Kathleen Elle
Kathleen Elle has just dropped her new single “Nervous”. It’’s catchy, colorful and it perfectly showcases Elle’s soulful vocals and brilliant songwriting.
"Nervous" portrays the emotions felt when you're attracted to someone, but fearful to put yourself out there without knowing whether they are genuine and worth it,” she says.
Elle is a promising singer, songwriter, producer and artist. I’m glad I got to feature such a cool artist on my blog.
Make sure to stream “Nervous” now available worldwide :)
Photo credit: Zach Morrison
Introduce yourself - what's your story?
I’m Kathleen Elle - a singer-songwriter, producer, and artist in the pop, soul, singer-songwriter genres. I got started writing when I was 14 while taking an after-school music writing course on a whim at my high school. There, I learned about song structure, popular progressions, and how to compose a melody and hook. One of the first songs I wrote was an anti-bullying song “Don’t Let Them In,” that started as a mantra to myself, but ended up becoming an anthem that filled a void I saw in anti-bullying programs by speaking directly to the victim, instead of just to the bully (asking him to stop) or the bystander (asking him to stand up). The message of the song is to stay true to yourself and not change for bullies, find those that accept and like you as you are, and don’t let bullies’ hate into your heart. The song won multiple awards and scholarships from Seventeen Magazine, Abercrombie & Fitch, Campus MovieFest, and Lincoln Center. Most impactful though, was a message I received from a girl in the Philippines that she found it while attempting suicide for the second time due to bullying, and the song saved her life! It was from that moment on that I knew that music was what I was meant to do.
From there, I became a YoungArts member in 2015 in the singer-songwriter category with 3 of the songs off my debut EP “Helium,” and went to Rutgers Mason Gross School of the Arts as a Music Composition and Music Education double major. I used the skills I learned at MGSA to arrange and produce my first album in 2019, “Brainwaves,” at Jankland Studios in Wall, NJ. And I’ve self recorded and produced my last two singles as well. My 2020 single, “Superheroes in Disguise,” is a song I wrote to honor frontline and healthcare workers for their work and sacrifice during this pandemic. The song was featured on CBS 880 Radio!
How would you define Kathleen EIle, the artist?
I would describe myself as an eclectic storyteller. Almost every song of mine takes on it’s own sound/genre because I feel the song's message and feel drives the genre. Music is the best way I know how to express how I feel and share my experience, from both personal and observed experiences. “Nervous” is absolutely a song from personal experience. I am a nervous overthinker for the majority of my day, everyday, especially when it comes to dating and deciding whether to dive into a new relationship. I know that I’m not the only person who has been burned by heartbreak and developed a thicker skin to protect themselves.
I’m also a songwriter who wants to use her experiences to help uplift others. In every trying time I’ve experienced, I search to find the lesson in how it can make me stronger. My song “Helium” was born from a period of rejections I experienced in high school - not making it into my school’s “Idol” talent show two years in a row, not being asked to the prom, and some other minor rejections that seem so major in high school. I became depressed and self doubtful for so long that my mom finally said “Enough wallowing! Write a song and move on.” I wrote “Helium,” with the message to use rejection as fuel, and rise like helium, better for it.
"Nervous" is your new single - what's the inspiration behind this song?
Nervous is basically the feeling I get when deciding whether or not to dive into a new relationship. It’s a battle between competing nervous emotions - hope for potentially finding love verses fear for being hurt by someone disingenuous. I tend to overthink and have a pretty guarded heart due to being burned in the past. At that first spark of a potential relationship, it’s hard to tell whether someone is being genuine, or just using a line. The lyrics are basically my inner dialogue and what I wish I could say to a potential love interest to make sure I’m not going to be used. I guess now though, they’ll know haha!
When did you start working on this song? Who helped you create it?
I started writing this song in August of 2020 and finished it in about 2 days. I’d never really written anything this pop before, so I sent a bunch of voice memos to my friends to see if I was stealing someone else’s song. Just another real life example of my overthinking and anxiety that “Nervous” explains.
I didn’t end up recording the song until about October. I wanted to take the time to really sit with the song and create an arrangement in my head that would bring the catchiness of it to the next level. I finished the majority of the recording by December, but I could feel that it was missing percussive elements like in a Dua Lipa or Jonas Brothers song in the chorus to help make it more impactful with drops. I’m not a percussionist at all, so I reached out to my friend Skyler Fortgang who went to Rutgers Mason Gross for Music with me and asked him to help bring it to the next level. The first mix he sent back to me, I was like “yea, this is it!” We worked on fine tuning the percussive elements back and forth through the first week of January, and he was actually the one who suggested that the final chorus have a beltier entrance. It took me about an hour of belting my face off! He sent the final production percussion edits to me at like 4am with a text that read, “4:39am - a banger is born.”
What did you feel when writing this song?
It really felt like I was in a flow when writing this song. I knew that I was going for a pop-dance feel so the melody should be short and hook driven. The challenge became trying to say everything I wanted in just an 8 bar phrase. It helped that being nervous was a feeling I know so well.
What made you want to release "Nervous" as a single?
I wanted to release “Nervous” as a single because it is unlike anything I’ve done before. It’s my first dive into a pure, percussion based dance-pop. I also think “Nervous” is a song that can stand on its own because it is so relatable. You don’t need more of a story to set up feeling nervous at the beginning of a relationship, you just are - nervous with butterflies and nervous to protect your heart from past breaks happening again.
What can you tell us about the artwork?
Funny enough, the artwork for the album was shot on my iphone portrait mode, in my basement, using a light that I bought from radioshack. Did my own hair and make up, which I am not a pro at, AT ALL. I spent about an hour in my basement trying to get the right face and have about 40 selfies on my phone from it. My friend, professional photographer, Meghan O’Neill, edited it to fix lighting, highlighting, and shadows.
What is your goal for this new song?
My goal with this song is reach a much larger audience than I have in the past. I hope it will become a summer mantra for many, as we are allowed to go out and pursue in person relationships again. It was so fun to make, and it’s so fun to perform live on twitch and the few in person shows I’ve had. I just want people to have as much fun dancing along and sing-screaming it with their friends as I do every time I play it!
What are your thoughts on today's music industry? If you could change one thing, what would it be?
I think it’s a really exciting time for independent artists, in that never before have we been able to reach a global audience without the help of labels. For me, Twitch has opened the door to being able to perform in front of a global audience whenever I want. I now have devoted fans from Brazil, Canada, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Turkey, France and the U.S. and they are there EVERY time I stream! On the down side, I think the music industry today is a little too flooded with songs. It seems like if you’re not releasing something every month, then you’re falling behind. And it can be really frustrating when you're an independent trying to keep up. I really want to believe that quality is still better than quantity.
What does singing make you feel?
Singing makes me feel whole. I feel like I’m the best version of myself when I sing. Even if I’m singing or writing something sad, it feels therapeutic to just let myself become enveloped in a song. Singing also makes me feel closer to those I’m singing for. I’m always able to express myself better in sung lyrics than in conversation. Then people open up to me on their experiences invoked by my song and we get to see little pieces of each other.
As an artist, what do you want to accomplish?
I hope to be an artist people can connect to. I try to put a story or a lesson in each song I write, and there is no better feeling than getting a comment on social media, or having someone come up to me at a show to say how much a song I wrote meant to them. Taylor Swift was my first inspiration and she has done this throughout her career even though she’s changed from acoustic country to pop. Her writing has transcended genres but every song still has a story and meaning. That’s what I aspire to be.
Besides music, what are you passionate about?
Music is kind of my whole life, and has been since I picked up a guitar at age 10. I dabbled for a short time in school sports, but soon changed to choir, musicals, and in college, my spare time hobbies were a capella group and choir. I’m a part-time music teacher for K-8 general music, and I taught in person throughout the pandemic, which was challenging since we couldn’t sing. I ended up fundraising to buy ukuleles for the school so each student could have an instrument, and we could safely learn. Besides teaching K-8, I teach private lessons and stream on Twitch 3 times a week. Whatever time is left over is spent writing, arranging, and producing new songs. So I guess I don’t have much besides music I’m passionate about LOL, but if I had to choose something else, it would be trying to be a positive, uplifting person for others.
What biggest life lessons have you learned so far?
The biggest lesson I’ve learned in life is to stay true to yourself, even if that means others think you’re weird, or don’t fit into an accepted norm. Most people look at you funny when you tell them you’re a “professional singer-songwriter.” Asking my parents to let me major in music wasn’t easy (especially when your brother is an engineer), but thankfully they’re super supportive and recognized I had the talent and the dream. Getting that message from the girl in the Philippines at age 16 that my song “Don’t Let Them In” saved her from suicide made my decision to pursue music as a career final. I’ve learned if you have that power to make a positive difference in someone’s life, then use it. The salary doesn’t matter. The satisfaction does, and you can’t put a price on that.
In your opinion, what would make the world a better place?
I always think of John Lennon’s song, “Imagine” when I’m asked this question. What a brilliant song, with few lyrics that say so much. Imagine if we just eliminated everything that separated us, and just celebrated what united us - like our humanity, all living on the same planet with the same goal of treating it and each other with enough love to sustain us. So my answer is to embrace more of what unites us than divides us.
What message do you want to deliver to the world?
I think the message I want to deliver to the world is that we’re all in this together, and that we should be kind to each other. At age 16, one of the first songs I wrote sent the message that hurtful words can crush you, so just be true to yourself and “Don’t Let Them In.” I realized then the power of words. Social media was in its infancy then, and the ability to speak from behind a keyboard has increased the level of meanness out there. Words matter, whether they are written or in person, and can cause deep hurt, so think before you send, and just be kind. That song also taught me that when words are put to music, their power is amplified. There is something about a song that can impact you so much more than if someone simply said the words to you. So I strongly believe in the power of music to change the world for the better, and I hope everyone uses music to comfort and empower them in their daily lives.
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