Lav grew up steeped in music; spending her early days figuring out her thoughts and feelings via poems, songs and everything in-between, her breakthrough moment came when Billie Eilish picked up her tender bedroom-penned song ‘From Me, The Moon’. Two million plays later, and she’s just dropped its follow-up. ‘Wavvy’ has an altogether different vibe, a take-no-prisoners anthem written in the aftermath of a lacklustre relationship as she was scrambling to rediscover herself (“That song’s a hoe-anthem, I guess”). Give it a listen below, and introduce yourself to an artist that has Hype by the truckload.
Hi Lav, how’s it going? Are you having a fun day?
Hi! My day has been extremely eventful, I’ve played a solid seven hours of animal crossing so far, Rome wasn’t built in a day; it’s hard work, but someone’s gotta do it.
Are you self-isolating at the moment? Have the current restrictions mucked up many of your plans?
I actually struggle quite a bit with immense agoraphobia, and rarely leave my house in general, unless I really have to, so it’s not affecting me too much. If anything, it silences all my friends and family from begging me to go outside, which is nice.
Tell us about your new song ‘Wavvy’, what’s it about?
I kind of like the idea of the meaning of this song being super subjective. None of the lyrics are absolute, and it can be up for interpretation. I will tell you that I wrote the first draft when I was upset a boy I liked WASN’T texting me back, but the song turned into something different in its last form, not a complete thought, and I like the mess of that.
What do you most enjoy writing about, and what’s your songwriting process like?
I seem to consistently find myself writing love songs. I don’t even mean to a lot of the time, maybe it’s just subliminal because I’m a water sign and crave intimacy. My song process is usually me just writing poetry, and then later finding a way to fit the poetry to a melody in a song. It’s all very jumbled, but it’s emotional, and I think those types of songs pack the most, ones that just come straight from the pit of your stomach and into a song, even if they’re nonsensical.
Have you always wanted to be a performer? What did you listen to while you were growing up?
I don’t think I ever wanted to be a “performer” I think that word implies that what I get out of music is far less genuine than my reality. I have always wanted to be a poet, I’ve always wanted to make people feel, and I’ve always wanted to create art and music. The performing aspect actually brings me great anxiety, but I have always wanted to make and share art. As far as the music I listened to it was anything and everything. My grandpa is a blues musician, so we listened to a ton of blues and funk, even some jazz. My parents would listen to anything from Macy Gray, to Sublime, to Pantera, to DJ Quik, to Jamiroquai. I am extremely appreciative to have always lived in waves of music; there were very few moments in my childhood with stagnant, music-less air.
How did you first make the jump into releasing music and playing gigs?
The jump wasn’t huge for me, I’ve always written songs and poems, and I was a theatre kid my whole adolescence; so the jump was more so a hop! Just posting things online was my little hop!
Are you creative in non-musical ways too?
I’d like to think so! I’ve directed a couple of little short films for fun with friends, written Millions of poems and dabble in ink drawing; I also have an addiction to decorating spaces. I constantly nest. If I spend too much time at a friend’s house, I’ll start bringing things over to make the place homier, or change it up. I suppose that’s creative. I try to dabble in any creative facet I can!
What do you do for fun?
I have an addiction to Disneyland; it’s about the only place I go besides my house. Which is odd considering the mass amounts of crowds and people; my anxiety usually doesn’t do well with. However, there’s something about the escapism in walking into the different worlds that really speaks to me: the history, the energy. I know I’m an adult, and people rip on adults that go to Disney, but there’s something about it that really calls to me, and brings me very genuine and innocent joy. I’ll try to go at least once a week. Besides that, I hate fun and am probably just in my home nesting and watching YouTube videos.
What’s been the highlight of your time as a musician so far?
I am still shocked that Billie Eilish said on the news she wished she had written my song ‘From Me, The Moon’. Surreal. People will ask me how that feels and I just completely detach myself, like… no, that was a dream. It was a cool dream, but I’m awake now where that couldn’t have actually happened, right? Very incredible moment.
What are you working on right now? Are you able to write and record from home?
I’m working on creating as much as I can – a couple of short films, songs, music videos, poems. We live in a very strange time, and most of my time right now is spent distracting myself from reality.
Who do you think is the most exciting band or musician around right now?
I am a huge Molly Burch fan. I think she’s so fun to watch, ridiculously talented and unique. I think everyone should listen to her music. Its veryyyy seldom music from this time period catches my eyes and my ears, I’m a big fan of vintage sounds. Molly is timeless, and I’m obsessed with her. Molly if you see this, I would like (1) kiss.
Are you creative in non-musical ways too?
I’d like to think so! I’ve directed a couple of little short films for fun with friends, written Millions of poems and dabble in ink drawing; I also have an addiction to decorating spaces. I constantly nest. If I spend too much time at a friend’s house, I’ll start bringing things over to make the place homier, or change it up. I suppose that’s creative. I try to dabble in any creative facet I can!
What do you do for fun?
I have an addiction to Disneyland; it’s about the only place I go besides my house. Which is odd considering the mass amounts of crowds and people; my anxiety usually doesn’t do well with. However, there’s something about the escapism in walking into the different worlds that really speaks to me: the history, the energy. I know I’m an adult, and people rip on adults that go to Disney, but there’s something about it that really calls to me, and brings me very genuine and innocent joy. I’ll try to go at least once a week. Besides that, I hate fun and am probably just in my home nesting and watching YouTube videos.
What’s been the highlight of your time as a musician so far?
I am still shocked that Billie Eilish said on the news she wished she had written my song ‘From Me, The Moon’. Surreal. People will ask me how that feels and I just completely detach myself, like… no, that was a dream. It was a cool dream, but I’m awake now where that couldn’t have actually happened, right? Very incredible moment.
What are you working on right now? Are you able to write and record from home?
I’m working on creating as much as I can – a couple of short films, songs, music videos, poems. We live in a very strange time, and most of my time right now is spent distracting myself from reality.
Who do you think is the most exciting band or musician around right now?
I am a huge Molly Burch fan. I think she’s so fun to watch, ridiculously talented and unique. I think everyone should listen to her music. Its veryyyy seldom music from this time period catches my eyes and my ears, I’m a big fan of vintage sounds. Molly is timeless, and I’m obsessed with her. Molly if you see this, I would like (1) kiss.
