Premiere: Miss Madeline - "Attention"

We sat down with Miss Madeline to discuss her origins, why she strives for pop stardom, and how she's gonna achieve it.

Where are you from?

I’m from Hoboken, across the river. But I always went to high school in the city, so I've been trying to live that life for a long time.

What are three things your quarantine consisted of?

Lots of Instagram pictures, recording sessions (writing and stuff), and kinda getting my shit together to really get this show on the road and do this pop star thing.

What led you to doing music?

I grew up a competition dancer—very Dance Moms. I was always around music. Then, actually, I was on broadway for a couple years when I was a kid…

What show were you in?

I was in Billy Elliot as a ballet dancer. So after that ended when I grew two inches, and I was devastated that they let me go, I started writing music on piano and guitar. I guess I always played instruments, and my mom was a singer back in the day. So she definitely supported me through that. So I started recording at this local studio in Hoboken, and like, working with producers, and yeah. Been doing that ever since.

What instruments do you play?

I play guitar and piano, but I don’t play it so much anymore because of my nails. Honestly, I haven’t written on piano and guitar in so many years because of the way I approach writing… A lot of times I’ll come up with lyrics first, or a concept. I’ll go in the studio and have a vision for what kind of vibe I want, and just build the beat there and play around over the beat and create the song as we go.

What inspired “Attention”?

Well, I spent some time in Berlin… Not to be that bitch that’s like, Studying abroad changed my life, but it did. I started getting more and more into house and techno music and dance music and I love going to the club. I think I wrote that song when I was in Berlin. It’s pretty straight forward.

Of course, this song is influenced by genres like house and techno that are totally rooted in black culture, and I want to acknowledge and credit that. It’s our responsibility as artists to give credit where it’s due and know the history of the kind of music you make because a lot of this industry is exploiting blackness, and queer culture as well. Club culture has always been a safe space for the queer and POC communities. I definitely want to acknowledge that.

When did you write it, and what inspired the lyrics?

I wrote it probably a year ago, now. I think I always wanted to write a song about being an attention whore, so this is the way I did it. I think everyone feels that way sometimes—might as well be honest about it. Nothing is worse than trying to hide it. Like people who are dishonest about being attention seeking. But I think it's totally cool and fun to admit it and be that character for a night. To me, this song is kind of playing that character when you’re out at the club—just being your flirty self.

Do you feel like it’s empowering?

Yeah, for sure. No matter who you are, and especially now since the context sort of changes since we can’t go to the club and enjoy the song at the club… So, I’m thinking it’s a hairbrush microphone in your mirror moment. We’re alone, a lot of us are alone right now, so give yourself the attention. A self indulgent moment. We all deserve that sometimes.

I always wanted to write a song about being an attention whore, so this is the way I did it.

I agree. Which is your favorite song you’ve ever written?

The next single I’m putting out after this one is called “Ready, Set, Go”, and I really like that one. My favorite lyric in it is, “You look like you want to be me,” I just feel that a lot. A lotta bitches, I know I’m on your moodboard. Period. I’m excited about that one.

When is that one dropping?

Hopefully a month after this one.

What is your main goal for the next year?

Pop stardom. That is totally what I want, it’s what I’ve wanted since I was a little girl. This is my life. I’m not ashamed of it. I think a lot of people shy away from that, even though that’s what they want. I’m very, as of recently especially, speak it into existence.

Early 2000 pop star vibes.

Yeah. Growing up with the Britneys, the Paris Hiltons, the Christinas… This era of the popstar. Of course, I idolized that as a little girl, and I sort of just, like… never let that go.

No, never let it go.

Maybe the idea of the popstar has changed over time because, of course, the music industry is so different now.

How do you think it’s changed?

I think streaming and TikTok and creating, now more than ever, is really up to the artist to create a community and get an audience. You have to prove to people, and people know that, audiences aren’t dumb, so find your audience and create a community. Maybe before, it was more, like, a record label had more cultural influence.

Is Miss Madeline an alter ego?

A little bit. I feel like Miss Madline is an exaggerated version of myself. I do consider it a persona. It’s funny, my Instagram and everything of course is Miss Madeline, but my friends call my Maddy. So sometimes people are like, Madeline, and I’m like, who? She’s an elevated and exaggerated version of myself, and I think she’s a more obnoxious version of myself. It’s a character of the it girl. And I think I kind of have to be that extra to get what I want.

What’s one thing you want to say to new fans?

Miss Madeline and my whole vision is a party, and it’s gonna be so fun and fabulous and flirty. Anyone who needs a little extra fabulousness in their life will have a lot of fun with my songs. Turn that shit on when you’re feeling yourself and you wanna have a good time.

Music

Jesse Jo Stark Is in a Genre of Her Own

April 19, 2024

In the midst of a total solar eclipse, I got the chance to talk about music and style with Jesse Jo Stark.

As I’m on the phone with her from New York, Stark is on a tour bus with The Veronicas, driving through the Colorado mountains to enjoy some time off in between shows. The Veronicas have just started their Gothic Summer North American Tour, and Stark is opening the show. What’s special about this tour for the lifelong music obsessive is the sense of powerful feminine energy encapsulating the tour. “We just started [tour], but it’s been really lovely. I’m obsessed with the fact that we’re all women — it feels like a very powerful crew. The Veronicas are lovely, the crowds have been so fun, and the venues are beautiful. It’s gonna be a good month.”

Photography Sophia-Liv Maguire
Styling Marc Eram
Interview Angelina Hazzouri
Talent Jesse Jo Stark
Hair Antoine Martinez with PARADIS using Roz Hair
Makeup Sydney Szramowski
Photo Assistants Mia O’Neal, Rashaun Richardson
BTS Ms Josephine
Creative Producer Olivia Roper-Caldbeck

This is Stark’s second time touring since the release of her full-length debut album DOOMED in late 2022, which was very well received and led to Stark’s first sold-out international headlining tour on behalf of the album. Previous to her solo tour, she’s opened for various notable acts, such as Guns N’ Roses and Jane’s Addiction. I asked Stark, who’s been writing and playing music since age 11, what it was like to prepare for her first sold-out headlining tour. Unsurprisingly, before any tour, Stark goes into what she describes as “bootcamp mode” — dancing every day, vocal training, rehearsing with her band, and of course, working on her outfits. “That’s the sort of homework I love,” she says, smiling. (Even though we’re on the phone, I can tell she’s smiling when she talks about the outfit part. I’d smile too if I had her tour closet.)

What’s unique about Stark as a musician is that she has ultimately created her own universe by embracing every aspect of her creative upbringing, her raw talent, her fascinating influences, and her unwavering beliefs in not needing to fit into a certain box when it comes to her art. She creative-directs and styles all her own looks, referencing an ever-evolving list of influences that range from Vegas showgirls to Halloween to old films to her parents in the 90s. “I think when I was younger, I had this rebellion against what I was made from,” she tells me, “but now it’s just my blood. I constantly reflect on my childhood and everything I was taught and everything I saw. My brother and sister and I are constantly pulling influences from our parents from the past. I think, more than ever, I’m heavily influenced by them.”

Stark, the daughter of founders and owners of the self-made American fashion brand Chrome Hearts, and now its creative director and designer, is someone who always knew what she liked, but as she describes it, had to ‘go through the motions’ that come with growing up and knowing one’s identity. Today, her self-efficacy is palpable — and it’s inspiring.

...when I was younger, I had this rebellion against what I was made from, but now it’s just my blood.

When she’s on tour, Stark is growing with herself and with her art — she’s not afraid to take life as it comes and learn through the process. With every show, regardless of whether it was on her DOOMED tour or this tour with The Veronicas, Stark understands the importance of human connection through music. Seeing faces of music lovers like herself, meeting those who have traveled to see her, and visiting familiar and unfamiliar cities has reminded her that she loves being on the road. “The growth that happens on tour is so important to me as an artist.” Sometimes we have to leave behind what’s familiar in order to rediscover what’s important, and Stark is a proponent of this growth mindset.

Growth doesn’t just happen on tour with Stark — this evolution of herself happens within genre as well, and for Stark there’s no such thing. Since her first release Driftwood in 2017, the artist’s sound has shifted year after year, but in a harmonious way that still feels central to her gothic Americana roots. When asked if she’ll experiment with genre in the future, Stark confidently answers, “I think I’ve only experimented with genre. I don’t think anyone knows what genre I am.” (She calls herself a “horrific hillbilly” — a perfect descriptor.) Steadfast in her belief that we as humans can constantly evolve in our work, Stark thinks it’s antiquated to fit yourself into a certain box and focus on one specific trade in order to succeed. “If you look at us as people, we’re seasoned. We change all the time. I want to experience different things.”

Since Driftwood, a two-song EP rooted in rock and country, Stark has experimented with more robust beats and 808s on DOOMED, and her most recent single “skeleton” features a softer, grungier punk sound. Without fitting into a specific genre, Stark’s music is undoubtedly and wholeheartedly her own, transcending the boundaries of what many artists struggle with when finding their sound. “I don’t think we should have to label ourselves in any way, shape, or form; so I’m not going to. I will continue to make all types of different music.” Fuck yeah.

If you look at us as people, we’re seasoned. We change all the time.

This goes beyond just music — in terms of her personal style, the same mentality applies. We discuss the idea that clothing and dressing is a sort of playground, and personal style comes from within. Stark isn’t about following trends, but rather, she thinks it’s important to tap into different stylistic elements that amplify who we are at our cores. On her DOOMED tour, Stark wore a lot of leather and stuck to a fairly dark color palette. Right now, she’s into more bourgeois satin and lace, experimenting with different textures and wearing things that feel slightly daintier and more delicate. On this current tour with the Veronicas, Stark is making it more of a point to take everything in — absorbing inspiration from every city, writing songs on the road, recording video on a friend’s super 8 camera, styling and wearing new outfits, learning and performing new covers — ultimately growing through the whole experience.

It’s endearing and inspiring how well Stark knows herself. A Los Angeles native, she proudly tells me that the tour finishes on May 5 in her hometown, a show that she’s especially excited for. While we can’t predict what thoughtfully-curated outfit she’ll wear or what songs will be performed, with new music already underway, one thing is clear: Jesse Jo Stark is just getting started.

Music

9lives' Latest Single Continues to Push Sigilkore

April 19, 2024

The versatile artist, producer, and pioneer of the sigilkore genre, 9lives, has recently unveiled his latest single "CANADA" featuring jnhygs. In less than two years since his emergence onto the music scene, 9lives has carved out an impressive niche for himself as a prominent figure within the digitally-driven sigilkore movement. "CANADA" sees him teaming up once again with experimental dance artist jnhygs, following their successful collaboration on "XTAYALIVE".

With aspirations to establish himself within the mainstream arena of experimental music production and artistry, 9lives is blending his distinct dark production style with collaborations with a diverse array of influential artists who trust him to create innovative sonic landscapes. "CANADA" marks his second release of 2024, as 9lives continues to champion the burgeoning sigilkore movement, pushing the boundaries of genre, evolving into a multifaceted artist, and solidifying his status as a rising star with an expanding audience.

Image by Connor Pritchard

Reflecting on their latest project, 9lives shares, “In early 2023 jnhygs found my music and we started chatting through TikTok, releasing our first song together called "XTAYALIVE"." He adds, We’ve been friends since this song had a viral moment, and fans have been heavily requesting for us to work together again all over our videos.” Describing their creative process, he explains, “I sent a bunch of new ideas to jnhygs via Discord and she sent back vocals to “CANADA”, which I then used to create melodic layers and extra percussion to complete the song.

Music

Eclipsed at Vampire Weekend

April 16, 2024

It had been about a week since the goosebump-inducing communal howls at the moon, as it covered the sun through a cloudy Austin, Texas sky, left me needing to take a seat—suspended in awe of the totality of the event and the synergistic break from routine. I overheard someone say, “I mean, it feels like we’re all going to die, but in a way that’s okay, you know?" under the shadow of the eclipse's peak, ceremoniously brought in as the band performed “Jonathan Low,” (in Vampire Weekend's familiar ironic hue) a track they wrote for the third movie in the Twilight series, Eclipse.

It had been five years since the band had released an album. In celebration of their latest album, "Only God Was Above Us," ticket holders wrapped the streets in blocks outside the venue for the band’s first Stateside show in about two years. Event managers searched to replenish the venue’s stock of eclipse glasses, while the band prepped a show reminiscent of 'getting the boys back together again'.

Words and photography by Rianne Akindele

In between newly released songs like “Classical” and “Capricorn”, the boys filled the almost two-hour-long show with old favorites like “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa”, “Diane Young” and a genre evolved rendition of “Sunflower” as the crowd danced barefoot feeling the Earth’s energy intertwined with their own and the vibrations from the amps on stage. People stole glances at the imminently darkening sky, artists doodled, friends grabbed onto each other to scream the lyrics in each other’s faces, and onlookers from the highest level of the parking garage across the street cheered on in a symphony of nostalgia and anticipation.

Adding to the layers of the celestial afternoon, the band invited to the stage the likes of Thomas Mars from Phoenix, Dave 1 from Chromeo, and guitarist Brian Robert Jones, inducing further levels of indie revival euphoria.

As the show drew to its close, and the zydeco/country-rock “Cocaine Cowboys” medley fiddled through the air, a conversation could be picked up between two sisters in search of their Lyft driver through closed-off streets,

“I wish this happened more often.”
“Eclipses or shows like this?”
“Both.”

It’s moments like these that remind us of our shared humanity and the power of collective experiences; a gathering of souls under the same sky, sharing the joy of music and a wonder of the stars above. Perhaps it’s the rarity that allowed such transcendence, reverence, and gratitude to be felt. Either way, what a beautiful moment in time it was.

Here are a few shots from the Monday afternoon: