Guitar virtuoso Nita Strauss surprised many rock fans when she took a break from her longtime gig shredding in Alice Cooper‘s live lineup to join Demi Lovato‘s touring band in 2022. The tour found the pop star experimenting with a harder rock sound, which Strauss tells ABC Audio was amazing to be a part of.

“It’s not often that you would find an artist that completely changes their musical style, that sounds nothing like the artist that you first came to fall in love with, that can go out and do a tour and be universally accepted by fans,” Strauss says.

“Every single person was on their feet, cheering, clapping, crying, holding up the signs saying, ‘Demi, you changed my life,’” she continues. “I thought it was beautiful … It was really a privilege to be a part of that scene for awhile.”

Strauss has since rejoined Cooper’s band and has also been touring on her own while supporting her upcoming solo album, The Call of the Void, but she and Lovato reunited during a show in New Jersey earlier in June.

“I can’t wait to play some more shows with [Lovato] in the coming years and get to experience it again,” Strauss says.

The Call of the Void, Strauss’ sophomore solo effort, arrives July 7. Though it was mostly written and recorded prior to the Lovato tour, Strauss feels the experience will have an impact on her next record.

“You take this deep dive into the catalog, and it gives you a deeper understanding of how these songs are so successful and what makes them make sense,” Strauss explains. “When I start writing for what will become album three, I think I’ll definitely be in a more mature songwriting place because of learning all of those Demi songs.”

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