Victoria Justice recently appeared in the latest issue of online magazine ContentMode. You can read find Victoria's interview in full at the ContentMode's official website or read it below.

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Embracing authenticity, Victoria Justice celebrates a new sound. With Raw and Down, Justice rolls out music that resonates with listeners worldwide. We discuss her songwriting process, upcoming acting projects, and more!

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LG: Congratulations on your new music! What has the process been like so far?

VJ: Thank you. The process is actually my favorite part, especially when I’m songwriting with people I enjoy being around. I might have a concept that I go into a writing session with, and/or a melody, some lyrics and then to see it come to life is really an amazing thing. I’ve been very lucky because I have rekindled a musical friendship with a songwriter/producer that I had first worked with back in 2010 on my Nickelodeon show, Victorious” and that person is Toby Gad. He’s written and co-written some really big songs for artists that everyone knows… Fergie, Beyonce, John Legend and many more. We’ve now written three songs together, (“Raw, “Down” and one that is unreleased) and also a cover of one of his biggest hits with Fergie, “Big GirlsDon’t Cry.” For “Raw” and my latest release, “Down” along with Toby, I worked with two very talented songwriters, Emma Rosen and Will Jay. We all went to Baja, Mexico for a songwriting camp. Sometimes it’s nice to go somewhere different to draw inspiration and it really proved to be a very successful trip. I’m very much a collaborative kind of person.

LG: Many artists have a distinct sound or a distinct voice. What do you think defines you as an artist?

VJ: True. As far as what defines me, I’m not sure how to answer that because I don’t want to box myself in. I’m making music that is authentic to me, my life experiences, or things that I’m observing in life or going through. But I also want to write songs to dance to, maybe cry to, and just make people feel some type of way. I want people to connect to my songs and be able to relate to them, you know, human to human. I always try to come from a place of truth in all that I do.

LG: What does your artistic process look like?

VJ: I mean it just depends. It’s always different. A lot of the chorus of RAW came verbatim from a journal entry of mine. Another song I wrote recently was all taken from a poem I wrote after a very profound experience. My song “Only A Stranger” started with me coming up with the piano part for the beginning and the first half of the first verse. From there, it’s fun to bring these ideas and bits and pieces to my collaborators and flesh them out. Other times I go into the studio with no plan at all and just see how the music inspires me. Whether that’s Toby picking up a guitar or whatever.

LG: How do you take a song from beginning to end?

VJ: There are many steps in the different stages of a song. An idea or concept is born, finding a track you like, writing lyrics (sometimes the melody will come first), recording a vocal and then going back in to finish it by adding ad libs, harmonies, etc. Then the producer does his job and does production on the song and you go back and forth until you’re happy with it. Last stages are mixing the levels and finally mastering it. Then you brainstorm about what the visual representation of the song is going to be. Cover art, music video, just the general vibe. And then after all that, it’s time to get ready for promo, creating social media content, etc.

LG: How do you find the words and the sounds to convey and capture your feelings?

VJ: I think about my past experiences and present situations, and I just start to put down what I was feeling at the time or feeling now. We are all human and that’s why we love music so much because we can relate to what others are singing about, it’s the human experience. But also sometimes a few guitar or piano chords will evoke a certain emotion and you go from there.

LG: How do you challenge yourself as an artist? Are there any other genres or areas that you’d like to explore?

VJ: Every time I go into writing a song I’m challenging myself to come up with really good lyrics, melodies that I’m happy with and that I’d feel proud to put out into the world. As singers and songwriters we want our songs to be heard and shared. Does that mean everyone is going to like it? No of course not, because music is subjective but for the people that do, that’s who I’m writing and putting it out in the world for. But I also do it for myself because I love it. I constantly want to explore other genres and sounds. But that’s what’s fun about pop. You can kind of draw inspiration and pull in a little bit of everything.

LG: Where do you draw inspiration from?

VJ: Everything. My own personal life, stories I hear from others, my environment. That’s part of the reason why I love traveling and why it’s so fun to write in a new place. You draw in a whole different energy than you would in your normal day-to-day life. Observing human behavior is also very inspiring to me and is something I like doing as an actor and a songwriter.

LG: How has your artistry changed from your earlier works to now?

VS: I feel as I’ve grown as a person my experiences are different than when I wrote songs on “Victorious” as a teen. I’ve grown enormously as a writer and a singer.

LG: Many of your earlier songs accompanied roles you played at that time, whereas now your music stands on its own. How has this adjustment been? How have you learned to create music independently?

VJ: Well really I think I’ve been writing songs for myself all along. So this feels the most natural to me. I think at times it’s very vulnerable and a little scary to be so honest with the world. Because I’m not hiding behind a character, it’s me sharing this very personal piece of myself with the public. But I think that’s also what makes it so fun and fulfilling.

LG: In addition to your upcoming music, you’re set to act in Depravity, a thriller, and Suits: LA, an expansion of the Suits universe. How does your acting inform your music? And how does your music inform your acting?

VJ: Well I think when you’re singing, you are acting. Instead of just speaking the words, I’m singing them with a melody. But I still need to emote as I do that if I want people to believe me. It’s really just another form of storytelling. One thing about recording with Toby is that he’ll have me try singing different parts of songs with different things in mind. Like he’ll say, “sing this to your ex” or the person you’re into right now, or sing this as a “fuck you” take. So I think they’re both very intertwined for me. Also when I’m on set acting, music helps me to get into character. It’s the fastest way to help tap into the emotion my character might be feeling. So I always like making playlists that remind me of my character or certain scenes/moments.

LG: How does independent songwriting differ from working under a label? How has it altered your songwriting process?

VJ: The songwriting process isn’t different whether you’re an independent or with a label. The differences lie in who they can get you in a room with. If you’re a priority artist at a label, you will be working with the best of the best songwriters and the top producers.