KTJ & CARLY
Photo credit: TheWillTown
I’ve been waiting for this release for a long time. KTJ & CARLY are artists I truly believe in and this debut EP is honestly one of the most exciting releases of the month… or even the most exciting release of the month.
Identity perfectly represents them as Artists. I’ve said this before but they know who they are and they’re not trying to sound like anyone else. When I first heard the EP for the first time, it felt like I was watching a movie. One amazing movie. It’s almost like the whole thing could have been one big track. It’s that type of projects where you hear the music and see colors and visuals in your head. They managed to blend different genres into one and created their own unique sound. This record is nothing like we hear these days and that’s why I believe their music is going to be a big game changer in the music industry.
What blows my mind even more is that Identity is only their first EP, so I can’t even imagine how big the other ones are going to be. KTJ & CARLY are on their way for GREATNESS and it’s just the beginning.
Now go stream Identity and tell your friends and family :)
Hi girls ! How are you?
Doing great, thanks for having us back!
You’ve just released your debut EP Identity. How's it like to release your first EP ever?
Honestly, it’s so crazy. I never thought I would ever even release a song and do any of the things we are doing now. It’s just really exciting that we are able to do this and have the means to make art even in the midst of a pandemic. Overall, we are just super excited. - Carly
Could you describe the songwriting/recording/production process? Who helped you create this EP? When did you start working on this project?
So most of the EP was written remotely while quarantining in Texas. We produced/co-produced every song on the record. We wrote and co-produced three of the songs w Jaidan Millar: Sell Your Soul, Almost True, and Distractions. Sell Your Soul & Almost True were written almost a year ago in person. We wrote those songs back to back and noticed we kinda had a theme going. That was the beginning of the inspiration behind the EP actually. Distractions, remotely over zoom. Enable Me, DPT, Someone You Like, were all co-written over zoom. In fact, when we wrote Someone You Like with Katie Buxton, that was our very first remote co-write and that of quarantine. We wrote Enable Me with our good friend Ellise Howard who is also from Texas, and we wrote DPT with Tim Schou all the way in Denmark! (These artists are all amazing btw, if you haven’t checked their music go check it!) Let Me In was just something we were playing around with alone and ended up putting it in the EP! This form of writing music was super different, but honestly in a way it was nice to be able to write with people from so many different places in the span of a week. Sure, it’s always best to be in person during these things but I wouldn’t have been able to meet so many different people as we have. So not including Sell Your Soul and Almost True, we really started working on the EP around March or April. - Carly
What are the different topics you are talking about on this EP?
Lots of topics. It starts off talking about social media, comparing yourself to others, appearances, emotional availability, enabling others, relationships, wearing a mask, pretending to be something you’re not, depression, blending in with a crowd, strangers, lying, facades, distractions in life, etc. These all are centered around the idea of a person's identity. - Carly
What was the biggest challenge about making this EP? And what was the best part?
The biggest challenge was definitely having to do most of it from home. It is nice to get inspired from the outside world and be in the room with someone. But again, there are pros and cons. It really sucks that we can’t promote the EP with live shows… but hopefully when things pick up we will! - Carly
Any favorite memory from the making of this project?
Learning more about ourselves, and the other incredible writers on this project. Another favorite part when writing music are the times when the writer's block is afoot, and then one of us in the room/zoom will always have some epiphany about what should flow. Creating is so exciting because once you feel the vibes and begin to trust the process these epiphanies surface and everyone’s vibes become immaculate. It's so exhilarating. Let alone the fact that we are able to rely on technology during a pandemic in this day and age blows my mind. - Katie
My favorite memory was the day we recorded everything. We originally laid down demos for it all and let it sit for a bit. Then one full day, we spent recording the vocals for it all with our friend Jaidan. It was so much fun but it was also so memorable because this was really the first time we were hearing the song come together. - Carly
What did you feel when writing "Distractions"?
At this point of writing the EP, I was just so fed up with being distracted by so much in life. The things that were slowly pushing away from the things that really matter to me were hard to let go of. After we wrote this, I cut out most of the distractions, and I cut out distracting people who didn’t support me and my craft as I would theirs. This song basically helped me realize what I needed to do with my life and how to get started towards the right path. I’ve started eating healthier, exercising, and changing the way I speak to myself… cut out all the toxicity. - Katie
What made you want to name your EP Identity?
We named this Identity, because it cohesively talks of certain ways our identity can be challenged. How it can be forced to question itself. We question who we are when outside forces affect us. Sell Your Soul is our Identity VS social media. Let Me In is our Identity VS emotionally unavailable people… Enable Me, Identity VS Enablers. Someone You Like is Identity VS being liked. Dead Person Talking is Identity VS depression… Almost True is true Identity VS facades, and distractions is Identity VS well… little life’s distractions. - Carly
What can you tell us about the artwork?
The artwork went through many different things I guess you could say haha. We wanted something edgy that fit the vibe of the music but also something that was a lil different. I had a completely different vision originally for the artwork, but I was honestly messing around with the pictures and accidentally made it red. We loved it; it was the one! It just felt right. Fun fact, it was 120 F in Bombay Beach when that photo was taken.. - Carly
What did you learn about yourselves after finishing this project?
I can accomplish anything if I set my mind to it. I learned how to love my life and myself to the very fullest. I realized how strong and independent I am. I’m learning to erase my fears and grow. I have learned that the only person who can decide who I am, is myself. - Katie
What is your goal for this release?
I hope it brings people some form of comfort and/or empowerment. Most people grow up and continuously struggle to find their place in this large world (especially now with technology). I hope they are reminded in some way that throughout their journeys, while they learn so many lessons, begin to fight their pains, it will always be worth it to push through as hard as possible because that undying amount of joy, love, and happiness we are able to feel is beyond worth any hard/sad times. Rock n roll. - Katie
What major life lesson have you learned this year so far?
Making my happiness a priority! I’ve definitely become a much more mature and connected person than I was before. I’ve learned to trust my intuition. - Katie
What message do you want to give to the world?
Your identity is your own, not anyone else’s. You can control the outside world, just don’t let it affect you. Go check out our debut EP Identity!! - Carly
Love is within, you just have to light the fire yourself. I love y’all!! Thanks for having us thread! - Katie
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