ALISSA WHITE-GLUZ On Her Collaboration With DRAGONFORCE: 'I'm Able To Express A Side Of My Voice That I've Been Wanting To Express For A While'

In an interview with Paolo Phoenix of Magenta TV conducted at last weekend's Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany, former ARCH ENEMY singer Alissa White-Gluz spoke about the three music projects which are currently keeping her very busy: her upcoming solo album, "Alissa"; her brand new, all-woman group called BLUE MEDUSA; and her recently announced collaboration with DRAGONFORCE as the latter group's first-ever frontwoman. Asked how she manages to deliver all three projects with the kind of quality that she does, Alissa said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, so I think for a lot of artists, we have a creative force in us that we need to get out, and it's fun to do it across multiple things. And so for solo project-wise, I'm just me. So everything I'm doing, I guess, is just something that I feel like is fun for me to do or fulfilling artistically, and that's why I do all sorts of collaborations. And then BLUE MEDUSA is my main passion and my main focus. That's where I'm putting all of my energy and all of my attention into every detail, and it's really the band that I've just always wanted to have. And then getting to sing with DRAGONFORCE, who are just amazing legends and super-nice people, super-great musicians, great songs, that's obviously an honor also, and I'm very happy to be doing that. But my main passion and the bulk of my focus is on BLUE MEDUSA."

Regarding the musical differences between BLUE MEDUSA and DRAGONFORCE, Alissa said: "BLUE MEDUSA is really — it's me. That is the music I love. That is who I am. That's what I wanna be doing. That's how I wanna sound. It's what I wanna say. And DRAGONFORCE is so high energy, and that's super important to me as a performer. I like to perform really high-energy music. And energy could be the mood, the tempo, the pitch — it could be all sorts of different things. And so DRAGONFORCE's energy on stage is so high that it's so much fun to perform with them. And, actually, almost by coincidence, their songs are written really in a very comfortable range for me, really in my Goldilocks zone, so it's a lot of fun to sing their songs. And I feel like I'm able to express a side of my voice that I've been wanting to express for a while. For example, I'm a huge fan of musical theater, and so when I'm singing with DRAGONFORCE, I almost feel like I'm flexing my musical theater voice a little bit, because it's obviously very epic, and it's very challenging vocally, just in the pace and getting the breathing, but it's something that I really want to improve at, and I want to be able to practice. And now I have a reason to."

White-Gluz is joined in BLUE MEDUSA by guitarists Alyssa Day (MINDSCAR, ABSENTIA) and Dani Sophia (ex-Till Lindemann). Bassist Alicia Vigil (DRAGONFORCE, VIGIL OF WAR) and drummer Delaney Jaster (STITCHED UP HEART) will also take part in BLUE MEDUSA's live shows.

BLUE MEDUSA has released two singles so far: "Checkmate" and "Flying Monkey".

White-Gluz, former vocalist of Canadian extreme metallers THE AGONIST, joined ARCH ENEMY in 2014 as the replacement for Angela Gossow.

In November 2025, it was announced that ARCH ENEMY had parted ways with Alissa. That same day she released "The Room Where She Died", the first single from her upcoming solo album.

Earlier this year, Alissa told U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine that she was reluctant to discuss her split with ARCH ENEMY, admitting she didn't "know how to answer" when she was asked about the details of her departure.

ARCH ENEMY released four studio albums with White-Gluz on vocals: "War Eternal" (2014),"Will To Power" (2017),"Deceivers" (2022) and "Blood Dynasty" (2025).

Throughout her career, the now-41-year-old Alissa has consistently used her music as a vehicle for social change, addressing pressing issues such as environmental conservation, veganism, and the ethical treatment of animals.

ARCH ENEMY played its final show with White-Gluz at the closing concert of the band's European "Blood Dynasty" 2025 tour with AMORPHIS, ELUVEITIE and GATECREEPER on November 15, 2025 in Düsseldorf, Germany.

DRAGONFORCE made its official live debut with White-Gluz on May 9 at the Welcome To Rockville festival in Daytona Beach, Florida.