Aug. 2, 2026

From Opera to Metal: Heaven Queen’s Journey and Festival Adventures

From Opera to Metal: Heaven Queen’s Journey and Festival Adventures
From Opera to Metal: Heaven Queen’s Journey and Festival Adventures
Pipeman in the Pit
From Opera to Metal: Heaven Queen’s Journey and Festival Adventures

The conversation focused on the dynamic life, music, and journey of La Vero from Heaven Queen during the Wacken festival. The discussion explored La Vero’s background, experiences in the Dutch and European metal scenes, her work supporting touring bands, and her own musical evolution. Personal stories, cultural observations, musical philosophy, and industry anecdotes provided an in-depth look at the realities of life as a working artist in the metal community.Main Topics Covered

  • Origins and experiences at Wacken and other European festivals
  • The evolution of music consumption and the importance of song structure
  • Cultural contrasts and stories from travels in the Netherlands and beyond
  • La Vero’s multifaceted career in the music industry
  • The role of heavy subjects and personal struggle in songwriting
  • The supportive nature of the metal community
  • Opera and classical influences in metal vocals
  • Details on Heaven Queen’s new music and collaborations
  • Importance of authenticity and diversity in artistic creation
  • How listeners can support and connect with Heaven Queen
Key Discussions & StoriesWacken Festival Experience
  • One concept discussed was the unique atmosphere at Wacken, with La Vero describing her thirteenth visit as a homecoming 01:03.
  • A key theme that emerged was how being a “virgin” at Wacken adds intimacy and mystery to the experience 01:14.
Evolution of Songwriting and Attention Spans
  • The discussion explored changes in how listeners engage with music, lamenting the trend toward short attention spans and the loss of song "buildup" in modern songwriting 02:09.
  • Several points were raised, including how iconic long songs like “Bohemian Rhapsody” or “Hotel California” could struggle in today’s market 02:21.
Cultural Anecdotes & Travel Stories
  • Entertaining accounts of Amsterdam’s coffee houses, red and blue light districts, and music bars painted a vivid cultural backdrop 04:11.
  • Adventures with potent Dutch cannabis, including mishaps and first-timer stories, offered humor and insight into Dutch culture 07:02.
  • Musings on favorite Dutch cities, local food, and the beauty of older architecture versus modern reconstructions 10:05, 14:36.
The Metal Community & Working in the Industry
  • La Vero described her diverse roles: band host, merchandiser, interviewer, makeup artist, and more, illustrating the supportive, interconnected European metal scene 05:00, 15:05.
  • The conversation focused on the difference between media access and community mentality at European versus American festivals 11:16.
From Personal Struggles to Songwriting
  • A key theme that emerged was the role of trauma and resilience, with La Vero sharing candidly about themes like loss, abuse, and therapy through music 21:20.
  • The discussion explored how turning personal pain into music offers healing both to artist and listener 21:49.
Musical Roots and Influences
  • La Vero traced her journey from church choir to opera, to blues and jazz bands, then finally to metal 24:35, 31:16.
  • One concept discussed was the importance of formal/classical training and its prevalence among metal vocalists 28:23.
New Heaven Queen Music & Collaborations
  • La Vero described upcoming tracks, themes of dementia, loss, celebration, and the presence of special guest musicians, including Mike LePond (Symphony X) and members of Bruce Dickinson’s band 35:28.
  • Several points were raised, including the idea of genre crossover, diversity of emotion in albums, and the inclusion of themes such as eroticism blended with personal experience 37:30.
Notable Quotes
  • “The Netherlands has always been about music and metal… there’s this passion. The first big metal festival was in the Netherlands, and maybe because we are open-minded.” 20:38
  • “Music is the best therapy ever, for the artist but also for the listener.” 21:53
  • “What does the song need? The message, the emotion—how does it make your heart pump?” 24:01
  • “I sang before I could speak.” 24:35
  • “My music is acceptable for everyone… Of course, there’s a little erotic side always.” 37:20
Resources & Links Mentioned
Pipeman in the Pit is a music, festival, and interview segment of The Adventures of Pipeman Radio Show (#pipemanradio) and from The King of All Festivals while on The Pipeman Radio Tour.

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0:04 Hi you love ONNT Yes, Sue se Wow for you your. This is the pipe Man here on the Adventures pipe Man W four c Y Radio. And I'm here with I'm lave hero from Heaven queen. Oh. I'm very excited you're here with me at fucking. Of course, and I'm having such a blast and it's my honor and pleasure to talk to you. Well my pleasure as well, and like I don't know if anybody told you what we were doing audio, I don't know why you got all dressed up and beautiful for the interview, but I like it.

0:50 Thank you so much, darling. It's especially for you, of course. Of course, of course. Yeah. So what's your feeling being here on the Holy ground? Well, this is my thirteenth time here. Whoa. So for me it's like coming home. I see that, because it's like that for me at other festivals. This one. I'm a virgin. Oh my god, yes, you took my virginity here at Vakin Wow. I'm very honored. And the fit are closed on exactly. Sometimes it's better that way, right, I think, so, yes, more intimates, more mysteryes, like yeah, and think about it. It is what happens like when you have clothes on, there's a lot more intimacy and then you do whatever and then you're done.

1:42 I like the build up long foreplay exactly, and. I feel the same about music, well, because I feel the same way about music. Yes, you know music, I think I don't know. With the algorithms nowadays and people's attention span, they're current eliminating that parts of music, and I like that, like the build up. Some of my favorite songs ever had a build up to. It and this is how it was all the time. But now with a short tension span, you have to make an impression in like twenty seconds all day skip you. And that might be too long twenty seconds or so. Hey, but the best songs Bohemian, Repsity, Hotel California, all those old school really rock and metal ballads especially, they are all for eight minutes and you cannot pull it off anymore.

2:35 No, And I'll even go a step further. Some of the most brutal metal songs started with this intro that if you only gave it twenty seconds, you will skipped the track and missed, like one of the best songs ever. I you have no idea which genre it actually is, because some of the death or tress metal music out there, they start with some nice classical vibe and then they just common hard. If you don't know that you skipped a song because you think it's a different song you listen to. And a perfect example is a German band except Fast as a Shark. If you only listen to the very beginning of that very beginning, it does like this old school German thing where it's a high, the high, the hu and then it does that for a while. You want saur Kraut with Yeah, not me, but you would.

3:34 It's funny. I was just talking to Lucas from Napalm Records out there, and I hate zaur Kren So is he okay? Dandel's blatfast. I don't like that either. I'd be I'd make a terrible German. Yes you would, right, Yeah, Luckily I'm Dutch. See, and I love the Netherlands. You like oh cheese, oh the beer? I like well. I like the women, I like the scenery. I like the coffee houses, of course, But you know what, things the way they are around the world now, it's not even such a big deal. Like I remember, I was thirty years old I went to Amsterdam for the first time, and I was like, whoa.

4:17 Let me guess which district you went. It has something to do with lights and reds. I did that one too, but I was married, so it was with my wife. Just check it out. And then at one point I didn't know where it meant to a little after we were walking down the blue light district. You know that part, right, of course you do, And wow, I didn't mean it that way. The cave it's a metal bar just outside the district. And I took the guys from Sapotoon there when they in the Milcreek. And yeah, I'm also a bent host. I do merchandise. I'm on tours with bands. I actually do interviews for their broadcastings.

5:04 And oh so you could, I'm already during this interview. We do this together, exactly, exactly, already told me about your wife. Well not anymore, she divorced from her for many years, but yes, well I will tell you a funny story about that though. So we get there, Like I used to be in the investment business. It was before the internet, so I couldn't do any you know, long trips, only weekend trips. So we did weekend trip to Amsterdam. Get off the plane off of red Eye in the morning and she's tired, so she wants to go to the hotel. I'm like, you're at your mind. I just arrived in Amsterdam.

5:44 The hotel is not the first place I'm going, and we only have the weekend we're going straight to. And at that time, the Grasshopper was. It's still there. Well it's still there, but it's more of a restaurant. But then it was the old place, like downstairs was the coffee house. Upstairs was alcohol because I thought it was funny that it was like illegal to have alcohol and the other stuff on the same floor. But that has a reason because when I'm with dance as well, I tell them make your choice, or you smoke the wheat or you do the alcohol, because if you mix it and you're not usage, you gets really really sick and end up in hospital.

6:27 Well that's true. That's why they separated. If you smoke that, you just don't get another drink or only the soft rinks. It is for mental and physical health. Right, And you know what too, is it hits a little different there. All of my old high school stoner friends in America that could handle anything. All of them like face planked in Amsterdam, of course, because we had good stuff exactly. And I was there during the cannabis cuff. So I got to tell you what happened. The server comes up with the menu, and so I just asked him.

7:08 I'm like, what's give me something mellow? I don't want I wanted to start off mellow. So you started with the white widow. Me actually gave me some Jamaica and I don't even remember what it was. But then after I did that, I'm like, oh, okay. And so just to give you a little context, my wife didn't smoke. She knew I did, but she can never tell when I did because I did it more like you know, somebody drinks a glass of wine. It just slowed me down to a normal person. Do you Yeah, a normal person. Yeah, they don't become normal. That's boring. I'm never normal, okay, but at least I was relaxed, you know. And you couldn't tell if I smoked or not.

7:53 So then I say, a server, okay, now give me the best shit you got. Oh god. And it was called uh white weirdo widow. No, there was a weirdo. There's a weirdo version. Okay, yes, oh that would you. And then they had they had a bond that was like this high. I'm like, I want that bond. And I took one hit at that bong, that white weirdo. And then we went to a Chinese restaurant to eat and I looked at the menu and I looked at my wife. I'm like, I can't do this. She's like, what are you talking about. I'm like, I can't do this. I am so high, Please God let me come down.

8:35 And she was so shocked, like this, she never saw me like that. Now, I'm also somebody that I didn't drink, so I just don't like it. Once in a while, now I will, but I don't really like it. So the last day we're there, I convinced her to smoke. We made a deal. I said, I'll drink a beer if you smoke. So she's like, okay, give me the mellow stuff you got. So I gave that to her first. You gave her the weirdo not yet. I gave that to her first, and then she, oh, that's not bad, I'll take some more. That's when I packed the weirdo. You're bad she laughed for four hours straight without taking a.

9:23 Breath, and munchies she didn't need to eat. I don't even remember that part. I just remember it was so funny that she was just laugh and then laugh and then laugh and then you know. Of course I never got to see her stone, so that was that was my entertainment. So that was my first experience in Amsterdam. Okay, But now I loved the Netherlands. I don't just love Amsterdam. I love dun Hog. What amazing food in dun Hog. But I'm sorry. I'm from Antover. Yeah, so like I've been to Eindhoven, but I've never really dove in. Like I'm the type that when I go to other countries, I go with the locals, you know, I don't go with the tourists. I want to see what it's really like.

10:13 But you know, before vodka, before health as for everything, you had Dynamo be air. Yeah, I lived five minutes from there, so as a child, I was hanging out my window and I hear Metallica play. Oh I love that. That is awesome. That's one I haven't done yet. Because your country it's different when it comes to festivals, they like they don't really like outsiders at the festivals, like who tells you this, Well, here's what well Eindhoven Metal meeting. I had the publicist for that said, oh, I'm going to bring you next year, and then she told me she couldn't because basically they're more like about their community there.

10:54 Now it's about the people they know, but the community is still from all of the World's okay because I know the organization and because it's in a relatively smaller venue. It's not small small a couple of thousand people, but backstage it is really for the artists and there is just a separate part also for the media. Yeah, you cannot have a whole well that it's not like Waker here. You can have like Siphon the people doing the press, we might have twenty. You have to be particularly selective who is doing this shit about those bands? Which I'm okay with that because that's why I like doing the European and UK festivals, because they really vet the media in the States. Not always usually Usually it's like you get people in the media that shouldn't be in media. They're there the fanboy or fan girl out.

11:53 Yeah. True, And I'm a pro pro I don't want to deal with that because then the bands don't want to come back the press when you have that going on. So I have the respect for that over here. And I did apply I think it was last year to Dynamo and I got turned down. But then I was talking Christian from Season of Miss and he said, oh, I'll get you in next year. Okay, so are you going to be there? I didn't talk. I tried talking to I haven't talked to him about it really for this year. I don't know why. It would be lovely to see you there. Also, oh and if it's not this year, I'll be next year. I'll figure it out. It's like the ten minutes from a house.

12:33 There's no guarantee either. So if you have connections too, I'll take all the connections I could get. Well, I can offer space because I have a guest room for bends with eight people I can host, so if you can crush in one of the guest rooms. So if my country really goes as ship, I can come live with you. I'm just kidding. You can be in one of the bunk bends, yes, but. Seriously though, that is one on my list. Dynamo and I did it like I've driven all over your country, and I've taken trains all over your country. I just like the whole country. I'm a surfer, so that's one of the reasons I like then Hog because there's water out there, and I haven't surfed there because I go during the winter like an idiot. The last time a couple of years ago I lived there. I decide to make a change after that because at least for some reason, as an idiot, go during the winter. And last time I was there for like two and a half months and I had three hours of sunlight the whole time.

13:42 Yeah, we can have dark winters. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I was like, yeah, I'm stupid. I'm not doing this again. I gotta do it during the summer, not during the winter. Yeah, but now it's going to be so hot it's like sometimes over forty degrees. That doesn't bar me because I'm here. I'm in South Florida, so and I have been there in the summer a few years ago. While I was there in the summer, my Airbnb host said it was the it was the warm as it's ever been in her whole life. You know what struck me is. I was on the seventy cat this year. First time I go to America, we go to the Bahamas. You think, what's happened? It snowed, Holy shit, in February packed. I've was packed. All happened, No, only the time that I am there. So it's your fault, man, of course I'm the ice Queen, right, yeah.

14:36 And I will tell you the first time I drove into Rotterdam, I was like, oh my god, this is the most beautiful city in the world, you know, because it's the city that's reconstructed. But it's so cool with the lights and everything. Yeah, you know, but I do like the old school architecture in Europe, you know, So even though I liked that in that respect, it was just the drive in, you know, but having modern I could do that in the United States. I come over here, I like, but. Then you have to go to the old towns exactly, the old architects exactly. I actually live in a house from eighteen ninety. Wow. I live in historical buildings.

15:17 I love that. And then I brought a couple of years ago, I brought two of my daughters like for part of the time for New Year's because I absolutely. Of all the places I've been so far, I love Amsterdam New Year's better than anywhere in the world so far, and I'm from New York. It's way better than Times Square. Times Square actually sucks. So if you ever come back to Nellon's one of the kind the cities I would advise you to go. Is. It has the old church, it has the old canals, and it's more mellow than Amsterdam or Rotterdam. It's because it's in the south. The people are not.

15:58 There right well, you'll have to take me around. See. That's why I like the locals, the real place. It's just like if you came to Florida or you even went to New York, I would take you to. Most people don't see the real place. Actually, I was after the seventy K We went to Florida to see the guys from Crimson Glory. Lee Hardson from Austar City, the old tool manager from mobid Angel is now also near Tempa. He works there. So this time I went to see my friends I know from music and Yeah tomorrow they play here Clinton Glory with them and stuff. And it was the first time that I got to the other sites. And because I've been working red bands and singing for like thirteen years now.

16:50 No no no, no, no no. In metal, I sing for thirty years. I did a lot before that, but it was so cool that for this time they actually showed up for me instead of that I was arranging things for them and nice. And then you see how cool the community is, and especially for Puanshee, the old tool manager of Morbid Angel, says, all the time I've been touring, people only text met for guest list, but for you, I could always cong down. But now that I'm here with my family, I stopped touring. Nobody gives a damn about me anymore. And he was so surprised that I called him like, hey, dude, I'm in Florida, going to be in Tempa Area. Do you want to hang out? And You're like, what the fuck?

17:34 Nice? Yeah, but this is friendship. It's not a way it should be. That's where it should be. And I'm gonna tell you right now. I live on an island, a small barrier island, where it's got the best reef in the world, second best to the Great Barrier reef, and I have a three hundred and sixty degree view of water. So you're welcome to come visit a time I would be and I'll take you all over where nobody would take you. Okay, I have to make a short stop because your next person, you're going to interviews outside, so I got to instruct my manager to get him for you for later outside.

18:15 Get okay, let's continue, continue, no problem. That was our commercial break. Yes, I'm just arranging your calendar right now. I know. See you're so good. But you know, so what I was saying about my doors is so I brought them m and it was winter. I not only did I bring them to like everywhere else, but I said you now, right now, I'm drawing a blank because I've had no sleep in three days. But the place that has like the apple pie that people come from around the world. I forget the name right the second, but I brought him there, and you know that had a long line and it's very different, like we call America like apple pie is our thing. I don't like apple pie in America. The one at that place in Amsterdam, like it's off the beaten path, but it's known around the world.

19:15 People didn't have space and what did it hit by run? And it did it have what in it marijuana? No, it was just a restaurant. But it's known for its apple pie. It's like cake, which we don't have in the States. Ours is like like soupy, you know. It's got like yeah, yeah, yeah, it's like you're eating a mush pits. Yeah, and that's perfect, yes, And I like mosh pits, but I don't like mosh pits in my apple pie, not in your stomach. So I even love it there, I'll probably remember as soon as the interview's over. And then there's one place the like small list, either bar or restaurant. I think it's restaurant in the world. It's like you go up these stairs and I think it's just two tables. Yeah, So stuff like that's cool to me, you know, not the tourist need bullshit, you know. And when I went there and living, I didn't live in Amsterdam.

20:14 Well one time I did on a houseboat, but one time I lived in Amstelmen, you know, because I wanted to be out in the residential area, not the tourist area. Why is it though, people like you come from the Netherlands and you're such amazing. Artists, because the Netherlands has always been about music and the metal like the gathering with dentation if it comes to symphonic metal. But I make also it started in the Netherlands Apoka also, so we have like a history of great music. We have good water because what is some of the cleanest in the worlds at least in the south of the Netherlands. And there's this passion. As I said, the first big metal festival was in the Netherlands.

21:11 And maybe because we are open minded. There you go. That could be a really good reason. Could also be the winters. And we also don't skip on heavy subjects because for example, my album I talk about the death of my children. I talk about going through being in a hospital, being alone for months and months because people start to forget you. My own as a child, I've been abuse, sexual and mentality and physical. I think about Oh no, I now turned it into music and I help other people going through it. Best therapy ever. Actually, this is what music did to me, and this is what I'm giving back now.

21:53 I love that because it is the best therapy ever for you, the artists, but also meet a listener. Yeah, that's the beauty of metal too. Well, you can find it in any genre, but in our genre, in metal, it's more. People don't just start listening to metal. They have a story already. They're most of some highly intelligence because if you go see proc, metal is like high science and music, So you don't just go there to listen nice, because it's too complicated for just to be. Nice, right exactly. And I love that you deal with heavy subjects because I think that's what people need. That's the point of music is, you know, there's something for everybody for whatever you're going through, and especially now more than ever, with all the craziness in the world, I think we need music more than ever, especially your type of music.

22:49 Thank you. I did you listen to my music already? Of course I fucking did. So what kind of song did you like best? Do I remember the song? I don't remember the song. I don't even remember some of the songs of my favorite bands. But but I like the fact that you're a true artist, and I like that you are diverse. You know, it's like a lot of metal nowadays, it's kind of like formulas. Yeah, you know, they just plug in the formulas and it's to me boring. Like I like the diversity. I like when songs, not only songs, but the songs itself have it's like telling a story, you know, and going through the emotions of that story, and then on an album, I don't want to hear the same song every song.

23:45 Yeah, I like crossover a genre. So right as you had listened to I have a walls, I have a tango, I have ballads, I have power metal. For me, it's like, what does the song need to message that I want to bring? What is the she behind it? And how does it make your heart pump? Yes? And sometimes she needs mellow and sometimes she just needs. Upbeats, right, But I do think you need it all And like, that's what makes a great album when it's got that diversity to it, because if it's the same song every song, you only have to listen to one, you know, and that it gets boring. Exactly, So, when did you start becoming an artist? I don't mean when you formed a band or whatever. In your head and in your heart.

24:35 I sang before I could. Speak nice And how that happened? Was it because of you or did my grandfather? My grandfather had the biggest opera house in the Netherlands. Oh wow, I grew up with that, and my mom has been two times touch Brittanic Gymnastics champion. I started also ice figure skating because I have hid I don't know if I pronounced correctly, but I was all over the place as a child. I did my violin less, the singing, less, skating for over thirty hours a week. And yeah, I was always in the spotlight. I was a child model. I grew up in the spotlight, so for me it was just natural.

25:23 How do you feel about now as an adult that you were brought up in the spotlight? Do you? I'm sure you have both sides of it parv it good, but part of it like maybe no, no, no, it was. Always handled very well. I didn't know. I didn't feel like I was special. I didn't get an ego, and that is what I think is most important. And you don't even feel like your parents like were putting you in there because it's what they're doing it that see, that's amazing that. With my singing, I started in the chairs choir. My first performance was fast in church. Damn all through schools. Yeah, okay, so sing for me the first church song you sang.

26:09 Thank you? I lost my voice. I told you I was gonna do it to you. Okay, no, no, I don't go to do the first song because in English. But I heard of us a secret card David played and it pleased the Lord. But you don't really care about it, do you goose? That is the full the fifth mine a fall, majorly bad, the thing compassing heneluja. I fucking love it even with you. I have a lost voice, so man, I can't wait for listeners to hear the full voice because like I know we've been talking.

26:58 My voice is bad right now is worse. Yeah, because I've been in fields with all the dust exactly, and I just had a tonsal surgery a few months ago, so all the dust now stuck too. Well. You know what, It's funny you bring up the dust because I own like I always get the festival dust, you know, from festivals, like every morning this week, I'm like trying to get it out so I can do interviews. But yeah, but I'm always like, man, how does singers do it? Because that's even worse of me. Two days ago, I was on the wet stage as I was dancing the DJ sets. Like two hours I was on the stage just dancing, dancing and pumping off the audience, so I had to scream because there was no mic. So next morning you didn't want to hear me.

27:46 I was like a cold girl. I have some of that voice lot, you know the ones all the singers use. I have losengers. Okay. I was gonna say, if you need it, well. Oh yeah, but I have it at my tense. Yes. Please. That stuff that we vocals on, we don't have that in the States. That stuff's like magic. Do you believe in magic? There? It is? There, it is? So what would you say led you to medal from that start of church and anything else you did? And did you sing opera too? Yes, I've been studying opera since I was very young, but they only let me sing like open opera after I was fifteen or so. Becus then your vocal cars can actually handle it.

28:36 Yes, exactly. And okay, I have a trivia question for you. First, what singer of a band playing at Vakin besides you it was is has an opera training? Not this year, but did you know that the guy from Rmstein. I didn't know that, but that makes sense. Almost every vocalist I know in metal has a classical training behind her, So you. Don't know the one that I'm talking about today or not today. But is it today? Maybe I have to see the lineup because I've been here already for four days, so I don't know who's playing today to go into. My first thing on my schedule was the interfere with you, and before that, take a shower. So I just rolled out of bed, take a shower, and run to you.

29:29 All right, So I'll give you a hint. Okay, think of the initials r h H. Yes, our H. It might not be the band name i'm referring to either. No, no, no, it's too early. Give it to me a singer. I'll give you another hint. If he breaks the law, he won't be able to do his set. Breaking a law, breaking the law. Okay, there you go. I'm terrible with names, but Alford. Rob Alford, So of course fuck you could say whatever the fuck you want.

30:12 Okay, fucking hell yeah, see I stomped you. I love stumping artists. It's fun, okay, you know, because you really do know the answer, but it's not there in the moment spots exactly. It's normally when I do interviews, I get the questions up fronts, so I can prepare. I'm like going in blind here. Yeah, you'll never get that with me, and I. Really like it. Actually, I'm like yesterday when we had fears together. It's I'm talking to her friends. Exactly that, And that's what this should be. Yeah, you know that's my belief. Interviews should just be a conversation, take take a life of its own.

30:53 Yes. So, so I'm here to talk about my music. And we started talking about opera and whed in the coffee shop. But it's a warm up, it's the it's it's the foreplay. Oh my god, we're there against but with the clothes on exactly. So going back to what I asked you, like, So, what led you from church to metal? It was a long way because from church I went from there to chess and blues. The first band I was in was a jazz and blues band I did at A James and from there I had my first betty surgeries because I have a colostomy back or stoma as people know it. The doctor said I could not saying I had feeding tubes and everything. So I started dancing again. I danced for in the go Go dance scene.

31:44 I worked at Charlie Lone's mental te o, Dark Raper, Chestow, all the big bands. But I didn't like the environment because it was too much evolving drugs and then I don't talk about whe It was like heavy, heavy, and it was not that mellow, and my ex boyfriend was very deep into it. So when we broke up, I didn't want to have to do anything with a scene again. So there was a friend of mine she worked at Dynamo Club. She said, do you want to work at the bar because we need pip. I said, I don't know the music, but yeah, I'm open to it. And within a couple of weeks I was backstage manager of the bands Nice and then Moonspell came in and they needed somebody responsible to do the merchandise. And they said that you can get fifty euro ods because it's so small you won't be able to sell anything, and I would get fifteen percent of what I sold, And I walked home with one hundred and fifty year o int pockets and I was like, oh, I like this. I'm good at this. So then I started working big festivals.

32:50 I did a couple of big tours. Actually I did a Circle to Circle with Zach Stevens, who was here yesterday heading actually from us a fight here at he was the keyboard player, so we know each other and Sturing and my brothers. And then from there I started listening more. I was first more in having metal, trash and death metal. Then somebody took me to this festival in Belgium. Actually it was because the old guitar player from Leed's ice, Torstan, I got to know him from Afro City and they invited me to come there to get to know no, no, no no. It was MFVF Okay, so that was my first introduction and I had a bad management of helped me. I forgot the name, that's okays Trail of Tears, and there was one of the friends a Trail of Tears. He gave me the first city of Nightwish.

33:55 Wow. And when I lost my children, I was in the hospital giving birth for eighteen hours and I two cities with me Trail of Tears and Nightwish. So I love my children during two nice to mermtes and it got to two almos from Nightwish and I was invited to come to the Night Wish weeks in Kitty and there are all vocalists from all over the world's male female musicians coming there to pay tribute to Night Twish. But it's all professionals. It's not just the fandom. I've been in the Two Night Wishes Loved documentary and this is how I got I roll into female fronteds. But I also worked for them. I work for Metal Babes in Belgium.

34:37 I do hair makeup for artists. I do the. It depends on how the book make because now in September it's Metal Babes again. I do the presentation of all the bands on stage, and I will do the merchandise, so sometimes I even have triple shifts if I have to perform myself as well. So you're like one of the hardest working people in music kind of yeah, I'll say it, yeah. But I love it. I love to be able to bring my music to people, but also help others bringing their their music to. People, because you're a true artist and the true have true passion for the music. So now tell me about your newest music or not me, but tell the listeners about your newest music and why give them a paint them a visual that makes them want to listen to it.

35:28 Well, on the first album, I had guest artists I work with, like Rosta Boss is on there my sot of Mysteria. They keep up Player from Bruce Dickinson, a lot of theme fronts like Laura from Burning Rich's an A Kiata. I love to do collaborations. And now the second album recording, now the lost parts of the drums and other dear friends in metal I don't know, do you know symphony X Yes, Michae Lapond is doing a big bass solo in between a metal song, so it has like this break, It has this prog vibes in the metal song that is more like heavy metal duets.

36:22 So I like to do that kind of stuff. And this is on the new album. Of course, we're not gonna skip on heavy subjects. This album will go through problems like dementia that you see somebody with dementia living in a fog. This is one of the songs. But we also have we celebrate your life because I've been to so many funerals the last couple of years, and also my own brother killed himself. Oh I'm so sorry to hear that. And for me it's important to remember the person and not only the grief. So one of the we celebrate your life. First you burn, read your life to the earth. You return, We honor your name until we meet again. A traveling soul you be came. This is one of the new.

37:10 Songs and it goes with every religion because everything every religion believes in a soul, and a traveling soul can be embraced by anybody. Absolutely. So this is what I want to make. This is my music is acceptable for everyone. Of course there's a little erotic site always. Oh see, that's where the four play part came. Yes, one of the songs in burning Rubber, and you hear bike music like the burning rubber on the road, but in the end you are in a hotel room burning the rubber. Oh so I always have to put in a little bit of sex, okay, because that is also me I was. Going to say. So that's the real life experience.

37:53 Yeah, you have to write about what you know. Right exactly. Tell everybody how they can reach out to you. Can you on socials? Check out your music, check out everything you do, check out and buy your merch. Yes, we have our website, including the web store. It's having Queen dot com. It's one words. We are on Instagram, it's having Queen official on YouTube otway, it's having queen bands. We also are on TikTok me as an artist and model, you can find on a la vero like la French for female vero short for very nique. It's not a difficult, so it's always love Viro Official. You can find me anywhere on every social Yeah, and I hope to play here one day with my own bands out there.

38:47 Yeah, they need to have you here at Barking playing. I'm just putting it out there. I've been here doing everything except technique, so now it's my time to be on a stage singing. I'm not only dancing. Absolutely way, I agree, And I want to see you here and I want to see aur listeners check you out. And they don't buy your merch, they can't listen to my show. Ha, well that would be lovely. It's a click and order system that we use from print FLL, so I don't have to send it out. Only if you want to buy the album, is I have to physically send it. Yeah, Calta and we have really cool stuff. And as I am a model, I use my model pictures on the merchandise itself as well. Yeah, as you should, as I should.

39:33 Let's still dress, still dress until. You sing that song. No, because otherwise we cannot put anything up that's true. But I write nipple covers, so I'm covered. Well, there you go. That's all that mean. Just like Wendy O. Williams of the Plasmatics, the original queen of punk, and you're the heaven Queen and you're my have Ben queen. Oh, thank you. And you're amazing artists, but more importantly amazing human being. So thank you for that, and thank you for being on the Adventures of pipe Man. Well, thank you so much for the honor of this interview. The honor is all mine.

40:14 So let's stop this interview and finally get drunk. You get drunk and I'll watch you. You would love that. Huh. No, let's go. I don't mind. So we're gonna enjoy the last three days where you have left its been. Do you want to see most I'm taking off the interview right now. Yeah, so uh, probably trip the con. Okay. Because I'm an old school hell Hammer fan, I'm. Really looking forward to see Sabaton again because I was here at the twenty first three and now it's five years later. They're my guys. I worked with thems of me. To see them, it would be an honor and yeah, yesterday's sabotage. I always go to the bands that I worked with because I love to see my people, because you have emotional connection with them.

41:06 Absolutely and same with me. I like to go see the bands that I interview to show support too. That is it. We all got to support each other and that is what medals about, and that is what Vukin is about. Thank you, my friends, see you later, see you and enjoy. Thank you for listening to the adventures of Tapement. I'm w for CUI Radio.