch. Before you even get acquainted with her songs, “Ralph” keeps you puzzled and wondering: Who is she? And when you start playing her songs, they put you on spell and like Pringles - once you pop, you’ll never stop and realize “why are her songs on loop on my playlist?

I first heard of Ralph on a random Spotify playlist in 2019. Her song “Lit the Fire” was my introduction to her artistry. The song, albeit mellow, was fire! Ralph writes bop songs that has soul and everything she conveys through her music speaks in volume..Regardless if you’re sad, happy, straight and gay and any emotion or sexual orientation in between, the takeaway from her tunes hit the right spot. Ralph makes music from heartbreaks, power dynamics in a relationship, long distance affairs and navigating life in general. 

I was able to see Ralph in NYC from her live sold out concert in Mercury Lounge last February. She delivered more than what I was expecting. Watching her IRL solidified my admiration for her. For this feature, Ralph and I talked about life, love, her passion with fashion and writing new music.

So it’s Rafaella Weyman, that’s your real name? 

Yeah it’s Rafaella Weyman 

Hello again! So you're flying to San Francisco Tomorrow. How many shows are still remaining from your tour? 

Just two. So we fly tomorrow and play a show tomorrow night in San Francisco and then we drive to LA the next day and then we play LA on Friday and then we come back to canada 

From the leg of your tour, how many cities have you been in in the US since you started your tour

It was like a little mini US tour we just did Chicago then we had our two New York shows and then we did San Francisco and LA 

I wasn't really expecting anything from the show and when it ended I had to pass you a note so I can write a story about you. I heard you in 2019 through a random Spotify playlist and I have been following you since and I actually found a ticket in October and I'm not sure how I found that you're going to be in America. I actually bought the ticket on October 4 And then that was like November December January February came and yeah it’s been four months and then I came and this show is nice I'm going to write something about Ralph. I tore a piece of paper from my friend's notepad on Saturday and I'm glad you responded!

I almost forgot about the piece of paper and then at the end of the night I know I put it somewhere in my body and then I was like what is this when you get a note from someone in the audience you never know. you open up and you're like ahhhh it could be anything 

I'm glad I was able to catch you from your show in NY last Saturday. That was fun!

Yeah it was fun and you were at the first one right the early show?

I was at both! I caught you on your Tables Have Turned, the last one ok let’s just wait this is fun and I told my friend oh it's OK I already heard the song that I want to hear. My friend said no, let's wait for the next one we’re already here. When did you start writing music? 

I started writing songs when I was probably 14. I've been writing for a really long time and I used to just write like you know a little songs with my friends or poetry and then. I was in a band right after high school so I've always been writing the songs since then for the band.

When did you start singing professionally? 

I studied performing arts high school in Toronto so I studied music performance there and then I guess probably I was like 19. I started performing, I was in bands and I was performing. I don't know whether it depends on how you define professionally. This is my job. I was in a band with like six guys and yeah I wanted to be a stylist and an actor . Ralph has been in existence for six years 

Why did you decide to go with the mononym? 

The music project started with this producer and we couldn't agree on anything, which is why we don't work together anymore. We were trying to figure out a name for the group and  everything he said I was like no I don't want that everything I said he was like no and we came up with a list of names he loves my real name Rafa and I was like no I don't I think it's nice like with this project that I been making I was like I wanted to be like not me you know I want to be I want to go to step off stage and I don't want to fans to be yelling my real name is it healthy to fine that line between your artist and then you're a real person. So I suggested Ralph kind of as a joke because it was similar to my real name but we were both like OK I also like that it's when you hear it you're like oh is that a band that one person and is that a guy is it a girls I know it's like kind of a shock when people I think of people don't know who I am and then they meet me there like and oh so your name is Ralph! Yes! 

I can totally relate to that because it is like separating yourself from the art that you make or the writing that you make. That's a fun journey, so Ralph was supposed to be a group name instead of like a solo artist?

No, it was supposed to always be a solo project like we just sort of starting it with me but we always knew it was just gonna be I did bands for most of my life like it's very different being the solo face of a project yeah it's very different and sometimes it's a little lonely I loved being like I don't know it was nice like sharing when you're in a band share the work where it’s just you. It's on you. It's like it's my project, it's my namesake when we do shows and we meet fans and yes there are people in my band who play that I hired. If Ralph gets a bad name, it’s me so I'm always conscientious that Ralph is me and I am the only person who can further it or detriment it. 

So you're from Canada and there’s a lot of very good like in our solo acts  from Canada I mean your song is like not really like very like Alanis but the the lyrics like reminds me of how you get inspiration from heartbreak or from life experiences.Where do you get your music inspiration or who are your music inspirations? 

From everything. From conversations I have with friends. Sometimes a friend will tell me a story or say something and I'll go like can I can I use that but yeah mostly human relationships and whether you know it's friend relationships or it's the relationship you have with yourself the relationship you have with your partner and the feelings that come along with that and I just think that humans are so beautifully complicated there's an endless well of things you can write about and yeah I feel like I'm always kind of inspired by even like movies and books and photographs like it's funny I find that I also write best when I'm moving like physically. When I'm running or I'm biking all of a sudden I'll be like something will come to me so a lot of my writing starts out as like voice notes of me panting as I'm running into my phone trying to figure out what I was saying but yeah I got a lot of inspiration from like I think that's when you're moving when you're running or biking you're not like you're not thinking about something no you're thinking about breathing and movement it almost like releases this. I don't like to open up the other part of my brain that's like here’s an idea because you’re not trying.

It’s more meditative I guess?  

Yes totally exactly I always say you know like my form of meditation is yoga and running when I don't think about anything else except for breathing 

That’s beautiful! What's your most favourite song from everything that you’ve written? I'm gonna share mine after you share yours! 

Well “Gasoline”  is really special to me. I wrote that four years ago and when I wrote it like I just felt something, yeah very very deeply deeply connected to the song and it's hard when you're a songwriter because sometimes you write something and then you show it to your manager or your team and then they're like I don't get it. And as a songwriter you're like what what do you mean like this is my heart you know and I kind of happened with the song like I've written at a writing camp with all of his other musicians and songwriters and everyone was like oh my God wow wow wow and then no one else at home got that feeling at least on my music team you got a release the song. This song is special to me because not only do I feel connected to it but you know I thought for that song for like four years I've been fighting to like redo that song re-record it reproduce it and I kind of just like I was just doing it based off of this feeling in my gut that was like you have to release the song.  It is special because it feels like I stuck to my artist integrity in my like you know my gut feeling. 

Before I share my most favorite song from everything that I've listened to, what is your process? 

I  write down the song lyrics or I actually  have a melody. I usually think of word ideas that I have on my phone. if I go to a session with a producer I'll share some ideas that I have on my phone that I wrote down and then will kind of go through them and kind of see what speaks to everyone but sometimes there's a melody attached to it too that I'll have a voice note that usually starts with words.

My most favorite song from you is Lit the Fire. And my most favorite part of it is:

“Every time every time every time I should have said what I meant 

every time, every time, got caught up in my head.”

Where did that come from?  

I wrote that song a long time ago. I don't even remember who I was dating at the time.

What’s your most streamed song? 
Gravity did really well on Canadian radio. It was in the Top 20 .

Congratulations! 

That  was really fun! I will hear from everyone “oh my God I heard this on the radio. It was a great experience and we got nominated for Juno which is like the Canadian Grammy. It was nominated for Best Dance Recording of the Year in 2020.

That’s a milestone! What are you looking forward to for the rest of the year? 

I just really want to focus on myself and making good music!

If you were a  book what would you be and why? 

I would be a book of crosswords! I think that while I love words, I love the possibility of words and the possibility of endless combinations of words and I think that I'm a little bit of a puzzle.