A Norwegian indie rock quartet inspired by punk and power pop bands of the 1980s and early ’90s, Beachheads were founded in 2015 around the talents of vocalist Børild Haughom, drummer Espen Kvaloy, bassist Marvin Nygaard, and guitarist Vidar Landa, the latter two of whom also played in the Stavanger-based black metal party band Kvelertak. They issued the debut 7″ “Shadow of a Man” and “Get Away” shortly after forming, offering up a fuzzy and spirited 21st century take on Husker Du and Teenage Fanclub. More singles dropped the following year, and in early 2017 Beachheads released their eponymous debut long-player via the Oslo-based underground label Fysisk Format.
Chances are you’re already a Julia Michaels fan whether you know it or not. After breaking into professional songwriting as a teenager, the 23-year-old Iowa native has been an invisible yet inescapable presence on pop radio in recent years; along with songwriting partner Justin Tranter, she’s penned Justin Bieber’s “Sorry,” Selena Gomez’s “Hands To Myself,” Hailee Steinfeld’s “Love Myself,” Nick Jonas and Tove Lo’s “Close,” and Britney Spears’ “Slumber Party” among many others. Michaels and Tranter have been so successful with regard to placing songs and making hits that a year ago they were the subject of a New York Times profile highlighting their abnormally high batting average. But the best song in their arsenal may be the one Michaels kept for herself.
Following guest appearances with Kygo and Jason Derulo, “Issues” is Michaels’ debut single as a lead artist. A portrait of two volatile people who help each other get a grip, it exists in her self-described thematic sweet spot: the intersection of emotional turmoil and sexual tension. Musically it’s stellar, boasting a brilliantly simple arrangement built from a darting string section, booming digital bass, finger snaps, and not much else. And with Michaels delivering an authentically dramatic performance against such a beautiful background, it adds up to the first great pop single of 2017.
When Michaels called me this week to discuss her past, present, and future, she was in Nashville working on music with an unspecified collaborator. So she’s continuing to work behind the scenes, applying the magic touch that has made her arguably pop’s hottest songwriter. But “Issues” indicates that we may come to know her as a star in her own right. Read our conversation below.
STEREOGUM: You moved from Iowa to Los Angeles as a child. How did you end up professionally songwriting in your teens? A lot of people wouldn’t even think of that as an option, especially as a teenager.
JULIA MICHAELS: I’ve always been a writer. I’ve always loved words, ever since I was a kid. I’ve written poetry most of my life. My sister actually started doing demos around the city, and my mom would take me to the studio mostly because I just loved being around music. And the songwriter my sister sang for asked me if I knew how to write or if I could sing. And of course my mom, who is like a total stage mom but I love her, was like, “Yes, of course she can sing!” And I was, like, 16. So I played a cover for her on piano — pretty poorly because I’m shit at piano — and she was like, “We should write sometime.” And I was like, “Really? Sure, yeah.” So we started doing songs for the backgrounds of television shows and commercials, stuff like that. And then from there we wrote a song for this Disney show Austin & Ally. It was the first thing we ever pitched for, and we got it. That’s when I kind of knew that I wanted to write songs.
STEREOGUM: I read the New York Times story about you and Justin, and it mentioned that you met in 2013 at a sort of “blind date” for songwriters. How many of those “blind dates” did you go on with other songwriters before you found that partnership that clicked?
MICHAELS: So many. When you first start out, people think this is super easy and you find your crew super quick. But you’ve really got to go through songwriter boot camp to find your people. For the first three years when I was writing I was doing sessions with a whole bunch of different people all the time every day until I met Lindy Robbins, who kind of mentored me. And then once you find that, all the pieces come together. You find the group that you feel more comfortable with and that you work really well with. I met Justin three years ago and, same thing. As long as you have one piece of the puzzle, it’s super easy to find the next one. And then you make magic with your friends. It just becomes fun and awesome.
STEREOGUM: I realize this is kind of an intangible thing, but can you describe how or why you and Justin work so well together?
MICHAELS: I like to think that together we make one perfect human being. Justin is a very light, very positive, very bright human being, and I’m rather dark and kind of miserable and depressing. So I think together we make up all the emotions that one person should have. We cover all bases when we write. I can think of the more emotional, kind of sexual situations, and then he can take care of the more fun stuff, and then we just kind of finish each other’s sentences at that point.
STEREOGUM: Speaking of emotional stuff, your bio includes a story about you giving away a song you’d written and crying about it in the bathroom for 90 minutes because you wanted to keep it for yourself.
MICHAELS: Yes, that’s me! Nice to meet you!
STEREOGUM: Which song was that?
MICHAELS: I don’t know if I really want to say that. But it really affected me, that song. It was the first time I had actually written a song and was really upset about it, and I wasn’t sure why. I mean, this is my job. I’m a songwriter, and I’m supposed to give my babies away and be OK with it. And then this one really affected me. Justin was actually the one that came into the bathroom and was like, “Maybe this is a sign. Maybe you’re really upset about this because there’s a bigger picture here and you’re trying to avoid it.” And I was like, “Maybe you’re right.” And when we wrote “Issues” I was like, “I can’t let this happen again. I can’t do this again.” It was the first time since then that a song felt so much like me that I just couldn’t let anybody else sing it. And now it’s out, and it’s insane!
STEREOGUM: What about “Issues” is so personally reflective of you?
MICHAELS: Lyrically, it’s just so much me. I guess it really pertains to anybody, but I am a very jealous person, and I do overreact to everything. And when I’m feeling down I’m super depressed, and when I’m excited I’m the most excited person on the planet. And the song was written because my boyfriend and I like to fight a lot. I have a lot of problems, and so does he. But then at the end of the day we realize how ridiculous we’re being and we’re like, “OK, everything’s good. This is just ridiculous.”
STEREOGUM: So when you sat down to write it, you were like, “I’m going through this situation, and I’ve got to channel it into a song?”
MICHAELS: 100%.
STEREOGUM: Is that typically how you work, or are there ever times when you’re just playing around without a specific inspiration? What’s the ratio there?
MICHAELS: It depends. A lot of it is definitely taking from personal experience. Even if I’m with an artist, I have a hard time connecting to something if I haven’t been through it. So even if they’ve been through something, I can always find an experience I can relate to and write from my perspective. It’s Justin, too. If you have all different kinds of perspectives, it makes it perfect for anybody who’s going through something. Most of the time that’s how it goes. I have this saying: “I can only write emotional songs, sexual songs, and sexually emotional songs.” That’s just who I am.
STEREOGUM: How often are you writing with another artist for another artist versus just writing and seeing what becomes of it?
MICHAELS: I’d say maybe 50-50? Most of the time we write to pitch, mostly because Justin and I, we go so fast and we just go off first instinct and the subconscious really. It’s just easier for us to go in and write down everything that we feel and then be like, “Cool, bye!” But it’s also cool when we get to sit down with somebody and hear somebody’s story, especially when they don’t know how to articulate what they want to say. They’re relying on two strangers, essentially, to help them get out these words. They’re trusting us to help their point of view come out, and there’s something really special about that as well.
STEREOGUM: Now that you’ve got a couple of features and “Issues” out there, do you expect to be keeping more of these songs for yourself?
MICHAELS: A lot of the time I can gauge what I want to keep for myself and what I don’t. If I go into a session with an artist or if I go to pitch, that’s not my song. I’m not that kind of person. Most of the time if I have an idea, I’ll voice note it and be like, “Oh, I want to keep that.” Other times I’ll be like, “This could be cool for this person.” I am a very possessive person, but not when it comes to music, usually.
STEREOGUM: Do you have some more singles ready to go? Is there a plan to roll out some more music, or are you just going to stick with “Issues” for a while?
MICHAELS: We definitely have some songs ready to go, but I think we just want to see how this one plays out because it’s going to be a lot. This is very new for me. It’s very exciting but also very nerve-racking. It’s something I’ve never done before. I’ve always been in the background, and happily been in the background, and this is the first time people are going to see me. It’s a very vulnerable situation. Again, it’s exciting and nerve-racking. But yes, I definitely have some other songs in the works and some things that I’m pretty ecstatic for everyone to hear.
STEREOGUM: Are you going to be doing some live performing soon?
MICHAELS: Maybe! [laughs]
STEREOGUM: Do you have much experience on stage?
MICHAELS: I’ve literally only performed twice. Last year I did the Wireless Festival with Kygo, and then I did the closing ceremony at the Olympics with him as well.
STEREOGUM: Those are two huge gigs!
MICHAELS: So it is pretty new for me, definitely.
STEREOGUM: Will you be performing songs you’ve written for other people too, or are you going to keep that separate?
MICHAELS: I think I’m going to keep that separate.
STEREOGUM: One last thing: On Wikipedia, which is not always trustworthy, it says “many big name artists” fought for the right to record “Issues.” Is that true? Did you have to fight to keep it for yourself?
MICHAELS: Yeah, there were quite a few people that wanted it. There were actually a couple who cut it and I didn’t even know about it. So it was definitely a battle, but at the end of the day it’s my words and my emotions and the song that I felt like was me, and it just didn’t feel right having somebody sing literally everything about me.
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Eccentric, theatric, and utterly uncategorizable, The Lemon Twigs is one of the more curious bands to have emerged in 2016. Composed of two teen brothers Michael and Brian D’Addario, who are joined by keyboardist Danny Ayala and bassist Megan Zeanowski when performing live, the group’s sound can most closely be identified as psych rock, but with hints of retro funk, soul, and punk mixed in. Along with providing vocals, each brother is a multi-instrumentalist; both play the guitar, keyboard, and drums, while Brian is also proficient on horns and strings. Their debut album, Do Hollywood, which was released in October, is unique in that none of the songs on it were co-written by the brothers. Rather, each musician wrote his own songs, which alternate throughout the record, resulting a strange yet harmonious back-and-forth. If you can, we recommend you see them live. You’ll dig their throwback hairdos and Wes Anderson-esque wardrobes, which will make you feel like you’ve been transported back to an experimental, underground show during the golden ages of rock.
Jahkoy has spent the last couple years reinventing himself. Trading in his MC ambitions, released under the name Raheem, for a more soulful sound, Jahkoy has been productive since transitioning to R&B and leaving his hometown of Toronto for L.A. He’s an advocate for love on warm tracks, especially on his last record, Foreign Waters, which features his love letter to Cali, “California Heaven” with ScHoolboy Q, and the tropical “1000 Times.” Now, the 22-year-old Def Jam artist has his debut album, Glory Child, on the way, which could very well cement his place as one of R&B’s new innovators. —Eric Diep
It was 2010 when Chris Rademaker and Jodi King followed a call God put on their hearts – selling their home, and lots of other stuff, as they headed out to pursue a musical adventure as the husband-wife duo Love & The Outcome.
“Life on the road was all we’d ever known,” says Jodi, who met her husband while touring with Canadian worship artist Jon Buller. “So when we hit the road, we just responded to what God challenged us to be.”
The song “King Of My Heart,” off their self-titled album (August 27, 2013), is a great reminder that God’s love is bigger than any of our trials. “Like David, we all face battles that threaten to overtake us,” explains Chris. “In the midst of selling everything we owned and setting out on the road, my mom was diagnosed with terminal cancer. We decided to postpone all of our shows to go back to Canada to be with her. That whole year took us to our breaking point, but that’s right where our Savior met us.”
Jodi adds, “Paul encourages us in 2 Corinthians 12:9 that in our weakness, God is strong. So when you’re up against your Goliath and when you feel yourself falling to pieces, just remember that the King of your heart is bigger than the battle you’re facing.”
“King Of My Heart,” follows the single “He Is With Us.” “This is a song about trust. We can trust our God because he knows what he is doing,” says Chris. “That is not always an easy thing to do.”
According to Chris, the experience of traveling across the world, performing their songs, was a humbling one.
“We’ve traveled to Liberia, the Philippines and China in the last couple of years,” he says. “When you’re together and you’re worshiping, everyone is the same. It doesn’t matter what you look like or what you smell like: Everyone wants to welcome you into the family.”
Blending Chris’ love for rock music, and Jodi’s love for pop, Love & The Outcome, aims to inspire listeners to follow Christ with their catchy tunes. “We want to inspire people to follow Jesus,” Jodi says. “We want these songs to become a lifestyle, and hope that the truth of these songs goes beyond the thrill of the live show to plant a seed in people’s hearts: to go for the things that they might be afraid to go for and join this joyful revolution. That’s the whole point. A life that requires faith is worth living, and a life on the edge is one where you live hand-in-hand and arm-in-arm with God. That’s what we’re living for.”
Jodi and Chris welcomed their son Milo Wolf to the family in February 2016 and Jodi credits becoming a new mom as the inpiration behind some of the lyrics in their single “The God I Know” (April 2016).
“There’s a line in it that says, ‘I throw my hands up and my worries down’ and I wrote that for myself. Being a new mom when life gets really challenging – and it’s a day by day journey – I get to throw my hands up and worries to the Lord and just remember that He’s got me.”
Growing up in a house filled with family, music and faith – singer/songwriter Hillary Scott comes by her musical gifts naturally. Her mom, Linda Davis, moved to Nashville in the 80’s to pursue a music career. Linda met Lang Scott while working as a receptionist at a recording studio. They married in 1984 and Hillary was born April 1, 1986.
Initially home-schooled, Hillary began attending Donelson Christian Academy in elementary school and graduated from the high school in 2004. Because her parents toured a lot she lived with her grandparents much of the time. At sixteen Hillary performed with her mom and dad on the album Linda Davis Family Christmas.
Now thirty she is collaborating with family again as Hillary Scott & The Scott Family. This time the family album includes her younger sister, Rylee Jean. In 2016 they released their single “Thy Will” off the album Love Remains.
“The idea of this album was really when my dad had sat me down right at the beginning of last year to talk about something that he felt in his heart that he wanted to do – which was make a collection of songs to send out to some really dear friends and family…it was all around my grandfather’s diagnosis, battle, from cancer,” Hillary explains.
After taking time to pray and think and talk to her husband, Chris Tyrell, Hillary realized there was an opportunity to bring more depth and impact to the project so that it helped more people. So, they decided to expand her dad’s initial idea into an album for family, friends, and fans; old and new.
The faith based songs and hymns draw their inspiration from several sources, including the well of emotions that developed during her beloved grandfather’s battle with cancer. It is infused with songs that point people to Jesus Christ as their hope during the good and bad times of life.
“These are the songs that are talking about the source of where my peace comes from. So, whenever you listen to it I hope you hear the parts of my heart that are bursting with joy and thankfulness but also the pieces of my heart that are broken,” Hillary reflects.
Hillary, Chris and their daughter Eisele live in Brentwood, Tennessee.
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