The first few lines to Ysa Fernandez’s iconic song, “Move,” go like this: “Got high high heels and high high standards / Don’t want to hear you talk, don’t need that banter / They say she’s so fly like all the time / Catch me outside, I’m on my grind.”
For the uninitiated, “Move” is one of the 20 songs that she’s written for reality TV shows like Selling Sunset and Keeping Up With The Kardashians. The 25-year-old musician writes all of her songs out of her studio in Nashville as a creative outlet and a way to subsidize her music career (beyond the infamous reality TV music, she writes music of her own).
Ysa isn’t the only songwriter writing music for reality TV shows, and she doesn’t even technically work for them. In Small Talk fashion, Ysa told us about her writing process, hearing her songs play while the Kardashians strut across the screen, and what it was like to see people drag her music on TikTok during Selling Sunset’s premiere.
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Mashable: What made you start writing music for reality TV?
I’m a full-time musician here in Nashville. During a pandemic I started working with this company called Vanacore Music, which is insane. They’re amazing. And, basically, I just write a bunch of songs, send them to these companies, and then they pitch them for all these shows.
Why reality TV music?
It’s so funny because I actually don’t watch a lot of TV. I didn’t grow up with TV, so it’s kind of funny that I have a lot of songs that play on [these] shows. Now, oh my God, I’m obsessed with the Kardashians and Selling Sunset. It’s just so entertaining. I just was writing with people here in town who wrote music for them. So I just kind of fell into it. And I realized I’m good at it, and it’s so fun. So I can just write all day and send them these things, and they’re like, “Oh, OK, this is awesome.”
Walk me through the typical songwriting process for you? How is writing these songs different than writing your own music?
It’s the start of the song that makes it different. I produce my music as well as write, and sometimes I have collaborators, but most of the time I’m just in my studio here in Nashville. And I’d say songs for me as an artist — and sometimes these songs that get on shows too — but songs from an artist standpoint, they’re usually coming from a story, like a dude broke up with me or something happened with my friend. It is more personal.
And then sometimes I want to write a fun song. Like, just something about dancing, something about getting something, about moving. And it’s kind of cleansing in a way when you’re writing, especially if you’re writing a lot of heavy, emotional music, to also write just fun, stupid songs too.
What’s your favorite song you’ve written for TV?
One I’ve written that’s been placed on quite a few shows… [My friend and I] wrote this hilarious song and I was like, “This has to go somewhere.” It ended up being placed on the Kardashians first. It’s the one that plays when she’s walking out of a Lambo. And it’s just so iconic. So that’s probably my most favorite song, and it’s the one that’s on my artist Spotify, too. It’s called “Move,” and it’s so fun.
How did it feel when people started not necessarily dragging, but talking about the music on TikTok?
Oh, they were for sure dragging it, which is so hilarious to me. Nothing’s guaranteed in this business. We’re just creators making this music, and it may or may not get placed on the show. It’s not like I’m working for these shows. You never know what the bag is. So that was hilarious. I got a few songs that were placed on Selling Sunset, and I saw people just dragging the music. And yeah, this music is so hilarious, so funny to create, but at the same time, yes, it’s so dumb some of the time.
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It’s the thing of not taking yourself too seriously, especially coming from the artist side of it. I’m producing these tracks, and I’m singing on them. I love getting to be silly. That’s so, so fun. And yeah, my TikTok has been hilarious recently because of these videos, and some people absolutely hate me for it. Some people are like, “Keep doing you girl,” and some people are like, “I love listening to you in the morning, da da da.” I just think it’s so funny.
Has it opened you up to a new community online?
It for sure has. It’s been really fun because I posted that video, and I was like, “I’m about to get spammed.” I thought I was going to get hate for it, which is cool too. I’m not pressed either way. It’s not wrapped up in my ego or anything. It’s just fun.
How do you not run out of ideas?
It’s like any songwriter. No matter what you’re writing for, you’re writing as an artist, you’re writing for somebody else, you’re writing with something in mind. Themes are always gonna be recurring, whether they’re about being a boss or, like, my boyfriend broke up with me and I’m so sad. You know what I mean? How do we write this in a way that hasn’t been written before? I’m a boss: You can say that a million ways, and it’s still so fun. It’s kind of a challenge.
What’s your favorite reality TV show?
I do love the Kardashians, and I do love Selling Sunset. Not only because I have music placed on there, but I just think they’re really fun like shows. Also Married at First Sight. It’s so good.
Do you have a dream show to be placed on?
How much bigger can you get than the Kardashians? That was pretty insane for me.
