(Image via milkandcookiesfest.com)
Category: New Music Friday
The Curious Case of Hayley Kiyoko
(Image via teenvogue.com)
It feels as though Hayley Kiyoko came out of nowhere. All of a sudden, you hear the thudding beat of her lead single, “Curious” and it pulls you in right away. Who is this girl? And what is she doing to me?! Little did we know, Kiyoko was going to blow us all away with a debut album worthy of all the recognition in the world.
Opening with an enchanting overture, reminiscent of an M83 production, “Expectations (Overture)” leads the album into the extravagant and expressive work of art it is. Strings and chorus-like vocals add euphoric elements that feel almost church-like. Which kicks straight into the funky “Feelings”. A stand out single dealing with the transparency of human emotion. Kiyoko confidently sings, “I over communicate and feel too much. I just complicate it when I say too much.” While the song structure remains basic like any other pop song, the funky guitar adds a new groovy layer.
While the pop scene is supercharged with “boy crazy” female leads, Kiyoko remains true to who she is. She’s a lesbian, and proud of it. “I’m not over-sexualizing my music. I make out with women because I love women, not because I’m trying to be sexy. That’s not to turn heads — that’s my life” she tells Refinery 29. Teaming together with one of the most honest women in the pop/R&B genre proved Kiyoko can secure any song she wants (listen to the fun Kehlani assisted “What I Need”).
Songs like, “Mercy/Gatekeeper” and “Under the Blue/Take Me In” prove Kiyoko’s artistry in a genre that is so often saturated to the point of overconsumption. “Mercy” cranks out dramatic muffled vocals that almost feel like an inner monologue. “All I wanna do is cry and bang my head until I start to fly” spin out of Kiyoko’s mouth as she describes a turbulent time. The song feels like an emotional rollercoaster, up and down, as if she couldn’t decide how the song was going to end. Perhaps mimicking what she felt in real life. The words, “just give me mercy, cause I keep hurting, hurting” repeat throughout the song, adding to its raw honesty.
Each track feels different from the rest in a way that’s indescribable. “Molecules” and “Let It Be” close this album in such a delicate way. “Molecules” deals with a shift in perspective about a friends tragic loss. On Instagram, Kiyoko said “Let It Be” is about “Accepting the bravery to move on, and start a new beginning, even if it’s hard.” She then went on to say, “Sometimes good things come to an end and you don’t know why or how it happened. But there was a reason for that chapter in your life. You grew and learned to love. It’s hard to follow your heart and listen to your gut when you know things won’t work out.”
Expectations exceeded all my expectations. It serves a hot dish of fun, honest, and raw pop. Something the music industry should be admiring and honoring very closely.
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Q&A with Alice Gray
Alice Gray is one to watch. With one single under her belt and a striking new collab titled “Front Row” just released, 2018 is her year to shine. I spoke with the pop singer about her inspirations, come-up to music, and plans for the rest of the year.
“Front Row” is such a romantic fun song. How did this collab come about? And do you hope to do more EDM/Pop tracks like this in the future?
“I met VALNTN only this past fall when my friend and mixing engineer, Andi Inadomi, asked me to join their session. We had a fun time and wrote a great song so we continued writing together. Val and 5ALVO had produced the instrumental for ‘Front Row’ almost a year ago and had many song writers take a crack at top line, but nothing stuck so he asked me to try my hand at it. I brought in my trustee songwriting collaborator Stephen Conley who co-wrote ‘Pink Cadillac’ to add his magic and the three of us wrote and cut vocals for ‘Front Row’ over the course of one session. It was my first experience recording ‘gang vocals,’ – hysterical.”
Who are you currently listening to a lot? And why?
“I have a fascination with Francis and the Lights. I saw his video for “Friends” when he released his album Farewell, Starlite! and I was immediately drawn to his uninhibited dance moves and mysterious demeanor. He’s even better onstage!
I will forever love my dream pop ladies Lana and Lorde. My new favorite is SZA – she has no filter and writes in a non-formulaic way that is very inspiring to me. It’s easy to get caught up writing a formulaic pop song.”
Has music always been your passion?
“It has. I sang ‘Part of Your World’ from the Little Mermaid constantly as a child. My mom gave me a tape recorder that I’d carry around- singing into it, playing it back, and listening with pure joy. I had a little trio band in elementary school called the GAP Girls (acronym of all our last names and we all wore GAP sweatshirts A LOT) I’d write songs and choreograph these strange little dances to go with them that we’d perform for our teachers on the school lawn at recess.
However, I became very shy in middle school and stopped singing. I’d wait until I knew for sure no one was around to sing. I’d write these angsty little love songs on pads of paper all around the house. I was the go-to playlist girl- I’d spend hours on Limewire downloading bootleg music and burning CD’s for my friends. When I got my first MacBook in High school I started making songs on garage band, but I wouldn’t show anyone. Instead I pursued my other, more introverted love; drawing and painting. It wasn’t until I was about to graduate with a degree in fine arts that I needed to get over my fear and took a songwriting class. That class changed my life.”
Tell me about “Pink Cadillac” and where the inspiration came from
“‘Pink Cadillac’ is a complicated song to explain. I walked into my first session with Stephen Conley and told him I wanted to write a song inspired by Angelyne, the infamous woman that drives around Hollywood in her pink corvette. I’d seen her around my neighborhood a lot so I looked her up and watched a little documentary on her. I found her to be both fascinating and fearless, but also sad and I wanted to use this really unique imagery in a song. We came up with a scenario that reflected what I was going through at the time, but colored it in Angelyne’s world. I ended up having a meeting with Angelyne to discuss her making an appearance in the music video. She loves ‘Pink Cadillac’ and agreed to be in it, but as an independent artist I didn’t have the funds to create the music video I envision for that song. I plan to change that very soon.”
What’re your plans for 2018? Is there an EP or full length album on the way? And if so, how is the process coming along?
“2018 is going to be a big one. I’ve got a bunch of songs lined up, brand collaborations, in pre-production for a music video and starting to play a lot of shows. I have more than 5 songs lined up, enough to make an album, but we are going to give them each their own day in the sun and release them month by month as singles. When I create my first album, I want to go about it very purposefully and craft songs that are meant to be released together as a single piece of art.”
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