<\/p>\n
Pop music (thankfully) just got a little weirder.<\/p>\n
Hemlocke Springs, the colorful alt-pop star originally from Concord, North Carolina, is the freshest face on the scene \u2014 and is delivering an eccentric, quirky vision that defies genre or expectations. She’s gone viral over and over again, released a game-changing EP that racked up tens of millions of streams. She’s also opened for Conan Gray’s Wishbone <\/em>tour and, most recently, Chappell Roan’s Los Angeles pop-up shows: Visions of Damsels & Other Dangerous Things<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n Springs has also just announced her own holiday show in Los Angeles<\/a>. The christmystical tree under the sea<\/em> is “a very hemlocke holiday soir\u00e9e” taking place at the Bob Baker Marionette Theater on December 3.<\/span><\/p>\n And all before the release of her debut album!<\/p>\n A few days after breaking up a fight during her Roan opening set, Out <\/em>caught up with the star and discussed her conceptual new music, growing up Christian, being boxed in as an artist, and her relationship with the LGBTQ+ community.<\/p>\n Out<\/em>: You’ve opened for two icons in the last few months: Chappell Roan and Conan Gray. What does that mean to you? Forty thousand people were at the Chappell Roan pop-up’s first night. What did that energy feel like? What went through your head when someone started fighting during your set? Although I think I actually said that in the microphone! On one hand, I was definitely freaking out on what to do, but on the other hand, I was a little bit confused. Y\u2019all are fighting at a Chappell Roan concert?<\/em><\/em> It\u2019s supposed to be fun<\/em>! I was also debating whether stopping the set was the best move on my part, but it\u2019s better to be safe than sorry!<\/p>\n What’s your favorite song to perform live? Why? Any funny stories with Chappell or Conan you can share from either tour? What inspired your latest single, “heads, shoulders, knees and ankles”? After further investigation, I believe the dream was some sort of metaphor. Both girls are probably myself, and Me Number 1 (the angelic character) is in no position to help Me Number 2, so Me Number 1 can only watch helplessly as Me Number 2 tries to shake off this person at my ankles. (It\u2019s almost as if my future self is watching my present self go through the trials and tribulations that my future self had to go through.)<\/p>\n But here\u2019s the thing: Dreams are quite literally…dreams. I don\u2019t think I\u2019ll ever have a definite answer! What if I\u2019m interpreting nonsense \u2014 what if it was quite literally just a dream? Ironically, I guess I\u2019ll never know, but at least I got a song out of it!<\/p>\n Your debut album, the apple tree under the sea<\/em>, is set for a February release. What are you most excited about? Wait. I\u2019m going to have to sing these songs live.<\/p>\n What’s your relationship with the LGBTQ+ community like? How have they shown up for you? My journey with my own sexuality has been a quiet but thunderous one. I\u2019m Nigerian and grew up in the church. Though my experience wasn\u2019t nearly as toxic as some of the ones I\u2019ve heard, it definitely felt confining, which I touch on in this album.<\/p>\n My high school friend came out as bi, and I remember being so happy and honored they told me. It was then I began unlearning a lot of the toxic beliefs I had held (with such little conviction, if I might add). When I left home and I was kind of on my own, it felt I had acclimated to a world that didn\u2019t really exist outside of my town.<\/p>\n It was my gay friends, my queer friends, my trans friends, my bi friends that I made along the way who have helped me remember that I am on my own journey, whether that be romantically or musically, and that no path is linear. We\u2019ll see where that journey leads!<\/p>\n
<\/strong>Hemlocke Springs<\/strong>: I guess it means I\u2019ve opened for the Eric and the Ariel of pop music! In all seriousness though, it\u2019s very rewarding to be thought of to join such wonderful artists! I say this all the time, but I\u2019m a very lucky girl!<\/p>\n
<\/strong>It was probably terrifyingly electric, but I definitely (maybe unfortunately) blacked out during most of the set! Personally, I can\u2019t think about things too hard when I\u2019m in the moment, if not, I\u2019ll freeze up, so I kind of only remember getting on stage and then slipping into my crocs once I was off. Except<\/em> the fight during the night one \u2014 I do and will remember that for a long time!<\/p>\n
<\/strong>“\u2026\u2026Whew child!\u201d<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n
<\/strong>Probably \u201ctrain to nowhere,\u201d because it\u2019s at an easier key to sing. For those who don\u2019t know, I like it when things are nice and easy. I hate when I have to belt and sing in higher keys, that can be rough. Unfortunately, almost all my songs have some sort of belt or are sung in a key higher than what I\u2019m used to. I make the songs, so I don\u2019t know why I do that to myself.<\/p>\n
<\/strong>Conan came up to me during catering, and he was on vocal rest, and the first<\/em> thing he asked was, “Do you know what abortion is in sign language?” Mind you, this was our second interaction ever<\/em>! I had a whole conversation prepared in my head and with that question, everything went out the window [laughs].<\/p>\n
<\/strong>Basically, I was having this dream where I was watching this dude follow a girl, sort of angelic character, and then<\/em> he started following me and grabbed my ankles and wouldn’t let go. And so I\u2019m like, \u201cGoddamn, you are one persistent fellow!\u201d And then I\u2019m asking the girl for help, and she\u2019s not helping me!!<\/p>\n
<\/strong>Dare I say the \u201crelease\u201d part? When listening to other albums, I\u2019ve never taken into consideration how much the artist must\u2019ve listened to make sure everything sounds good! I replay albums from other artists so many times, but replaying my album has been a form of psychological torture. I can\u2019t wait for it to be out, so I don\u2019t have to listen again [laughs].<\/p>\n
<\/strong>In more ways than I could even imagine! The LGBTQ+ community has been the most<\/em> accepting of my music, and I feel like that\u2019s a common statement I\u2019ve heard from other artists.<\/p>\n