Some of my favorite parts about being a DJ are discovering new music and creating new connections. Being a fan of all genres I’m always elated to hear new music come into the Geyer Studio.
One artist in particular that caught my attention is M3GA, also known as Meighan Nealon. After hearing her collaboration with husband and fellow artist, TurboVCR, on the song “Unpure” I instantly became hooked.
With her soft, dark-wave tones Nealon is able to mix various styles creating a unique sound. “Unpure” was one of WMCO’s most played songs during the fall 2020 semester.
I was fortunate enough to interview her. As a fan this was a real treat. Coming from Toronto, Canada, Nealon has made a name for herself in the Synthwave scene.
“I started releasing music under the name M3GA in 2013 and I wanted to try a different artist name as a way to kind of create a new persona,” said Nealon.
Nealon has had a passion for music starting when she was a child. “I was inspired by Aaliyah, Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Madonna, and the Spice Girls. My favorite Spice Girl was Sporty,” said Nealon.
In addition to singing, Nealon has experience as a dancer having been featured in the TV show “Electric Circus” when she was in high school.
After doing the show, Nealon moved to Taiwan to study Chinese where she lived for seven years and gained a lot of inspiration. Nealon is well traveled having also been to England, Germany, and Italy.
“One thing that stood out to me living in Italy is how big the windows were there allowing you to see everything,” said Nealon. One of her favorite places to go in Taiwan was the famous Elephant Mountain. “I loved hiking up the mountain and standing at the top you get an amazing view of the whole city.” While living in Taiwan, she was featured on a Discovery Channel show, “Fun Taiwan” showing her bungee jumping off a bridge.
“I was going through a time where I just wanted to say yes to things and as you can tell in the clip I was stalling but it was definitely one of those ‘say yes’ moments and it was a really fun experience,” said Nealon.
Taiwan gave her ideas for her music including her newest song. “I’m actually going to be working on a new song with TurboVCR tomorrow about our cat, Ringo,” Nealon said.
“We got him at this flower market that reminded me of something out of ‘My Neighbor Totoro’ [anime movie] where they had all these cats up for adoption and that’s where we got Ringo. He unfortunately passed but this is a good way for us to remember him,” said Nealon.
As I listened to more of her songs it was hard for me to pick a favorite as each song takes the listener to another place. Nealon said some of her favorites are “Elemental,” “Twinkle,” and “Beginning,” where it focuses her music being an outlet.
“Unpure” was a popular song among the WMCO DJs so we talked about how that song came about. “He [TurboVCR] actually wrote that song and he presented it to me and I immediately fell in love with it and got into the character for that song and got in the studio to start recording the vocals,” said Nealon.
We talked about how she has stayed creative during the pandemic. “We’re homebodies most of the time anyways but I have missed being able to go places and we’re actually hoping to move back to Taiwan once its safe to do so, but I’ve been using this time to create and come up with new ideas for music. I have a studio here at home which has made it easier to continue making music,” she said.
Fans can expect to see more music from Nealon this year. I really enjoyed getting to do this interview. We talked about our shared love of Aaliyah, the band Heart, cats, the outdoors, and dancing. I highly recommend her music and allow yourself to be transported as you listen.
