I know it wasn't shown intentionally, so that's what my heart tells me.

At leas that's what my heart tells me.

What's up.

Inland empire.

My name is Manny Sandoval, and this is Rhythm Lounge, where we spotlight the top musical talent from across the IE.

We have a great show for you.

Kicking us off is San Bernardino native and indie artist Victoria Moreno.

You said that you respect me.

Didn't want to do things wrong with me.

but suddenly, we were naked Physically.

Emotionally.

Put my heart into your hands.

Trusted that you would never walk away.

And leave me for dead.

Leave me for her yet again.

But you don't love me.

you never did, Fascination is all it is.

At least that's what my brain tells me.

At least that's what my brain tells me.

No, you don't love me another never did Fascination was all it is.

At least that's what my brain tells me.

At leas that's what my brain tells me.

You get angry when I pull away?

But I don't know what more you want from me.

Do you want me to be happy for you two?

After everything.

As if you were nothing.

Took down walls so that you could see inside of my soul.

Inside of me.

But you pulled away and left me confused.

Left me crying, yet again.

But I don't blame you I never did.

I know it wasn't your intention.

At least that's what my heart tells me.

At leas that's what my heart tells me.

No, I don't blame you, I never did.

I know it wasn't your intention.

At least that's what my heart tells me.

At leas that's what my heart tells me.

So I don't end up crying.

Oh, heart and brain.

Heart and brain.

Heart.

Heart and brain.

Crowded rooms.

My eyes beg to find yours.

For my subconsciousness knows You've left me washed up at my door.

Just us two and we refuse to look up at each other.

Because our minds say no.

But our bodies tremble.

Oh, oh.

And people around me wanna get to know me.

But it's useless.

It's useless.

Cause I was laughing at the jokes.

And I was looking at their faces But I was faking I was faking.

And I'm afraid to say.

To tell you that I think that there's nobody else.

Who will never come close to getting me the way.

To knowing me the way that you do.

And I'm afraid to leave.

Because what if this is it?

And we're just too damn stubborn to even realize it.

Baby for you.

Id swallow my pride.

Any day.

Crowded rooms.

My hands beg to touch yours but my subconsciousness.

You've only washed up on my door.

Just us two And we pretend that we don't know each other.

But our minds say no But our bodies tremble.

And the people around me try to get to know me.

But it was useless.

it was useless.

Caus I was looking at their faces.

And I was laughing at their joke But I was faking, I was faking.

And I'm afraid to say.

To tell you that I think.

That there's nobody else.

Who will ever come close to getting you the way.

To knowing you the way that you do.

And I'm afraid you'll leave.

And I'm afraid I'll leave.

And we'll just be a memory.

Bitter tasting on our tongues.

on our tongues.

And I'm afraid to say.

To tell you that I don't want anyone else.

To touch me.

The way to get me.

The way.

To know me the way that you do.

Crowded rooms.

And the people around me.

Try to get to know me.

But it was useless.

It was useless.

Welcome back to Rhythm Lounge.

Toda we have Victoria Moreno with us.

Victoria thank you so much for being here and sharing your original music.

Heart and brain and crowded room.

So, Victoria what would you say inspired you to start making music?

And how old were you when you first started taking, you know, the art of singing seriously?

Well, I was nine when I first started writing like, songs, not writing them, but, thinking of them and then singing them.

But I was 1 when I started writing them down and being more serious about it.

And I think what inspired m was my own personal experiences and, wanting to express that through music.

Gotcha.

So the songs that you just sang specifically, what is the brain one again?

It is heart Heart and brain.

Heart.

Imagery.

Heart and brain What inspired that specifically?

Like I said, personal experiences.

Taking experiences from friends as well.

Obviously with their consent.

And writing music.

Just sitting dow and turning on voice memos and, just going from there.

Really?

Gotcha.

And so, you know, I always think of artists you're so vulnerable when you write, especially if you write your own music, but have you ever been hesitant on releasing any music or sharing it with your friends, your family, or in this case, the entire Inland Empire?

Yeah.

I think naturally, there's a hesitation because it's so personal.

But at the end of the day, you'r putting it out there to share.

And I guess sort of give advice or inspire other people.

So I guess that takes away from the hesitation that there is.

Gotcha.

So, you know, the music industry, you know better than I do, but it's constantly shifting and always changing.

Evolving.

What's in one month?

Literally 30 days later, things switch up.

So social media is has been a game changer for artists, especially local artists.

What's one way that you're currently utilizing social media to share your talent with the world?

Well, I have an Instagram pag specifically just for my music.

But I haven't posted in forever.

And I think that's just because, not a lot of people like.

And you get discouraged, naturally.

But I post on TikTok, too, and, I just remind myself that, I don't necessaril want to get, like, recognized, but I'm more so want to put it out there for like 1 or 2 people to hear.

And if that touches them, then so be it.

Gotcha.

And so I kind of got word that you have seen actually that you do covers.

Yeah.

So what are some of those songs you've performed in?

How do you choose which song you want to to cover?

Right.

I like melancholic songs.

I feel like Taylor Swift has a lot of great songs.

The way that she writes music, is very storytelling and I like that type of music.

So, I like to cover songs like that.

Ed Sheeran as well.

Radiohead.

Just songs that, tell a story or have a story behind them.

During the break, you mentioned Harry styles.

Yes, I do.

I can tell.

Are you a fan?

Yeah.

Covered?

Yeah.

I have covered a few of his songs.

But I love his music just because of the, again, the way he writes.

Very storytelling.

Well, ladies and gentlemen, don't go anywhere.

Victoria's going to stick around and join us after the break and go.

And the people around me try to get to know me.

But it was useless.

It was useless.

This field is very collaborative, so coming in with a collaborative kind of mindset is very beneficial for you.

I've always enjoyed storytelling and whether that's new or through radio or through TV.

It was always just very fascinating to me.

It's very helpful from this program that I learned all roles.

And so now when I am on set I'm able to know what everyone is doing on set.

And that is something that I've learned here that I haven't learned anywhere else.

This school specifically is really good about that because they're really good at making you figure it out, kind of guiding you, but not forcing your hand as in like doing it for you.

An then it doesn't really set it.

You get to learn why it doesn't work.

Hello Inland Empire.

Thank you for joining us.

And in case you forgot we have Victoria Moreno with us.

So, Victoria, I wanted to ask, you know, social medi is extremely prevalent in music and in many other spaces around the world.

But I've recently see and heard on different podcasts that there's a lot of veteran artists who almost have somewhat of a chip on their shoulder because, you know, they came up in a more formulaic way and had to actually endure more obstacles.

And now songs are going viral on, you know, TikTok per se, and just, you know, a lot of times, like you mentioned earlier, that they lack substance.

But what are your thoughts on the new way that you can break into the industry?

I think, as you said, it' difficult nowadays to really get into the industry or, go viral as it and TikTok or anything.

Because people, people like fast songs or they like, like pop songs nowadays they're, they lack meaning.

I think and so putting your music out there that has a story behind it, people will like, have the ability to get lik bored or, their attention span isn't that long.

So I think a lot of it has to do with attention span.

So, yes, storytelling through music, to bring bac what was once, like the music.

But also being quick with what you say.

If you're, if you're going t say a story, just say it fast.

You know, that is true.

So it's interestin because there's a specific song that was dropped maybe about three weeks ago, and it was a minute and 59 seconds, and I said, what?

Where's the rest of this song?

Yeah.

So that kind of alludes to what you said.

You know, everyone' trying to do things quick, fast and under one minute and, yeah, it's just it's it's, slightly I feel personally diminishing, you know, like you mentioned the storytelling and the substance.

So, but moving forward, to performances.

I know you perform at your church.

Can you share a little bit about that with us?

I lead worship at our church, so, worship is just the band.

We do 3 to 4 songs.

Right now I'm the only singer, so I'm very used to being miked up.

And singing alone.

It's a great experience.

Being able to play music alongside, my friends.

And, it's just a great experience.

I've been there since I was 15, and I've grown, a lot since then.

That's awesome.

And so how do you prepare you know, for today, doing this in front of, you know cameras, lights, a whole crew, you know, how do you prepare your voice, vocally, for something like this?

Well, I do vocal warmups.

And I think it's just like, personally, I get tense, so I try to, like, relax face muscles, do vocal warmups that relax my face.

Drink lots of water because my throat gets very dry, too.

And just reminding yourself that you're there to share your music.

And if it doesn't touch everybody, it might touch 1 or 2 people, and that's all that matters.

And as long as you're able to, sing that song that has such a personal feeling towards you it's, it's a great experience.

So I am not a vocalist, but I find vocal warm ups very, entertaining.

So what is one that you can kind of show me that you that you do?

I think the one vocal warm ups are really funny in general.

But the, the one that I first like did was like lip rolls.

So, like, it's like, yeah, that one's like the funniest one.

Or there's another one that goes, mommy, made me match my m&ms.

Yeah.

And you just go up in the scale and, it helps.

Yeah.

Yeah.

My throat, my my voice is dry, so I'm not even going to attempt that one, but that's awesome.

So how long do you usually do vocal warmups?

For a minute was, I did like this morning.

I did a five minute one and it just changed, the types that there were, but I guess like ten, ten minutes is probably good.

And then you're able to hit those notes.

Yeah.

Yeah, hopefully as long as there's, no nerves.

Too much nerves.

Gotcha.

So what's one piece of advice that you would give to a artist in the Inland Empire or beyond that?

You know, just reall is trying to get that, you know, encouragement and confidence within their craft.

I would say, just starting small, sharing your music with friends sharing your music with family.

Even if there is that fear of like, oh my gosh, these people might know, what I'm writing about or who I'm writing about.

But I think that yo don't realize how much that they how much they care about, what you're doing and what you're writing.

So starting there and then starting posting on social media, like I said earlier, it might not touch everybody or, everybody might not relate but 1 or 2 people might relate and it might inspire them to, to write music or to talk to that person or things like that.

Right.

That kind of goes back to th notion of just getting started.

It's that simple.

Like your first film isn't going to be amazing.

Your first song' not going to be your best one.

It's like just, yeah, putting it out there.

So what's next for you?

What are your goals?

What do you do?

You do you anticipate doing more stuff with your church?

Do you want to perform live in in more different venues around the IE what what is what are your thoughts?

I think right now, obviously I'm still at church.

That's a great experience.

But I also want to venture out, and I love going to coffeehouses and lots of coffeehouses have, open mics.

And I've never, I've never gone to one, but I've always been pushed by my friends, my best friends telling me, go, go.

So I think, that's that would be the next step.

Going to coffeehouse is and doing original music.

That would be amazin coffeehouses, as I mentioned to.

Yeah.

Also during the break, I love coffee, with coffee.

And now I have a little bit of rapid fire questions for you, which is fun.

No worries.

It's, everything's pretty straightforward.

Music oriented.

So.

Are you ready?

Yeah.

Favorite guilty pleasure artist?

Guilty pleasure artist?

The Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Love them.

Rap or country Rap, I guess.

Who would be your favorite Rap artist?

I don't listen to Rap a lot, but maybe Kendrick Lamar, worst artist in pop culture history.

I don't know if he's very pop, but I don't like D.J.

Khalid yeah, yeah, I don't like him very much for obvious.

Yeah.

So one artist that everybody needs to check out.

Well, everybody knows Harry styles, but I would say Phoebe Bridgers has very good music too.

What genre?

She's, more indie style, but she's venturing out.

She did a song with SZA, so that's.

I love her voice.

That's awesome.

And so finally where can we catch you online?

My Instagram is _musicbyvictoriamo Right?

That is good.

Perfect.

Well, Victoria, thank you so much for sharing your talent with us and for all of you.

She has one more song.

Here's Victoria with Please the People.

I know, and you know that deep down we know that this won't work out.

But were deep in were blinded by looks that we give when no one's around.

And I know better than to drag this out the way that I have been.

But you know better than to string me along the way.

That you have been.

What happens if we kiss?

What happens if we give in?

What happens to us then?

What happens if you're selfish?

What happens if Im selfish?

What happens to us then?

Cause you please the people and you do what they say.

Not even a second thought in your head.

And I please the people because there's expectations.

So I play the part that everybody wants me to play.

Please the people.

Please the people.

Please the people.

And I know that you know that deep down, a choice is supposed to be made.

But you're looking the other direction, trying to run away.

And you know better than to string her along the way that you have been.

But I know better than to watch from the sidelines while I'm caving.

What happens if we kiss?

Would happen if we give in?

What happens to us then?

What happens if you're selfish?

What happens if I'm selfish?

What happens to us then.

Cause we please the people and we play.

The part of it's on a string.

Is what they made of us.

Yeah.

We please the people.

Until we're standing with a wall.

And I can't meet your eyes.

And I don't recognize who you are.

When you.

When you please the people.

We please the people please the people.

Please the people.

We please the people.