Describe your music style.
A: My music style is a conglomerate of styles. You may see classical choral elements in the chorus of songs like Laugh "ha ha ha ha," the jazzy/bluesy element to What Is This, and the R&B/Soul element that takes up the majority of the songs. This album was less about vocality and much more about lyrics. I tended to take it easy vocally on this one and for good reason.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
A: I am a typical moody cancer who enjoys home private time more than the hustle and bustle of it all. Give me a nice home event with good food, drinks, laughter, and maybe even board games and I'm happy. I'm also pro-women, pro-LGBTQ, and pro-blpoc…which means I'm anti-oppression and any notions of supremacy. These are just where my priorities play and the lens by which I operate from.
Tell us about your song, “Let Me Know” with featured rapper, Lyteral. What led you to working with him on this song?
A: I reached out to Lyteral, who is an amazing engineer, producer and rapper. He is also trans and it was important to give talented people, especially of color, the opportunity to work. So many gifted people are out here of various identities, color, sexual orientations and are hardly given the chance to express their talents. I'm either going to be about a solution or perpetuate the problem. I chose the first option. Glad I did. Let Me Know, both the album version and remix single, feature him and it wouldn't have had the same energy without what he put into that song.
Laugh was written due to an altercation I had with an ex. Imagine being confronted nose to nose, screamed at and insulted repeatedly only for laughter to be your only reaction. At that moment I knew two integral things… 1) I was above the presented nonsense. It had no power over me to affect me and/or bring me down. 2) That power was a choice. I could choose laughter and joy in the face of adversity in order to protect and maintain my peace.
Let Me Know was written this past year. I started dating someone I really began to develop strong feelings for. We had a great chemistry, great convo, laughs and intimacy. I started to wonder if we would date forever or was it able to lead somewhere more 'cemented.' I feared bringing it up but I knew that the feeling of uncertainty drove me nuts, but what really is certainty in an exchange with two living, growing people? Does verbal commitment or a label really cement anything?