What made you want to be a part of Gritty In Pink?
“I’ve always been a huge advocate for gender equality and specifically empowering women in music, so when I first heard about Gritty I was really on board with their mission. I went to the very first event in January 2020 to support some of my friends in music, and it was such a beautiful experience to witness so many powerful and talented women on stage together. I immediately knew I wanted to be involved and up there with them.”
How do you feel about being part of the Gritty In Pink livestream fundraiser for Keep A Breast on March 9th?
“I love being a part of the livestream events! I’ve been lucky enough to be on a few of the live fundraisers and it’s always such a blast. This time I’m especially jazzed to be performing my new song “Double Standard” with my good friend Mel who I wrote the song with. The rest of the line-up on the 9th is also incredible, so I’m stoked to virtually rock with everyone involved!”
How did your music journey start, and when did you know that you wanted to pursue music?
“Music has always been an important part of my life, so it’s difficult to pick an official moment when my musical journey began. I started taking voice lessons when I was 9 and writing songs around the same age. However, I really became invested in the idea of pursuing music as a career when my friend Oliver Hinchley and I tried to start a band together in high school. The band didn’t go anywhere and neither did any of the songs we wrote together, but songwriting turned into a huge passion of mine that I find a lot of purpose in.”
Who is your dream collaboration?
“Most people know I’m a huge fan of Taylor Swift, so to be able to work with her or write with her in any context would be a huge dream come true. There are so many writers especially that I’d love to work with: Julia Michaels, Justin Tranter, Ali Tamposi, Watt, Ryan Tedder, etc. I feel like I’d learn so much just by being in the room with them and getting involved in their processes.”
Who is your biggest musical inspiration?
“Like I said before, I’m a big Taylor Swift fan, so I’d probably have to say her. As a woman, she has broken, and continues to break, so many barriers for women in the music industry. I think she is such a brilliant songwriter, musician, businesswoman, and human.”
If you could change anything about the music industry, what would it be?
"Sexism. Women make powerful, emotional, dynamic, and beautiful music, and yet we are at a serious disadvantage in this industry. I think Gritty’s mission represents exactly what the music industry needs to be doing right now, and that’s making more space for women in music.”
Who are you listening to right now?
“A few artists I’ve really been into recently are UPSAHL, Glass Animals, and RAYE. I was also a big fan of the rock album that Miley Cyrus just released, so that’s been in my recent shuffle as well."
What has your favorite gig been?
“Honestly, the two Gritty events I got to be a part of before quarantine have been my favorites, hands down. There’s something about playing with a bunch of badass female musicians that you just can’t top. The love in the community Shira built with Gritty really translates on stage as well; I’ve always struggled with live performance anxiety but performing with my fellow Gritty girls made it a lot easier for me to relax and enjoy myself.”
Tell us about your upcoming new single, Double Standard!
“This song is a statement that I’m really proud of and encompasses a lot of frustrations that I’ve struggled with as a woman for my entire life. In society, women are expected to be a million contradicting things at once, and it’s an impossible standard to meet. The song is shocking, it’s angry, and it’s honest about how that reality affects us. My hope is that it resonates with women everywhere.”
What inspired you to create the Double Standard Challenge? What is it?
“I wrote this song as an anthem for the angry woman, so the Double Standard Challenge is my effort to lean into that. I want to give women an opportunity to air their frustrations at the sexism we deal with on a daily basis. The challenge is essentially for women to do just that: make a sign with a sexist thing that someone has said or done to you and post it with the hashtag #doublestandardchallenge. “Double Standard” comes out on March 8th and I think it’s the perfect time to make some noise about what it means to be a woman in the ways that people don’t want to talk about. I think this could really have a positive impact, and I want as many women as possible to participate, so come March 8th, let’s make a statement!”
If you were not a musician, what would you be doing right now?
“It’s honestly difficult for me to imagine myself doing anything other than music, but I think I probably would’ve gone to school for English lit. I always liked the idea of working in book publishing.”
What advice would you give to someone who wants to follow in your footsteps?
“Lose your back-up plan. I’m a chronic planner, so I’m known for planning out a hundred different strategies for any given scenario. However, when it comes to music, I’m all in. I work best under pressure, and, in my mind, if there’s no alternative, I’m forced to work that much harder and smarter. It also gives me a singular place to focus my passion and energy. In addition to that, be reliable and easy to work with; that makes all the difference.”
How do you want to be remembered?
“I want to be remembered as a woman in music who unapologetically broke boundaries and made a positive impact on the music industry as a result.”
Fav gear to use?
“I love love love my Breedlove acoustic. I write everything on it, and it’s so gorgeous.”
Do you have any hidden talents?
‍“I don’t know if this counts as a hidden talent, but I’m really good at Monopoly. And Scrabble. Board games are kind of my thing.”
What has been your favorite quarantine activity or new hobby/talent/habit?
“This will surprise anyone who knows me, but I actually really got into hiking over quarantine. I’m admittedly not really into exercising much, but I started hiking with Sabrina Winter and Shira towards the end of 2020 and found a lot of clarity in the outdoors and getting more in touch with my body.”
What is the best show or movie you watched over quarantine?
“Recently I binge-watched all of Bridgerton in a day. I’m a sucker for a period piece, and the orchestral arrangements of pop songs in the background are really neat.”
What is your guilty pleasure food?
“To be honest, most of what I eat you could probably file under guilty pleasure food. However, if I could eat poke every day for the rest of my life, I probably would.”
If you were a fruit, what fruit would you be? Why?
“A raspberry. Hot pink? Tart and sweet at the same time? I mean, I think it’s pretty self-explanatory.”