King Princess is like an attitude. I take comfort in it as kind of a shield to exist in, where I can make cohesive art. And it's androgynous, which is intentional. It's important to me that my art exist in a kind of neutral space, genderless to some degree. And give the listener some imagery to hold on to.
I'm a big Cate Blanchett fan. I'm ready. I'm coming! I mean, come on, I am a gay girl; I want what I want. I want to come to Australia and marry Cate Blanchett. Just let everybody know for me.
I write chronologically in my life, so whatever's going on, I write about it. Usually, that's when I feel the most cohesive body of work is formed. I got to live this crazy life, I got to write about it, and now I've got this record that I'm really proud of, too. It's not done, but when I put it out, it's gonna be good.
What I didn't tell her was that I distinctly remember walking out of my junior year English class reading, 'Amandla Stenberg comes out as queer.' She unknowingly set a precedent in my life, a gold standard of how to be proud and exist in the intersectionality of multiple identities that were one thought of as being conflicting.
I'm a great example of somebody who is gay but exists on a very complicated gender spectrum. I'm okay with that uncertainty, and I'm okay with existing in a gray area and not always being sure.
You're in for a live band. That's really what I wanted; I wanted to put on a show for people where they could come for the gay and stay for the musicianship. It's a live show; there's some rock stuff, too. Some rock and roll. Get ready.
My dad was really a protector and mentor.
Having a sold-out show takes a lot of the pressure off because I know that it's going to be a room full of people who are excited to be there. The worst part - or the part that I'm adjusting to - is the actual act of traveling. The hotels are pretty trash.
There's just a certain amount of grandeur and total squalor we exist in as songwriters because it's a crazy job for crazy people.
I've seen so many beautiful, strong, talented women stifled by male ego in rooms, and I want every young woman who feels that their music is being taken from them to know that they have a voice, and they have the tools, and that it's possible.
I think it's so funny because straight people just don't think about gender in their songs, or making a statement by talking about love.
We released '1950,' and I felt so grateful for the response from the queer community as well as just musicians and people in the industry responding to it and validating the art I had made. It makes me feel super hopeful.
How I can be an active voice for gay people but also the music industry? This is the art we need right now. This is what we need right now. We're in a renaissance, and we need people to rebel, come forth, and bring messages into art.
