Kelsey Olivia has already done it all, and so early on in her career. From pop punk to country pop, no genre can scare her away. This is especially apparent on her upcoming single “Quit” where she delves into the realm of synth-heavy, dark pop. Despite the moodiness the track brings forth, Kelsey Olivia’s bubbly and upbeat personality shines through even on a Zoom call, proving that with its honest lyricism and textured instrumentals, “Quit” is both a severing form, and a natural continuation of her previous discography.
We sat down together to discuss the process of “Quit,” how Cleveland’s music scene helps her break the mold, and what the future holds for the 22-year-old, ambitious singer.
What inspired you to start making music?
So I knew since I was very, very young that I wanted to be in the entertainment industry. I remember being very young and singing on vacation, doing karaoke contests. Then, when I was about 11 years old, I got into acting. So acting was really my first realm of the entertainment industry, and that became a second home to me. It was so funny because even when I was doing acting, music was such a big portion of my life. I was always singing or writing. I always like to say that I started writing songs when I was about nine years old, which seems very far-fetched, but it’s true. A lot of kids, when they’re bored in class at that age, what are they doing? They’re throwing paper and writing stuff. I was writing songs in notebooks in the back of the class, which was odd at the time.
As I moved through middle school and as I went into high school, I picked up other hobbies. But, music was always in the background at any given time. I did talent shows, and I was consistently writing. I started to take it more seriously right around, 14, 15 [years old]. I started to record demos in my bedroom that nobody would hear except for close friends for a couple of years.
Funny enough, I have no musical people in my family. I come from a very big family, but all of them are either athletes or businesspeople. I have no idea where the love for music came from. No clue. It wasn’t genetic. It was a little blindsiding to a lot of people because they were like, “What is she doing?” Then I went away to college when I was 18… The way that I determined which school I went to was which school had the closest Uber ride to a studio… And within my two weeks of being in the state of Florida [for college], I had my first song recorded, which was “I Hate Strangers.” …I started releasing music ever since then, and I just haven’t stopped. Music is my entire life.
Regarding what you said that you’re really the only person in your family who likes music and your close circle being shocked, do you find that people in your life are generally supportive of your music career? Or does it feel isolating to be the only person pursuing this?
I think it depends. I think I definitely do have a lot of support from my immediate family. They are my biggest supporters. And then again, I have a very large family, and I would say a lot of them are pretty supportive. It definitely took a while to warm up to the idea, but just because I was the oddball out. It was not something that my family was used to. In terms of friends and smaller circles, I have had friends come and go, but they have been very supportive. I would say that all of my friends have been very supportive. I think it was extraordinarily isolating and lonely in the beginning. Gratefully, it’s gotten less so as time has gone on… For the most part, I’m very grateful to have the support system that I do.
So then speaking of community, what do you think of the Cleveland music scene—and then you say you went to school in Florida, too—how do you think those music scenes influence your music now, if they do at all?
Cleveland is a city of rock ‘n’ roll, and its music scene is very interesting. It is very abundant. And it’s very bubbled, not necessarily in a bad way, but everybody kind of knows everybody. That’s really nice in terms of connections and trying to find like-minded individuals in your field. I think Cleveland is a really great city. I’m lucky to be born and raised here and to grow up in that atmosphere. When I was in Florida, I wasn’t really aware of any music or arts culture. I wouldn’t necessarily say that location influences my work as much as just personal experiences that I may have in those locations. But with that being said, I think Cleveland’s great.
I was wondering because I’m from New Jersey, so we have Asbury Park. And I feel like that, speaking of a bubbled community, is also so bubbled in the sense that you talk to one person, and then they’ll mention 15 people that you’ve also spoken to. Everybody knows everybody. It’s kind of scary, but also really good community building.
It’s scary, it’s intimidating, but in a way it’s also kind of comforting. It’s a very fine line, but no, you hit the mark.
Shifting towards your new single that’s coming out, I feel like “Quit” definitely tackles the idea of relationship addiction, in a sense. And then you did say that your lived experiences really influence your work. Was there a specific situation that you drew the lyrics from for this song? What was the inspiration for the storytelling?
I wouldn’t say there was any specific situation with this song. I know that I always wanted to do a song like this sonically, and I’ve always been a little scared to do so because the dark pop realm can be tricky. It’s really hard to get right, and I was very afraid of not getting it right. I just started writing this song, and then once I put together that this is going to be a dark pop song, I definitely was like, “Okay, this is my main priority.” Like I said, there is no specific situation for this one, but I started writing this song in… I want to say August, September-ish. I spent a lot of that time going out. I’m 22 [years old], and I spent it with a lot of different circles of friends and going to places that I wouldn’t have gone to the year prior, and branching out. I think living experiences through other people also contribute to a lot of things in my work. I’m very observant. “Quit” is a very important track to me. I think it sets the tone for other releases that we have going forward. So I’m very excited.
That’s so funny because my next question is literally about the musicality of it. You touched on it perfectly about how it’s a very dark pop, kind of grungy feel. What inspired you or motivated the tonal shift? Because it is very different from songs in your discography before. So what was the lead-up to wanting this song to have that darker feel to it?
Dark pop has always been a genre that has felt the most like me internally. I love dark pop. I love bands like Chase Atlantic. I love The Neighbourhood. I love specific Billie Eilish catalog pieces. I love songs like that. I’ve always kind of been driven to songs like that. That’s a genre that I’ve always listened to, even when I was really young, and it’s something that I have always wanted to make. It’s funny because when I describe my genre, I like to say that I sit in a pop umbrella just because I do cherry-pick different subgenres throughout my releases. That’s why I definitely had some nerves going through when choosing a genre like this, but I think it’s some of the most me-feeling work I’ve ever had, which is exciting because we have some more songs that sound like this that you guys will be able to hear. That’s exciting for me.
You’re reading my mind because I was literally just about to ask if you’re planning on expanding this into future songs, but it sounds like you are, that this is a genre that you want to tackle more.
Yes, absolutely. I’ve definitely gotten more comfortable with it as we have worked with it in the studio for the past year. I’ve been in and out of the studio weekly for the past year, year and a half. It’s definitely something that we’ve gotten a lot more comfortable with, and it keeps me excited to write. I definitely get stuck in writing ruts a lot of times, which I’m sure a lot of artists can relate to. I do a lot of writing exercises for myself, and switching genres typically helps me. It’s just really exciting, and I am hoping that we got it right for everybody else listening.
You also mentioned some artists that you like in terms of dark pop, but is there any artist that you look up to that kind of inspires your writing and your lyrics?
Shocking to probably nobody, a big artist that I follow in terms of writing is Taylor Swift. Everybody has an opinion on her, but I think she genuinely is one of the best songwriters of all-time, and that’s something, regardless of your opinion, that you cannot take away from that lady. Not only is she really intricate in terms of her writing, but she’s a fantastic storyteller. Every time I go to write a song, that’s my goal. I want the listener to be able to close their eyes and walk through the story like they are living it. That’s something that I learned from her growing up and listening to her work when I was really little, and being able to live through all these eras that she has created. It’s definitely influenced my writing style and how intricate I get with lyrics and the poetic lyricism of everything as well.
In the future, do you hope to explore different genres, kind of like on a Taylor Swift-esque timeline? What are some genres that you plan on exploring, if any?
Never say never. If you had asked me a couple of years ago if I was gonna be in dark pop, I probably would have been like, “Oh my god, no way. I could never do that.” But I originally started in pop punk, which is a very different sound from what I have now. I have so much love for pop punk music. I was always listening to pop punk music when I was younger; that was a big part of my sound. Then I transitioned into more traditional pop through my second EP, Love Letters. Love Letters, to this day, is some of my best writing I’ve ever done. I think those songs will continue to sit on that pedestal. But that was a very different sound sonically from the Y2K, pop punk movement that we had in my first EP and singles before that. Then we tried out a different genre in “Intertwined.” That was your pop, but it sounds like Red [by Taylor Swift], where it was almost like country pop. That was something that I was really scared to do because I transparently don’t listen to country music, and I didn’t want to read too much one way or another.
But I really love “Intertwined,” and everybody who was able to work on that song, I have so much love and appreciation for. My goal is always to just touch people with music, regardless of how it gets to them. So if I can help somebody by making a song and pop punk versus, like, classical music, if it helps them and it gets to them, I will definitely do it. So never say never. My ideas are open.
You do have an album coming out, which “Quit” is the first single off of. You touched on there being more dark pop songs, but is there anything else that you can give little hints to that listeners can expect from this album?
This album is a roller coaster. For all my listeners, I am so excited to share this with you. I’m trying to be careful with my words here. The album is a story from top to bottom. I’m trying not to give away the title just yet, but it encapsulates one central idea that I think is very important and I don’t necessarily hear artists talk about. We’ve all heard songs and albums about love and lust and fear, but I’ve never really heard an entire project dedicated to this specific emotion that the album is covering. I’m very excited, and I really hope I do both the topic and the intricacies of it justice.
In terms of what you can hear sonically, we’re definitely going to have a lot more pop punk, which I’m very excited for. We’re definitely going to have a couple of ballads that maybe you wouldn’t have heard on my earlier works that showcase the lyricism and writing a little bit more than maybe your traditional dark pop songs. There’s a song on this album for everybody. We definitely get experimental in terms of sonic tones, lyricism, and messages. I think hopefully this will showcase everything that I’ve done and my producers have done, as well.
I’m so excited for you. My last question for you is kind of in the same realm as future projects. What do you hope to accomplish this year besides the new album? Are there any specific goals you have set, whether this year, next year… What’s the future looking like for you?
That’s a great question. I ask myself that every day. I ask my team that every day. My goal is to just consistently get better. There’s always a higher ground. You can always get better at your craft. That’s always my goal.
I think my goal for this album is that I just want people to hear it. I just want this to reach audiences in the way that my works haven’t reached or transcended audiences prior. I am really proud of this project. I always say that music helped me in a lot of times where even the closest people to me couldn’t. If I can be that artist for somebody else, then that’s all I really need. I think the topics of this album are really important and can sometimes go understated; I’m hopeful that this album can help a listener in the way that other works have helped me.
