LEXXE
I’ve always loved this idea of creating upbeat records based on sadness. Sad songs don’t always have to be ballads. Although LEXXE’s new single comes from a place of pain and deep emotion, the production makes the song empowering and comforting. It’s brilliant and it’s probably the best song I’ve heard this year so far.
“X” is now available everywhere.
Photo credit: Sam San Román
Introduce yourself - what's your story?
Hey! My name is LEXXE (pronounced like Lex) and I’m a pop artist originally from Long Island, New York. I currently live in the Bushwick area of Brooklyn and perform weekly in an underground off broadway cabaret. I originally planned on being a professional ballerina but life had other plans, so now I make music that I can dance to.
When did you start writing songs? What made you want to write in the first place?
I played french horn for many years growing up, my dad was a pianist and my mom is a writer. I was always encouraged to write my feelings, and being put into dance classes at such a young age let me feel them physically too. I was always singing to myself and writing little melodies, but it wasn’t until I met music producers while studying dance at SUNY Purchase that I found myself really writing full songs. Realizing I could dance to something I wrote was a game changer. Seeing people like Lady Gaga and Beyoncé and Shakira be the full package is super inspiring.
When did you know you had to be an artist and release your original music?
I have always had this feeling in my gut that I belonged on stage telling stories. I couldn’t tell for a while if I should be singing or just dancing, but music always guided my decisions. I chose dance solos based on music not necessarily moves, and slowly but surely I gained the confidence to sing in front of people too. I had kept my writing private for a very long time, but it always came natural to me. When I realized I could make entire worlds out of my human experience and art that goes with it, I knew that I belonged in the musician/artist space.
Who was the first person to ever believe in your music?
There's two! Matt Bracco is a good friend who started writing with me shortly after we met at Purchase and his confidence in me was a huge deal, especially considering I had never even been in a studio setting. The other person is Austin McCormick, the creative director & creator of Company XIV where I currently perform. He heard me sing when I was just starting out and heard a lot of my early music. Although I was certainly unseasoned and very green, he gave me the opportunity to grow on a stage that accepted me and eventually gave me a platform to include original music in his amazing shows.
"X" is your new single - what's the inspiration/story behind this song?
“X” is about my late father who passed away when I was 10. To me he’s always been a mysterious, Moonlight Sonata playing, cigar smoke smelling renaissance man in my dreams and memories. I finally had it in me to go there with my lyrics and make this really emotional dance track that I’ve always been meaning to create. It’s about searching for someone in everything you do, being constantly reminded or even haunted by their presence. Sometimes we want that haunting. Somebody let me watch/read Wuthering Heights when I was a little too young and this line has always completely destroyed me: “You said I killed you-haunt me, then! [...] Be with me always-take any form-drive me mad! Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you.” “X” is definitely my version of that line.
Could you describe the songwriting/production process for this single? Who helped you create it?
A few years back I swear I saw a ghost on stage. I could've sworn I saw my dad in the front row of a production of Cinderella at Theatre XIV and it scared me so badly that I messed up on stage. After that I wrote the lyric “thought I saw you front row at my show” and have been holding onto it for a while. I had been itching to really go there with my new music and dig from personal experience. I walked into a session with my producer Dom (Dominic Florio) and he had been working on this brooding synth track for me before I got there. The song really wrote itself, it was one of those sessions where the melodies and lyrics really flew out of me. I wrote that topline probably faster than any other I’ve written. It’s been really nice to work with people who understand me. I play instruments but my favorite instrument is my brain. I love toplining. It’s like dancing but with notes.
What did you feel when recording this song?
I felt accomplished! I have not let the world into my trauma and my past so clearly yet. I like to keep things shrouded in metaphor and although this song may seem fantastical, it is 100% based on real feelings and experiences. I definitely got choked up singing some of the lyrics, and also discovered a new part of my voice that my listeners haven't heard yet. We call it “baby” LEXXE, but what it really is is the way the color of my voice changes when I sing things in the range of this chorus and I have been using it a bunch lately.
What's your favorite lyric on "X"?
“Thought I saw you front row at my show, vintage ghost in a cloud of smoke”.
(My job uses heavy fog and incense to create a vampire den like ambiance, so imagine getting a jumpscare seeing someone you haven't seen in 15+ years in that environment).
What can you tell us about the artwork?
I am obsessed with this artwork! Sam San Román has been my trusted collaborator for years and we are quite close (we even live together !). She understands me on a molecular level and also understands all of my references. I have a deep love for pulp art and pulp horror covers, as well as 1980’s ads, and wanted this cover to look like all of the art I choose to hang in my own house as well as relating to the song. I’m wearing a lot of my dad’s jewelry on my hand in the artwork. Even seeing the watch on my wrist with a glass of scotch was enough to give me such a visceral feeling. I was emulating the energy that I remember him having and simultaneously making this amazing artwork. This is one of the first times Sam has not only set-designed and shot the art, but also did a fair amount of digital illustration on her end. It was a huge win and a step in a new direction for both of us!
What message do you want to deliver through this song?
We never really die. If you feel a feeling and you know it's reminding you of someone you miss, you are valid in that feeling. Do not brush it off. Also, there's nothing wrong with dancing away the pain. That outro is made to be blasted in your room, your shower or in the club, and for you to really lose yourself. It's the best we can do sometimes. Missing someone is sad, but it doesn't have to be stagnant.
Do you remember a specific moment in your life where music made a huge impact?
When I was on the bus in elementary school I heard “Landslide” for the first time and it's my first memory of music making me feel something special. I remember hearing the lyrics and thinking about my older self listening to it and it ended up being the first song I taught myself on guitar.
What are your thoughts on today's music industry? If you could change one thing, what would it be?
I have so many thoughts on the music industry that I’m sure I share with many other musicians but I actually have made it a mission in my life to get choreographers and dancers accurately paid and credited. A videographer gets $20,000 on a big budget production, but I can bet you that 9 out of 10 times the dancers don’t even get enough to cover rent, yet there would be no video without them.
Besides music, what are you passionate about?
I love horror movies and books but mostly I love fashion! I love clothes, and I recently started a little side project called dark humor. It’s my passion project brand, and I use mostly repurposed thrifted pieces and deck them out in different cool ways like painting on them, etc. I am also passionate about rice and beans, (laughs). I cook a lot!
What biggest life lessons have you learned so far?
You will get a million nos! Don’t let them stop you. Some people in power won't like your music and will try to change you to fit a formula that they believe works, but they aren't the artist — YOU ARE!
In your opinion, what would make the world a better place?
If every single ego died and people led with kindness.
What are your goals for 2023?
More music, more art, and more dancing.
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