BACK ON TRACK
MD: Okay, Andrea. Let’s talk about your new album, Higher. You stated in various media outlets that it’s about personal heartache. What heartache were you referring to?
AM: Well, there’s one song called ...ugh ... [she looks at Donnie] What’s the name of the song?
DM: You see, that means she made it up. [Marsha laughs]
AM: The name of the song is “He is Good.” I started writing the song before my sister passed away in 2008 of breast cancer. There is a line that says, “Even if I lose a loved one.” It basically just says that God is good, and no matter what you go through, His mercy endures forever. The song said, “Even if I lose a loved one,” but when my sister passed, I had to change it to “Even when I lose a loved one.”
MD: Oh, wow.
AM: Yeah. And a year later, when we went to Italy as a family, my mom had a seizure and she had to stay in the hospital. She had blood clots in her lungs. That’s when I wrote the chorus. Fast forward to when my mom passed away, I was able to sing the song at her service. So, that song was born out of the sickness and loss of family members.
MD [speaking to Andrea]: Tell me about family. Clearly, you and Donnie have an interesting relationship. How would you describe your relationship with him?
AM: You know, when we were younger, I wanted to poison him. [Andrea laughs]
DM: She poured salt in our beds!
AM [playfully yelling at Donnie]: Can you be quiet?!? Can I ever have some ... What? Are you jealous that the limelight is not on you alone – that there’s actually someone you have to share this time with? [everyone in the room, including Donnie and Andrea, laughs]
DM: No, but with what you said about “poison,” I just want to tell them ...
AM [interrupting]: Just be quiet!
MD: This playful relationship that you have with each other, was it always like that?
DM: Yeah.
AM: Yeah. When I was a teenager, he made me sing with him. I wasn’t really a singer. I was just going with the flow. Back then I had no self-esteem. I had nothing. He kinda dragged me out. We would stick together. When we were 17, 18, 19, we were always together. When you saw him, you absolutely saw me. So, we kinda had this special bond.
