Photo credit: @tiffxlls (twitter)
For interview 20, I got this exciting opportunity to chat with Junie! She is a spirited artist and her music is full of emotion. We talk about how she started, her journey and future goals as an artist, influences, cats, heartbreak and more. Get to know a little about Junie here:
trtlz: This interview is finally happening, I can't believe it!
trtlz: Let's start with an introduction. Can you tell me a little about yourself?
Junie: Of course! I’m Junie; I grew up around the Fort Worth area and I’ve been writing music for as long as I can remember. I live with my mom and my cat 🐱 and I like reading and writing music!
trtlz: Aww haha what is your cat's name?
Junie : Oliver! He’s turning 11 this year haha
trtlz: I love that name I used to have a cat named Oliver too when I was a kid haha
trtlz: So you've been writing music for as long as you can remember, how long have you been singing and playing?
Junie: As long as I can remember haha, I’ve never had any formal lessons, singing was extremely natural for me and I remember learning songs on piano by ear when I was really really young, which eventually lead to writing. I think I got my first guitar for Christmas when I was maybe 8 or 9, so I think the guitar stuff started then!
trtlz: Wow! Those are my favorite stories just having a passion for music and doing it without any formalities. That's really impressive!
Junie: Haha thank you, I’m still pretty mediocre with instruments so don’t be *too* impressed
trtlz: Haha. Well I'm already impressed so imagine a year from now!
trtlz: Besides piano and guitar, do you play any other instruments or are there any more you'd like to learn in the future?
Junie: I was in band for a couple of years in middle school and I played percussion, I’m nowhere near being able to play the drums but I think it would be dope to learn the set sometime since I have band experience! I’m also really interested and drawn to the cello, so that would be really cool one day. I can hear strings a lot when I write, so it would be cool to play for myself one day
trtlz: That's awesome! Yeah, I play drums and they are the only instrument I had success with haha I quit all the others but drums came super naturally for me. And I agree cello would be super cool it's so pretty
trtlz: Who are some of your biggest influences in music?
Junie: That’s such a loaded question because I feel like every time I do a project my influences fluctuate and change so much! I grew up being really inspired by women singer songwriters, specifically Rachael Yamagata and Regina Spektor, and in high school discovering Waxahatchee and Mitski. Mitski is definitely a huge influence because of her emphasis on vocal melodies and lyrics. I would say for this album, Mitski, Weyes Blood, Snail Mail and Alvvays. I’ve been OBSESSED with FKA Twigs lately though and I can tell that’s gonna come through the things I’m working on. I’m extremely inspired and influenced by women in the music industry honestly, I love discovering and supporting women in music and all kinds of their influence definitely comes through in my own work.
trtlz : I love how unique your influences are! And I totally agree there are some extremely inspiring women in the music scene and I love supporting them as well!
trtlz: Do you feel like there are any challenges from being a woman in the music industry? What would you say are some pros and cons?
Junie : Hahaaaaa! Yeah, I definitely didn’t realize it until I started getting more involved, but I think it’s just the same challenges that come with being a woman in general. I’ve had a lot of people talk down to me, or question my judgement on MY music, stuff I’ve never seen done to men with half my ability. I won’t name names since we have such a small community and it’s pretty accepting for the most part haha, but I guess the pro is it’s just *that* much more satisfying when I release something really good. I think it’s just frustrating for people of color or women or the LGBTQ+ community to see cis white men get away with being mediocre because they can and they’re allowed to, and the music scene is no different. It pushes me to be 10 times better though, and not settle for mediocrity like some of the people around me. And it’s inspired me a lot to use future projects to give a platform to other groups of people who may feel like they don’t have a place in the scene as well
trtlz: This response is 10/10
trtlz: I'm glad you know your worth and recognize your talent and don't let those things influence you negatively because you really are amazing
Junie: Thank you!! I have a ton of really supportive and great people around me so that helps a lot. Carter and Justin, my guitarist and bassist are both huge supporters and advocates and I feel so lucky to always have them behind me!
trtlz: So on January 10, you impressed the world with your album “No Man’s Dog”. To be honest, I have seen nothing but incredibly positive things being said about it. And they are not wrong haha.
Junie: Haha aw that’s so sweet! Thank you!!
trtlz: What was the process like creating it?
Junie: Well, honestly, it was pretty intense hahaha. I got out of a really toxic situation where I was absolutely ruined by someone who I thought was my best friend. I was completely heartbroken, and I remember going to work the next day and then coming home around noon and laying in the middle of my living-room floor drinking like 3 cups of cold brew and crying over my keyboard. That was the day that I wrote No Man’s Dog and You’re Ugly, haha. Two really different songs. From there the rest came after, Groupie and No Fury were written a little over a year before, but I decided to add them to make an album since they pertained to the same situation that inspired the album. Carter and Justin came over to learn what I wrote, and after a couple of practices we started recording with Nathan. We did 10 hours the first day, and then recorded every Sunday evening for a few weeks until it was finished. It was a pretty smooth process honestly, everyone I worked with was fantastic and able to get my vision expressed so smoothly. I pushed myself really hard some days to make sure the emotion I was expressing was pure, and that was the hardest part. But it was so, so worth it.
trtlz: That's amazing. One of my favorite things about your album seriously is how passionate and real you are and I can literally feel it in your music.
Junie: Thank you!! That means so much, that is honestly my top priority and something I hold so highly so I’m really happy to hear that :)
trtlz: Of course your astonishing vocals are a huge part of it as well
trtlz: How was it working with the band and how did you meet?
Junie: So, Carter and I actually worked at a dine-in theater way back in the day, and the funny story about that is I used to get SO annoyed with him. But we always remained friends through the music scene, he is in a band called Bad Dad Jokes and I would see him play with my friends in Foxlove from time to time. Carter recently started his own label and asked me if I wanted to release stuff under Junie since he enjoyed my self released EP from last April. I told him I had demos but needed a band, and that’s where him and Justin came in. Our drummer for the album Patrick is a friend I’ve known for a couple of years now; he was the drummer in Foxlove which was made up of 5 of my closest friends! He’s really busy with work and other projects so he’s unable to do shows, but offered up recording and the rest is history! It was really different working with a band, but really really dope. I always knew that I wasn’t really able to collaborate with a band very well because I’m so independent and controlling, LOL. But everyone was really, really willing to listen to my wants and my needs and contribute what they could while still staying within my vision and it was really, really cool because I feel like I figured out where I’m supposed to be in a music setting. I feel like I could definitely see myself being the front of the band or controlling my own solo project for the rest of my life and having it work so smoothly. I was pleasantly surprised for sure
trtlz: Yeah that's really beautiful to find a band that will support you and work with you to help make your music exactly how you want and sharing their talents but not taking your music from you. The album turned out perfect!
Junie: I agree! I was extremely lucky and I’m very proud.
trtlz: How did you decide on an album vs EP?
Junie: Well, originally I was just going to do an EP because the situation fucked me up so bad that I just wrote a bunch of songs in one day and needed to get them out haha. But, since we were recording with Nathan I gave it some more thought and thought I might as well do an album since I’ve already done two EPs on my Bandcamp. All I needed was two more songs and that’s when I decided to carry over Groupie and No Fury from the first EP. It was a pretty easy choice once I realized I had enough songs and money! I felt like there was no reason not to do an album
trtlz: Yeah! I'm happy about it because every song works so well with it!
trtlz: You actually already mentioned it a bit before, but can you talk a little about the song “You're Ugly”? That song has an interesting style and lyrics. Going into as much or as little detail as you want, can you tell me what inspired them?
Junie: Haha! Of course! Like I had said, I was in a really toxic situation for about a year and a half that really really messed me up. I won’t name any names but my best friend was also pretty close to this person and so was my entire friends group. The day that I wrote the first couple songs was the day after the incident and I was laying on my living room floor in tears and I remember getting a text from my best friend that said “he’s not cute enough to be acting like this. Sorry” and i was like SHE’S RIGHT. HE’S HONESTLY KIND OF UGLY! And honestly, I tend to view people outwardly how I see them inwardly. So now that he had done this terrible thing to me, I just felt like his heart and actions were so ugly that I wanted to go off about everything wrong with him. It was like something snapped, and I realized my self worth and how talented and loving I was, and I wanted to just let loose and go off because he had tried to use all of that against me in our last conversation. The line “I
guess if I am f***ing crazy, I should act like it then” was really natural and set the tone for the whole song I think, because I was like “how many times have men just told us that we’re crazy? I’m not crazy. Everyone knows what just happened. But he’s still gonna think I’m crazy....so I guess I’ll have fun with it.” And then it just flowed from there. I wrote that whole song in about 5 minutes.
trtlz: That exact line about being crazy stood out to me when I first heard it haha. This whole song is totally relatable. That song is one of my favorites.
trtlz: I think my favorite overall is “Listen or Don’t”. Is it possible to pick a favorite song from the album and if so, why is it your favorite?
Junie: It’s hard, but I think No Fury and Listen or Don’t are my top two! No Fury is my baby, it’s not super popular because it’s so long but it was on my very first Bandcamp EP as an acoustic song. It was the most raw I’ve probably ever been in a song, and the metaphors to me just express so clearly how I felt when I wrote it. It has so much hidden meaning and energy, I just connect with it so much and I feel like part of my soul lives there. Listen or Don’t makes me feel so empowered haha, I wrote the chorus in May after a long day at work and could never get the verses right until this situation happened. Then one day before work at like 7am the lines just started coming to me and I made a voice memo. I just feel like the lyrics are so honest and extra, and the title is a mantra of mine. I wanted it to reflect the idea that I do this because I love it, and not for anyone else’s approval. No one could listen and I’d still make music and I hope to keep that alive as I get older. So a more powerful and eccentric part of my soul lives in that one, but part of my soul regardless. Those two are my favorites for that reason, the most honest and vulnerable on the album.
trtlz: Dang you are so inspiring. This is exactly what I mean, people can really feel this same passion in your music when they listen.
Junie: Haha omg thank you!
trtlz: I really love how proud you are of your music and you're not afraid to admit it!
Junie: Oh of course! I work hard on it! Haha
trtlz: What is something you'd love to improve on or try as an artist?
Junie: Well, something that I’ve been really inspired with and that I plan on incorporating into my newer projects is experimenting a little bit with vocals. I’ve been really inspired by a lot of women in experimental music lately, and I’ve noticed that there’s a lot of people who do experimental vocals or people who do technical stuff but not a lot of people who kind of mix the two and have technical and experimental mixes, so I think that would be cool! I expect newer projects to actually have less electric guitar and bass and drums and more synth and things that I specialize in, so that I can stretch myself and my expression.
trtlz: That would definitely be really cool. I would be really stoked to hear that! I think you especially would sound incredible doing something like that.
Junie: Thank you! The most important part of it all is expressing myself so as long as I’m staying true to my emotions and craft I’m excited to see where it takes me.
trtlz: How do you feel about performing live ?
Junie: Honestly it’s kinda fun but it’s not what I live for haha. I have anemia and anxiety so I get tired super easily and tend to feel sick after performances. But I’ve only been able to a couple, so I’m optimistic about future ones especially because I have some lined up with friends!
trtlz: Yes! I saw your name on some flyers for some shows coming up next month! And I'm sure everyone super appreciates the effort you make to play a show even more. I would love to see you play!
trtlz: How do you like being part of Squarehead Records?
Junie: I love it!! Carter is so helpful and the absolute best. I feel like he helps do everything I don’t enjoy, like the technical stuff, which is super helpful. And he’s also grown to be one of my best friends through the process so that’s always a huge plus!
trtlz: Yeah! Those are all definitely huge perks for sure!
trtlz: You spoke about experimenting vocally before, but what are your goals as an artist for the future?
Junie: Honestly, I think my main goal is to just make sure that I’m always being true to myself and being honest with my creative decisions. I want to be able to be a voice for people who don’t typically have an obvious platform, and be able to use my talent to collaborate with people who have worked so hard to get where they are. I hope I can be a voice for people who don’t have one or be able to change something in someway. I don’t really have a clear idea of where exactly I want to be, I just know that I want to know that at the end of the day I did everything I could to be true to myself and the people around me, no matter where this takes me, even if it doesn’t take me anywhere
trtlz: Thank you so so much again for this interview! Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Junie: Not at all, it was such a great interview, thank you so much for taking the time!! I really enjoyed it!
Check out Junie's album "No Man’s Dog" and more here on Spotify : https://tinyurl.com/qlqbsty
Awesome interview!!!