Debby Friday

We’re at a divey Mexican restaurant in Austin, Texas andĀ Debby Friday is eating tacos and reliving her SXSW set. ā€œGood vibes all around,ā€ she tells us in between bites. ā€œThere was a group of people there who have known my music since my ā€˜Bitch Punkā€™ days,ā€ she adds, nodding to her 2018 EP which introduced fans to her genre-defiant sound. ā€œI was really shocked because Iā€™ve never even been to Austin, never played here and Iā€™m just putting out my first record. It was so heartwarming, I had no idea what to expect.ā€

Fridayā€™s full-length debut, ā€˜Good Luckā€™ gives listeners insight into her wide-ranging influences as she walks a knife’s edge between industrial rock, house music and pop. Across the album, the Nigerian-born singerā€™s voice is soulful over sinister arrangements and caustic production, like on lead single ā€˜So Hard To Tellā€™, as she wonders aloud about her fears, admitting, ā€œIs this heaven or hell? / When it gets like this Oh, it’s so hard to tellā€. On Ā another album highlight, ā€˜What A Manā€™, she sings against quivering guitars as she calls out her previous, tumultuous connections with “chaotic” men.

Fridayā€™s ability to inhabit multiple sonic worlds at once, layering them with sultry vocal tones and candid lyrics, is what makes the electronic producer stand out. Though itā€™s just the beginning of her career, with a fanbase growing worldwide and eagerness to continuing experimenting with her sound, the uniqueness of her music is already shining through.

NME: How do you feel about sharing ‘Good Luck’ with the world?

ā€œIā€™m very excited. It feels like itā€™s been a long time in the making so Iā€™m just ready and Iā€™m ready to see what happens. When I made the album I had the intention of making something that felt honest and I feel like I accomplished that with ā€˜Good Luckā€™. It feels authentic to me and to so many parts of my artistry. Itā€™s a very personal album.ā€

Was it daunting to produce and write such an authentic record?

ā€œI donā€™t think Iā€™ve had a choice. Even from the beginning as a young person growing up in a very strict household being myself was an act of rebellion. When youā€™re in a really structured environment you have to find ways to express yourself outside of your home. You have to find ways to be honest about who you are. It comes automatically, I donā€™t know what else I would do.ā€

Youā€™ve previously said that if you could describe your music in one word youā€™d choose ā€˜thunderā€™. What word would you use to describe ā€˜Good Luckā€™?

ā€œI would say ā€˜journeyā€™. A lot of the emotion that went into ā€˜Good Luckā€™ was coming from a place of feeling lost and finding myself and becoming myself. A lot of those songs are me in the present time writing to a past self, either sharing words of comfort or reflection. One of the things I wanted to do with this album was connect with people who had similar experiences. If youā€™ve ever felt lost, or like ā€˜what am I doingā€™ or ever wondered, ā€˜is this heaven, is this hell?ā€™ I wanted to translate that question of ā€˜who am I?ā€™ into the album to let people know they arenā€™t alone in that experience. Itā€™s something thatā€™s very common and a lot of people go through that, and a lot of my album speaks to that.ā€

What messages were you hoping to share with those past versions of yourself on ā€˜Good Luckā€™?

ā€œI love you. Donā€™t be scared. Keep going. Especially keep going. I never thought Iā€™d be a musician. I was very creative as a child but the idea of being a musician never entered my mind. My parents are immigrants and I had no understanding of the music industry. Even now, putting out this album I still feel so in awe of everything. I have a lot of gratitude and Iā€™m still wide-eyed. Iā€™m still like ā€˜what life am I living right now?ā€™ So I would tell my younger self, ā€˜keep goingā€™. Everything Iā€™ve been through all of the pain all of the suffering, all of the fucked up moments, my path hasnā€™t been linear but I can say now on the other side that itā€™s worth it.ā€

Debby Friday
Debby Friday CREDIT: Press

Youā€™ve described yourself as the ā€œzillennial anti-heroineā€. What is it about that title suits you?

ā€œI feel in between generations. Iā€™m a very young millennial and I grew up on the internet which I think is the dividing factor. I call myself an anti-heroine because I think if you look at the beginning of my story, you wouldn’t think Iā€™d eventually figure things out. I was very lost and rebellious when I was younger. Now, I feel like an unexpected underdog in a certain sense.ā€

You recently released ā€˜Hot Loveā€™ and said itā€™s about ā€œintoxicating and combustibleā€ relationships. What drew you to write a song about it?

ā€œI write songs in this vein because Iā€™ve been through a lot of these explosive relationships. Now, I feel like Iā€™m writing from the perspective of someone who is able to break that cycle. Iā€™m not in those types of relationships anymore, but I can see why I was. It happens to a lot of people. We arenā€™t really taught how to love each other properly and we arenā€™t taught to love ourselves properly. So when we get into relationships, what do we expect is going to happen? Iā€™ve come to terms with it because Iā€™ve learned from it. Any experience I can have, I can handle if Iā€™m able to derive meaning from it.ā€

How did you approach the production on ā€˜Good Luckā€™ compare to your previous EPs?

ā€œI wanted to hear my progression as a producer. Iā€™ve self-produced everything that Iā€™ve made which is really important to me because itā€™s my voice, my sonic voice. For me, itā€™s important because if youā€™re going to hear something from me, I want you to hear it the way I intended. Even if itā€™s not polished and Iā€™m not the best producer in the worldā€¦ yet. I want people to feel me in the sounds and in the songs and I feel like I accomplished that with ā€˜Good Luckā€™. Itā€™s me, like it or not.ā€

The post Debby Friday: Toronto visionary putting a surreal spin on pop appeared first on NME.

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