Echo Huang on Music, Memory, and Becoming

By. Alicia Zamora

Meet Echo Huang in this exclusive interview for Alicia’s Studio, where the conversation begins with early inspirations and slowly unfolds into something more personal—how music becomes a way of processing emotion, memory, and imagined experiences.

What starts as a reflection on how she first discovered music becomes a clearer picture of how those early moments shaped her path. She talks about growing up influenced by artists like Whitney Houston and Taylor Swift, and how something about their presence felt larger than life in a way that stayed with her.

“I just wanted to be one of them,” she says, reflecting on that early spark.

From there, music wasn’t something she had to decide on—it was something she naturally kept returning to.

Echo describes her introduction to music as something that happened almost accidentally, but left a lasting impression. A Whitney Houston CD from her father and discovering Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me” became early turning points, not because they felt like lessons, but because they felt like possibility.

Her parents were supportive early on, even when the idea of pursuing music wasn’t the most conventional path. She recalls being taken to vocal lessons and slowly being encouraged to explore it more seriously.

She also shares that academically, she never felt fully aligned with school, but music consistently stood out as the one thing she could fully focus on and lose herself in.

Love Me A Bit More: Cycles of Love and Emotional Repetition

Her second EP, Love Me A Bit More, sits at the center of the conversation. Rather than describing it as a collection of love songs, Echo frames it as a cycle—meeting someone, falling in love, falling out of love, and returning to similar emotional spaces again.

“It’s really about exploring love in a vulnerable way,” she explains. “It’s that cycle you keep repeating.”

What stands out is the emotional repetition behind it—the idea that love doesn’t always resolve neatly, but often loops in ways that are both painful and strangely familiar.

As the conversation deepens, Echo opens up about how she writes from more than just lived experience. While some songs come directly from real moments, others are shaped by emotion or imagination—what she wishes things felt like, rather than what actually happened.

She describes this approach as something almost instinctive, where storytelling and feeling overlap. Not everything is literal, but everything is emotionally rooted.

“Sometimes I feel like you have to be a bit delusional as an artist,” she says, laughing lightly. “You’re creating stories in your head too.”

Capturing Imperfect Emotion in “A Bit More”

When asked about the most challenging track on the EP, Echo points to A Bit More, the outro. The song was recorded from a voice memo in a single take, and the process became less about polishing and more about preserving something real.

She explains that multiple takes were recorded, but the goal was always the same—capturing a version of emotion that felt raw but still intentional. In the end, the final take carried the feeling they were chasing without overworking it.

Musically, Echo draws inspiration from artists like UMI, Snoh Aalegra, and Lucky Daye, gravitating toward R&B spaces that emphasize mood, emotion, and atmosphere.

Her process shifts depending on the moment. Some songs come quickly when emotion is immediate, while others take longer to fully form—sometimes stretching over weeks as she revisits and refines them.

“It depends,” she says. “Sometimes it’s really fast, sometimes it takes a while.”

As her audience continues to grow, Echo describes the experience as both exciting and humbling. Seeing listeners connect with songs like Wait & See and Discoball feels surprising to her, but also motivating.

“I’m very grateful,” she says, “but at the same time, it makes me want to do better.”

Rather than seeing recognition as arrival, she frames it as a push to keep evolving and stepping outside her comfort zone.

Echo’s recent intimate New York show becomes an important milestone in her journey. It was her first release show and first real experience performing for people who discovered her music independently.

What stood out most was meeting listeners after the performance—people who found her through Spotify, Apple Music, or TikTok and came to support in person.

“It was super fun,” she says. “It was nice seeing people sing the songs back to me.”

Even with pre-show nerves and post-show reflection, she describes the experience as something meaningful in hindsight—imperfect, but real in a way that mattered more.

Looking ahead, Echo shares interest in collaborating with artists she admires deeply, including UMI, Christian Kuria, and Snoh Aalegra as a long-term goal.

She also mentions upcoming releases, including a new track titled Ease On My Mind, along with several projects planned throughout the year.

Now moving between New York and Los Angeles, her process has become more collaborative, working closely with producers in both remote and in-person sessions as her sound continues to evolve.

As the interview comes to an end, Echo reflects on the moment with gratitude, especially as her first in-person interview experience.

“Thank you so much for having me,” she says, still a little surprised by the setting and the experience itself.

What stays consistent throughout the conversation is a sense of quiet growth—an artist still shaping her voice, learning through process, and using music as both reflection and release.