March 3, 2025 • 34 mins
Tessa Violet & Em Beihold – The Power of Pop & Authentic Storytelling
In this special episode of Pop Palace Podcast, host Jack Blaylock sits down with two of the most captivating voices in modern pop music—Tessa Violet and Em Beihold. Known for their deeply personal lyrics, viral hits, and unmistakable sounds, these two artists discuss their journeys in the music industry, the creative process behind their chart-topping songs, and what it means to connect with audiences in today’s digital age.
From the breakout success of “Crush” and “Numb Little Bug” to navigating fame in the TikTok era, Tessa and Em open up about songwriting, mental health, and the power of authenticity in pop music. Whether you're an indie pop fan, a musician looking for inspiration, or just love hearing behind-the-scenes stories from your favorite artists, this episode is packed with insight and inspiration.
Tune in for an exclusive look into the artistry of Tessa Violet and Em Beihold, only on Pop Palace Podcast!
🎧 Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all streaming platforms!
🔗 Follow @PopPalacePodcast for more exclusive artist interviews!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Yeah, okay.
(00:01):
Awesome.
Well, sorry about all that mix up.
Um, honestly, love the vibe now anyway.
So this is perfect.
Welcome to pop palace.
We celebrate iconic women andqueer people in pop music.
So y'all two are like My twohighlights of this season, I've been
so excited to meet both of y'all.
(00:22):
So the fact that it's happeningat once is super exciting.
So at Pop Palace, we love to haveour guests introduce themselves.
So if y'all could each introduceyourself and kind of tell me the
Earliest memory you have of music.
Oh my god.
Em, you go first.
(00:42):
I was thinking it could befun if I introduced Tessa.
Oh yeah, wait.
Okay.
Yes, that'd be so fun.
Okay.
Tessa Violet is a legend icon that Igrew up watching on YouTube, that I am
such a huge fan of, and I screenshottedwhen she followed me on Instagram,
because I like, couldn't believe it.
(01:02):
And she's like, pivoted from aYouTube career to such an incredible,
illustrious, uh, music career.
And I love her songs so very much.
And how many, how manyalbums have you released now?
Okay.
So technically I released three, butlike, we don't refer to the first one,
but like we do like within my fans,I'm like, we all know it's three,
but like within the music industry,I'm working on my junior album.
(01:29):
Yes, understood.
Um, Slay!
Slayed it!
Em, thank you for thatbeautiful recommendation.
Okay, here's my experience of Em.
Em has a song go viral.
I'm like, oh my god, this song is so cool.
I want to hang out with this person.
They seem so neat.
And, um, then, I can't remember.
Somehow our managers like getus in touch and do they're
like, do you want to get coffee?
And I'm like, yes, I want to get coffee.
(01:51):
This is going to be so much fun.
And we sat down together andimmediately I knew I'm like this
person watched me as a kitty.
Definitely.
I can sense it.
I love it.
It's fun.
I feel like Emma and I have likea lot of like, I don't know.
I just feel like we're like, althoughwe do not know each other that well,
we've only hung out a few times.
(02:11):
I feel like we are kind of like kindred.
People.
And I always think very fondly of em.
And honestly, I'd love to see you more.
So this is a fun, also, I feellike I need to tell the podcast.
What happened is that there was amisscheduling both M and I thought we
were about to have a solo interview.
We get in and then we'rein this room together.
I'm like, Oh, do we just do this together?
(02:33):
Right.
Hey.
This is my dream house.
This is awesome.
Um, I'm just going to sayhow I know both of y'all.
So I remember watching Tessa on YouTube.
Iconics.
The bird song was like the first one.
Oh my god.
Yes.
I was actually going to ask ifyou still remember how to play it.
Um.
Someone just asked me toplay it on the stream.
Usually I can, but like mostrecently when someone asked, I
(02:55):
could not pull it out of my ass.
And then Em, I remember scrollingon my feed and seeing your
tour announcement with like thebright colors and everything.
And I was hooked.
And then I heard your music and it'sjust like, both of y'all are such a
good combination for Pop Palace for thequeer people and for women and music.
(03:17):
So I'm so thankful that y'all are here.
Dude, I'm honored to be here.
Thank you for having us.
Of course.
So I've noticed that both of y'all have.
Lyrics that explore emotionand deep personal experiences.
Is there a balance between pouringout your emotion and also kind
of reserving some for yourself?
(03:40):
You go first, Em.
Okay.
Um, for me, no.
Uh, I tend to just put it all out on thetable and like my friends will kind of
always explain me as an open book, butlike a little bit too much so sometimes.
Um, but I feel like because musichas always been my form of therapy,
(04:02):
there's nothing I can really hold back.
So I feel like honestly sometimes Imake sense of what I'm feeling through
writing in ways that like my subconsciousknows, but maybe I don't know.
Yeah.
Yeah, I feel like when it comes tohow I am feeling, it's an open book.
Here it all is laying it out there wherethere are things that I will like change
(04:25):
details of because like I've, you know,they, you know, when you're a songwriter,
you're often writing songs about thepeople you are romantically dating.
And um, I am not always dating,like, other people who, like, like
to be the center of attention.
And, like, even after breakups, for, forme, I'm not saying, I'm not saying that
it's right or wrong or best or worst.
(04:47):
I'm just saying for me, I change littledetails about, like, um, Anything
that might make it sound like it isspecifically one person, because I also
like, even after a breakup, I don't want,like, our names in the same sentence.
So I'm like, I don'teven want anyone to know.
I'm like, it's not who itis, is no one's business.
(05:08):
I'm talking about my feelings right now.
Exactly.
I love that.
How do you practice self care afterpouring out all your emotions into a
public space where anyone can listen?
Do you have any practices that,like, kind of help you keep
grounded and refuel your creativity?
Or is it just, like, part of your lifeand it's what you're used to doing?
(05:33):
Meow.
Um, I don't know if he's feeling this.
I feel like Em's been on this.
I feel like I'm, like, And maybe Ihave this wrong, and if you don't want
to talk about this, edit this out.
But like, I feel like Em's been on aself care journey, like, this past year.
Is that true?
It's very true.
Yeah, um, I think, to be honest, for awhile, the attention with Numb Little Bug
(05:55):
was so much that all of a sudden I gotmy internal value from being an artist.
And like how people saw me,which has never been me.
Like I've never really cared about that.
Um, so, you know, during the kindof eventual, like fallout of a
viral song, I was really struggling.
Cause I was like, okay,if I'm not this, who am I?
(06:16):
Um, and so I just took a step backfrom music for like kind of a year.
Cause I was trying to write, I was doingsession hell where I was just meeting with
every songwriter, every producer, and justlike really struggling to find my voice.
And like, Why?
Like music became not fun for a while.
And, um, I think during that year off,I kind of reconnected with all the
(06:37):
different parts of me that aren't justa musician, but like, I'm a friend,
I'm a daughter, I'm a girlfriend,like I'm a cat mom, you know?
Um, and I think finding ways tolike separate all those sides.
So like at this point nowI'm coming back to music.
With very clear boundaries as tolike, when I put my phone down.
And, after a session, like, makingsure I hang out with my friends
(06:59):
and we don't talk about music.
That's very clear withmy friends sometimes.
Like, I will leave the room ifwe talk about music for too long.
Um, so, yeah, that's what What, what timedo you put your phone down every night?
Um, I'd say around like six ish.
Nice, that's really good.
Yeah.
I've gotten better at it.
I'm like, for me, I'm, I'm onthe opposite schedule right now.
(07:21):
I, do you know what the, um,have you guys heard of The Brick?
Maybe you've gotten adsfor it on Instagram?
Okay.
No.
Am I allowed to talk about aproduct on your podcast, Jack?
Oh yeah, totally.
Talk about whatever you want.
Okay.
So there's this product, it's called TheBrick, and it's like an actual device,
it's also a magnet, so I keep mine onmy fridge, where you tap your phone to
it, and then it locks you out of everyapp that you want to be locked out of.
(07:45):
Um.
Yeah, so like for me, well, I mean, ifI was like promoting a song on TikTok
right now, I'd do the opposite schedule,but because like I am in like the
writing process, there's just no reasonat all for me to be on social media.
It's not beneficial to my workflow,to my mental health, to anything.
But it is nice to do likea little scroll before bed.
(08:05):
So, um, I will brickmy phone all day long.
And then like at 6 PM, I like halfbetween like six and nine, if I want to
like play my iPhone games or like lookat memes, um, I literally, I cannot
change it, recommend the brick enough.
It's life changing becauseyou can still use your phone.
Um, And it's interesting, I'lllike, find myself, ugh, this is
(08:28):
embarrassing, but actually I'm surethis is a really human experience.
I will find myself feeling a momentof discomfort, like, this is a little
discomfort, this is a silly one, buta new mix has been sent to me and I'm
thinking, I need to open this mix andI'm going to need to make decisions.
And like, that is a veryoverwhelming feeling.
And without thinking about it, I openInstagram and When my phone is bricked,
(08:49):
I press Instagram, and then the app popsup, and it says, this is a distraction.
And I think, oh, wow.
I didn't even mean to open Instagram.
That wasn't a choice I was making.
It's like this, like, impulse that youdo it before you can think about it.
And if Instagram had been on myphone, I would have been scrolling
before I'd been thinking about it.
But now because it's bricked, I seethat and I think, Oh, do I actually
(09:10):
want to be on Instagram right now?
Or do I want to, you know, beokay with being uncomfortable?
Like that's where growth is.
So what I like about the brick isthat it's not just a thing that you
can immediately say, dismiss, let mego to Instagram anyway, I would have
to get up and walk to my kitchen and.
Ask yourself, is it worth it?
Anyway, sorry if that was like such.
Every time I hear myself backin an interview, I'm like,
(09:30):
why am I talking about this?
This has nothing to dowith what the question was.
I love it.
But like, I'm gonna buy one.
Like, yeah, I got to get oneof those codes so I can like
make a resource out of it.
Right.
I literally am recommendingit to everybody.
That sounds wonderful, especially likeI find myself opening my phone as soon
(09:51):
as I wake up and I'm bombarded withlike messages, anything new that's
happened and like having that wouldbe such a Great way to wake up and
just like yes only having what I need.
I really recommend it before bed, too Ibreak my phone before bed, too Because
then I'm not like like I'll stay upway later if I have my phone to scroll
on and I'll stay in bed longer When Iwake up in the morning, but when you're
(10:12):
bricked you're like now I'm readingI'm learning Spanish right now so I
have Sailor Moon in Spanish becauseit's like a Yeah, that's so cool.
Thank you.
It's a story that I'm familiar withso I can like kind of know like
the idea of what's going on andthere's pictures so it's helpful.
So I just read a little of that beforebed if I'll sleep in the morning.
I'm like, okay, it's time to get upbecause there's nothing to scroll.
(10:35):
So
would you ever create a song in Spanish?
Have I?
Maybe.
Uh.
You sang me, oh no, you sang me a song.
Yes, okay, I have written somesongs in Spanish, but they're
like not for public consumption.
Yeah.
(10:55):
No, it's okay.
Okay, I just like totally told the secret.
It's not the end.
You know, you're in the innercircle, Em, so you know.
Um, but, uh, you know, I'd be embarrassedto sing one of my Spanish songs because
they, um, You can really hear how,well, I mean, I don't know, whatever.
I'm a beginner.
Estoy un principiante.
Um, but you can hear how much I'mobviously not a native speaker in Espanol.
(11:19):
Do you speak any other English?
I'm still in my like Biblioteca stage.
Do you speak any other languages, Em?
I'm trying to learn Farsi causehalf my family's Persian and I
don't know what they're saying.
So.
That's, that's my quest right now,but I'm, I'm, it's not going well.
It's, because it's also, itgoes, uh, the opposite way.
(11:42):
Oh, you, like, right to left?
You read it right to left.
Oh.
Yeah.
How are you learning it?
That would throw me for a loop.
It's, uh, it's this thing calledMango, which I got access to in
college and they forgot to take me off.
So that's how I'm using it.
Are you learning a language, Jack?
I am not currently learning a language,but I was learning, um, Muskogee
(12:04):
Creek, the indigenous language.
Um, and it was really cool.
So it's, um, I'm in Oklahoma, so there's alot of indigenous communities around here.
And so, um, my Creek teacher isjust like her and four other people.
And it's not a. Spoken languageanymore, but I'm so sorry.
It was really cool because everythingis so like culturally connected Yes, and
(12:25):
so like the meanings were like beyondjust like what we have in English.
We're like this means this exact thingYeah, and so learning like the history
and everything behind it was like suchan amazing experience, especially being
in Oklahoma and like Learning aboutlike indigenous people my whole life,
but now actually like getting to speaka little bit of it Yeah, what made you
decide that you wanted to learn it?
(12:46):
Are you connected or do you have?
So an English are youan indigenous person?
I'm not an indigenous person,but I just felt like there was so
much there to, for me to learn.
And in Oklahoma, there's been a lotleft out when they teach us, like we
have to take Oklahoma history, but it'sin Oklahoma's version of our history.
(13:09):
And so by taking Creek,I kind of got to learn.
What actually is going on in like,being in that world a little bit closer.
That is literally so cool.
You are inspiring me.
Right now, on top of Spanish, I'm alsolearning Quechua, which is one of the
indigenous languages of South America.
Yeah.
And what you say about the connectionof words, how like in English,
(13:31):
English is not a very poetic language.
It's not a very spiritual language,but it is a very practical language.
I know.
It's a great language to just getinformation across, um, and like, I
love learning how, like, the cultureis embedded in the language in Quechua.
Like, the first thing in my firstlesson, my teacher was like, Okay,
the first thing you need to knowis that in Western languages, there
(13:54):
is, um, A concept of good and bad.
Things are good.
Things are bad.
In the casual language,this concept does not exist.
Things are either in balanceor they're out of balance.
So when you meet someone, you don'tsay like, you ask them how they are,
but they don't say I'm good or bad.
They say I'm in balanceor I'm out of balance.
And he's like, because what you need toknow is that like something that is like
(14:17):
good for you might not be good for me.
So, it's not that it, the thing isinherently good or bad, it's, it's
in balance, and I'm like, my brain'sexploding, I'm like, this is so awesome,
this is the coolest thing I've everlearned, and it was making me think,
like, I would love to learn more about,like, um, the indigenous cultures.
and the peoples in theplace that I live, you know?
(14:39):
Um, but I, I like, don't evenknow where to begin there, but you
know, I guess I can just, Googleexists so I could Google it.
If y'all are ever in Oklahoma, come talkto me and we can go do all the things.
Yeah, that'd be awesome.
Hell yeah.
So speaking of things outside of music.
Do you do, uh, have any otherlike hobbies or passions that
(15:01):
you do when you're not working?
I want to hear from Emma,I just talked for too long.
For me?
No, no, um, For me, I wouldsay, I have a book club.
So I love to read, and I loveto gather my little friends
and talk about little books.
Um, and, I'm also into fencing,I've been fencing since I was 8.
(15:25):
Shut up, that's so cool.
How did you get into fencing?
My dad's been doing it forever, and so hestarted teaching me in our driveway, and
then I just kind of like, fell in lovewith the concept of, like, that's insane.
That sounds bad.
That's so cool, though.
(15:47):
Safely stabbing your friends.
I've never met anyone that does fencing.
I've only seen it at, like, on Olympicsand things, so that's really cool.
Yeah, it is cool.
What's been your, like, favoritebook that you've been reading?
Um, we read Agatha Christie'sAnd Then There Were None.
Which I loved, which is a classic.
It's like a murder mystery and basically,it's kind of like, um, glass onion.
(16:12):
Like people slowly startdying and you're like, why?
Yeah, how?
Is it also a play?
Yeah, or maybe I'm mixingup with something else.
I don't know.
How big is your Yeah, rightnow we're No, go ahead.
I was just gonna ask how manypeople are in your book club.
(16:32):
Oh, it's about Like 14.
Oh, that's a good, that's likea perfect size, I feel like.
Yeah.
Tessa, you're welcometo my book club anytime.
It's the Girls in the Gate.
Okay, literally, thankyou, but um, could never.
I hate reading.
I am not cultured in that way.
I wish, I wish, like I know howmuch joy people get from it.
(16:53):
I, I know audiobooks are reading, butlike, even, yeah, I don't know, it's just,
Not my preferred way to learn, but pleasedon't judge me or everyone whatever judge
me or maybe I'll get into it later It'sjust you know what I'm accepting myself
for who I am right now And I have a lot onmy plate, and I don't want to add reading
to it, but I would like to hang out
(17:15):
Yes So how's your experiencein the industry been affected
by your personal identities?
Or is that something that's not reallyin consideration when in the industry?
You know
(17:37):
I am a woman But I amalso a cis white person.
So, like, do I experience
I'm thinking about it.
This long pause is me thinking about it.
Okay, this is gonna be a weird thing tosay, but I feel like I Like I'm a very
(18:02):
tall person if you've never met me andI feel like honestly, I would experience
more of the being dismissed as a womanif I were shorter and like maybe that's
like a weird thing to say, but I just feellike me personally, this is just my story.
I'm not speaking for all like womenin the industry, but I have not found
(18:22):
like You know, being a woman to be areason that I felt, like, in general,
uh, dismissed or not taken seriously.
I've always felt, andmaybe I'm just very lucky.
But I also, I do think that being tallis part of it, and the other thing that
I think maybe is part of it is that I amnot very, like, femme in my presentation.
(18:44):
Um,
and that is my theory on why.
I have not I I have in generalexperienced people taking me seriously
Honestly, the only time I experiencepeople like not taking me seriously
is people like Not like boomers whoare not in the music industry being
like they're like, what do you do?
(19:04):
I'm, like i'm a singer songwriter andthey're like Oh, do you write your songs?
And I'm like, yes.
Why did, why do you thinkI said songwriter in the
first part of the sentence?
You know, like, but whatever they're,they're all doing their best.
So I don't know.
Does that sound like, what doyou think about that answer?
Jack?
I love it.
Okay.
Great.
That is a perfect answer.
Yeah.
Like there are no ruleshere at Pop Palace.
(19:27):
We just like to hear what everyone hasto say just about the girls and the gays.
So your answer, as long asit's honest, we love it.
Okay.
Iconic Slaya.
Thank you.
How about you Em?
I would say I've definitely been insome sessions with male producers and
writers who have kind of written the songaround me, assuming that I can't write.
(19:50):
Um, I don't, it doesn't happen veryoften, but there's sometimes I'll
just get steamrolled or I'll havean idea and they'll be like, cute.
And then like move on to the male writerand be like, what do you think of this?
Um, and they're not going to get, youknow, a cut with me if they do that.
Um, So I kind of just like, when I saySession Hell, it was, you know, meeting
(20:11):
a lot of people and like, kind of seeingwho doesn't, I don't know, there's lots
of lovely people who just like aren'tthe right creative fit, but also some
people who like maybe aren't the most.
Respectful and I don't know if it's beinga woman or like I'm kind of if you meet
me I feel like I'm a bit of a littlemouse and maybe you think I'm quiet But
that's also like my artist project is likethe little mouse speaks, you know um, so
(20:35):
Yeah, I would I would say We've had, we'vehad some moments like those, but we just
kind of move on and don't think about it.
Yeah, definitely.
Honestly, when I hear you saythat, I'm like, maybe I've
just been profoundly lucky.
Maybe I just, like, happened to, like, my,like, star collides with other stars that,
um, don't have a chip on their shoulderabout, you know, women also being people.
That could also just be the case,that I just met good people.
(20:57):
I mean, I did.
I know, literally everyone I workwith is good people, so, and, um,
I've also been pretty lucky that,like, a lot of the first people I
worked with have just been people I'vecontinued to work with forever, um.
That's awesome.
Nice.
You know, Estabian.
For me it was like finding,finding those people for two years.
That's so hard.
I'm like, honestly, I'm so sorry.
(21:18):
Like that's a hard process.
It makes you second guess yourselfand feel like, am I a real artist?
I did a little bit of that whenI first came to LA, trying to
find a few new collaborators andyou're like, maybe I'm bad at this.
Maybe I only thought I was good atthis because I was doing it on my own.
But now that I'm with all theseprofessionals, maybe I'm nobody.
That was my experience with it, whatI did a little bit, and, and nothing
(21:39):
to do with the people I wrote with.
They were great, but I, you know,that's the own internal monologue.
Anyway, cool.
Yeah, the process is tough.
Okay, so I have two more questions.
I don't want to take up too muchof your time, but I have an hour on
my books for this, so I'm not busy.
Oh, okay, perfect.
(21:59):
Yeah.
So, y'all's fans, youhave a lot of queer fans.
Does that something that Resonatesin your music or is it just like
happened just happened queer peoplelove you And this is that a vibe?
Yeah, okay Can I just say like I feellike so profoundly like honored that
(22:21):
like my fan base is so gay I'm, likehow what because I don't feel that
i'm like What do I feel like cool?
I guess in my worst moments, I don'tfeel like I'm cool and like all
My gay friends have the best taste
You're literally so cool.
Oh stop stop.
(22:41):
Oh my god, and I was I was talking tomy friend Athena about this they do
all the my costume design they're aqueer non binary person and I'm like
Athena, I'm like, I know you can'tspeak for the entire like, you know,
queer population, but um, why do youthink queer people like me so much?
(23:05):
Like I'm like sometimes I feel likeBad that maybe like I wish I could
Um, and I feel like it should bemore to them, you know, I get asked
to, I've been asked a bunch oftimes to pay at like pride events.
And I always say no, becauseI'm like, I feel like it should
be a queer artist up there.
I just, you know, like, this is anopportunity to celebrate queerness.
(23:25):
And I feel very celebratedby my queer crowd.
But I don't, I think it's betterto have someone not me up there.
And or people just think that I ama bi woman often, they're shocked
to find out that I'm straight.
I'm like, why do you think,why do people like me, Athena?
And Athena's like, this is mybest guess as only one person.
(23:48):
Um, you are profoundly yourself.
And you're, you, okay, I'm sorry.
I hope it's okay that I big upmyself for a second with a sentence.
Um, uh, But they're like, you reallyjust put yourself out there as who
you are and part of the, oh my god,I feel so stupid being, uh, talking
about the queer experience right now.
Whatever, everyone will forgiveme, I'm doing my best, I'm
(24:09):
just figuring things out.
What Athena told me is that, um, They'relike, you know, to be like a queer person,
you have to be so brave to be yourself.
Oftentimes, you know, in this country.
And there's a real, like, it is areal self discovery, a real work, and
a real, like, yes, this is who I am.
(24:33):
Um, Athena's like, even thoughyou are not queer, you do that.
And I'm like, okay, that'sreally nice and thank you.
Yeah.
And I don't know, doesthat all sound good?
Oh, that makes so much sense.
Like, as a queer person growing upin Oklahoma, like, seeing you gives
me the Even though you're not queer,I see people living their true
(24:53):
authentic selves, and it gives melike, the courage that I can do it too.
Yes!
I'm punching the air!
Can I tell you a belief I have?
Yeah, definitely.
Uh huh.
100%. Okay, this is my belief, like,My friend, uh, Chloe Lilac told me
this, um, who is another artist.
Um, I was I love her.
I love Chloe.
Oh my god, I love her.
(25:14):
I was having a really, like,insecure show day, there was like, an
industry person coming and I alwaysfeel I play my worst when I feel
I'm being judged by the industry.
And Chloe said to me, Tessa,this is what you need to know.
Your job as an artist is tofind the person you were.
Before the world made you feel beembarrassed for who you are and to be
(25:35):
that person as bright like shine asbright as you can as that person because
when you let yourself be who you are,you give everyone else to be permission,
give them, sorry, you give everyoneelse permission to be who they are too.
And I'm like, I've just like,I've carried that wisdom with
me since Chloe said it to me.
And, um, and I believe that as anartist, but my truth is also that
(25:58):
I believe that as a person and my.
like desire for humanity isto be like, yes, shine bright.
I really do.
I really do believe that every personis special and beautiful and the,
you make the world more special.
Sorry.
You make the world more special andbeautiful when you let that light shine.
(26:20):
That's my belief.
And so there, Tessa, I'm saying tothe judge in me that's saying that
was stupid you talked for too long.
No, that was not stupid at all.
And that's like so meaningful for,especially queer people that don't see
other people being them true selves, likeOklahoma, I keep bringing up Oklahoma,
(26:42):
but it's very much like live one way,you act one way, and then you see other
people aren't, and you can be thatother person, and it's okay, and you
can feel your real happiness that way.
Yes.
Yeah, I love that.
Yes.
Authentic.
Authenticity.
How about you, Em?
How do you feel aboutqueerness and queer fans?
(27:04):
I love my queer fans.
I, I opened for King Princess, um,one of the first tours I did, and I
remember, like, Like, I don't know ifmy songs necessarily cater specifically
to queer people, but like the amountof fans that stayed from those shows
and came to my headline shows waslike, kind of similarly to Tess.
(27:26):
I was like, wait, am I, I'm coolin the, in the queer community.
That's awesome.
But like there was one, uh, at my firstshow in San Francisco on my headline,
there was a trans woman who came up to meduring VIP and she was like, When we met
at the, at the King and Princess show,like you said, my name was beautiful
(27:48):
and that's just never left me and nowI'm like a fan of yours for life and
I'll be at all your shows and I wasjust like, there are little things that
we do sometimes that we don't realizeare, are meaningful to other people.
Um, and it was just sospecial to see her there.
And I think about her often.
That's beautiful.
That is so beautiful.
I love that.
I love that so much.
(28:08):
Um, to me, like, Women in music, andlike pop, pop women specifically,
were like my superheroes.
Like, I didn't look up to,like, these superheroes.
I looked up to, like, women in pop.
And to me, it was even cooler,because they're real life.
Like, I could go seethis person in real life.
And so, y'all are doing that same thingfor queer people now, and I'm, I'm really
(28:30):
grateful that y'all are here and doing it.
And it's really nice.
Me too.
Wow.
I'm, I'm so gratefulto be on this podcast.
Thank you so much.
Of course.
So I have one last question.
At Paw Palace, we like to ask allour guests to create their own royal
court going off the palace theme.
So we pick one personwho's like your ultimate.
(28:50):
I idol would be in your throneand then you can have like two
or three people in your court
Like someone I want to serve likesomeone I want to serve Like it could
be someone you want to serve someonethat's just like your icon your favorite
So like for me my on my throne, I wouldhave like madonna next to me grace
(29:13):
jones and like Probably Dochi and Lana.
Yeah, oh my god.
Like, okay, at this moment, I reallywant to say Megan Lee Stallion.
Is like my, like, right hand man.
You know, I'm like, oh mygod, I love you so much.
Um, like, I think if you'd asked methis even like two years ago, I probably
(29:33):
would have had Doja Cat up there too.
Um, but like, now I'm like, uh,
I don't know.
It's just to be honest.
I'm a little bit out of my pop era.
Like right now I'm like, Oh, like I wantto listen to acoustic songs about healing.
That's, that's the shot right now.
Um, and I, I do feel like, you know,to be honest, Megan Lee Stallion
(29:56):
is healing me with her songs.
Um, but I feel like I'mlike, am I being healed?
I don't know.
Maybe music is healing.
Um, I feel like on my left, I like wantto put, uh, Olivia Barton which um,
her last record This is a good sign.
That is literally all Ilistened to last year.
I listened to it on repeatUm, and it is it it's not pop.
(30:19):
It's all like acoustic.
Um songs about What it is to be aperson that is healing and figuring
things out and what I like aboutolivia's music too Is that like the?
There's often like a twist ofhope even in the sad things.
Um, but then I'm like, ohmy god, who's my court?
As soon as this podcast ends, I'mgoing to think of a million more
(30:40):
people I wish I would have said.
Um, so, uh, it's hard notto pick Kendrick Lamar too.
Like, that's not pop either.
Okay, you can have two.
Okay, that's all I'll say for now.
That's all I'll say for now.
What about you, Em?
Okay, perfect.
I'd say my whole career, ReginaSpektor my god, Em, I was going to
(31:01):
tell you that your new sound songis giving Regina Spektor so big.
I'm like, oh, I'm living for it.
I'm obsessed with her forever, forever.
Um, I'd say Fiona Apple is up there.
Um,
(31:24):
Sarah Bareilles is up there.
And then, from the more,like, modern releasing a lot
now, I'd say Lizzie McAlpine.
I'm a huge fan of hers and her show isone of the best things I've ever been to.
I love Lizzie.
So good.
Um, she hurts me in the best way.
Me too.
Awesome.
Am I, are those all my slots?
(31:45):
Yeah, that was perfect.
Okay.
Well, it was so lovelyto meet both of y'all.
I'm sorry about the scheduling mix up.
No, this was even more fun.
Yeah, I'm glad y'all know each other.
And, um, I just wantedto thank you so much.
It's so I'm so grateful thatyou guys said yes, and are
willing to share on my podcast.
(32:07):
Oh, it's my pleasure.
Literally any time.
Can I give my own project a shout out?
Of course.
Yeah.
Just in case you have any fanswho like, you know, don't know
me, but they're like interestedthat you guys my name is Oh, yeah.
Tessa Violet.
I have Such pop songs as crush andyes mom and bad bitch But also my next
(32:27):
project right now is all healing mantrasto heal and you should listen to my
new song my body's my buddy, which isConceptualizing what would it feel like
if I didn't You know, look at my body andthink it was me, but instead experienced
it as a friend that is with me throughmy whole life and my whole albums.
(32:51):
Thank you so much.
Um, and yeah, the whole, my wholenew project is that sort of stuff.
So if you're into that sort ofstuff, you're going to like it.
When will I finish this album?
When will it come out?
I don't know.
Where can we find you onsocial media and the internet?
I'm Tessa Violet everywhere you can findanyone, but I'm most active on, I'm super
(33:13):
active on Twitch right now, randomly.
Um, but I guess besides that,Instagram, TikTok, Blue Sky, I'm
no longer on Twitter, RIP Twitter.
Right.
Perfect.
Alright, Em, and I did see youwere talking a little bit on
Instagram about some new stuff.
So, Oh, yes.
(33:35):
Um, I'm working on my album right now.
I don't know exactly when it's come out.
I have like a projected hopeful date,but we'll see how it actually happens.
Um, and I'm, I'm by hold on all socials.
And unfortunately I deleted TikTok.
So I can't get it back.
I can't post on TikTok, but Ithink my managers will post for me.
(33:55):
So if I don't respond to it.
Yeah.
I kept clicking it and I was like,Oh my gosh, I spent too much time.
And I was like, Not working andI deleted it and I can't get it
back and I'm like, I missed it.
Yeah, I'm like, I've spent so muchmore time doing other things, which
has been nice, but yeah, definitely.
Can I just say one more thing that Igot M's last name wrong at the beginning
(34:18):
and it's because the first time Igot it wrong, I then told myself,
it's not the one you think it is.
It's the other one.
And in my head, I'mlike, it's the other one.
And I hear it again, I'm like, damnit, it is the one I think it is
now because now I've learned it.
Anyway.
Muy bien.
I didn't even notice.
You said Behold?
I didn't notice at all.
Now you know?
No, but now I know.
What the And what the heck, Tessa?
(34:41):
Don't spit on me!
Anyway.
Perfect.
Slay.
Perfecto.
Awesome.
Thank you all so much.
I hope you have a wonderful restof your day and a great weekend.
Thank you.
Bye.
Bye, everybody.
Love you.
Yeah, okay.
(00:01):
Awesome.
Well, sorry about all that mix up.
Um, honestly, love the vibe now anyway.
So this is perfect.
Welcome to pop palace.
We celebrate iconic women andqueer people in pop music.
So y'all two are like My twohighlights of this season, I've been
so excited to meet both of y'all.
(00:22):
So the fact that it's happeningat once is super exciting.
So at Pop Palace, we love to haveour guests introduce themselves.
So if y'all could each introduceyourself and kind of tell me the
Earliest memory you have of music.
Oh my god.
Em, you go first.
(00:42):
I was thinking it could befun if I introduced Tessa.
Oh yeah, wait.
Okay.
Yes, that'd be so fun.
Okay.
Tessa Violet is a legend icon that Igrew up watching on YouTube, that I am
such a huge fan of, and I screenshottedwhen she followed me on Instagram,
because I like, couldn't believe it.
(01:02):
And she's like, pivoted from aYouTube career to such an incredible,
illustrious, uh, music career.
And I love her songs so very much.
And how many, how manyalbums have you released now?
Okay.
So technically I released three, butlike, we don't refer to the first one,
but like we do like within my fans,I'm like, we all know it's three,
but like within the music industry,I'm working on my junior album.
(01:29):
Yes, understood.
Um, Slay!
Slayed it!
Em, thank you for thatbeautiful recommendation.
Okay, here's my experience of Em.
Em has a song go viral.
I'm like, oh my god, this song is so cool.
I want to hang out with this person.
They seem so neat.
And, um, then, I can't remember.
Somehow our managers like getus in touch and do they're
like, do you want to get coffee?
And I'm like, yes, I want to get coffee.
(01:51):
This is going to be so much fun.
And we sat down together andimmediately I knew I'm like this
person watched me as a kitty.
Definitely.
I can sense it.
I love it.
It's fun.
I feel like Emma and I have likea lot of like, I don't know.
I just feel like we're like, althoughwe do not know each other that well,
we've only hung out a few times.
(02:11):
I feel like we are kind of like kindred.
People.
And I always think very fondly of em.
And honestly, I'd love to see you more.
So this is a fun, also, I feellike I need to tell the podcast.
What happened is that there was amisscheduling both M and I thought we
were about to have a solo interview.
We get in and then we'rein this room together.
I'm like, Oh, do we just do this together?
(02:33):
Right.
Hey.
This is my dream house.
This is awesome.
Um, I'm just going to sayhow I know both of y'all.
So I remember watching Tessa on YouTube.
Iconics.
The bird song was like the first one.
Oh my god.
Yes.
I was actually going to ask ifyou still remember how to play it.
Um.
Someone just asked me toplay it on the stream.
Usually I can, but like mostrecently when someone asked, I
(02:55):
could not pull it out of my ass.
And then Em, I remember scrollingon my feed and seeing your
tour announcement with like thebright colors and everything.
And I was hooked.
And then I heard your music and it'sjust like, both of y'all are such a
good combination for Pop Palace for thequeer people and for women and music.
(03:17):
So I'm so thankful that y'all are here.
Dude, I'm honored to be here.
Thank you for having us.
Of course.
So I've noticed that both of y'all have.
Lyrics that explore emotionand deep personal experiences.
Is there a balance between pouringout your emotion and also kind
of reserving some for yourself?
(03:40):
You go first, Em.
Okay.
Um, for me, no.
Uh, I tend to just put it all out on thetable and like my friends will kind of
always explain me as an open book, butlike a little bit too much so sometimes.
Um, but I feel like because musichas always been my form of therapy,
(04:02):
there's nothing I can really hold back.
So I feel like honestly sometimes Imake sense of what I'm feeling through
writing in ways that like my subconsciousknows, but maybe I don't know.
Yeah.
Yeah, I feel like when it comes tohow I am feeling, it's an open book.
Here it all is laying it out there wherethere are things that I will like change
(04:25):
details of because like I've, you know,they, you know, when you're a songwriter,
you're often writing songs about thepeople you are romantically dating.
And um, I am not always dating,like, other people who, like, like
to be the center of attention.
And, like, even after breakups, for, forme, I'm not saying, I'm not saying that
it's right or wrong or best or worst.
(04:47):
I'm just saying for me, I change littledetails about, like, um, Anything
that might make it sound like it isspecifically one person, because I also
like, even after a breakup, I don't want,like, our names in the same sentence.
So I'm like, I don'teven want anyone to know.
I'm like, it's not who itis, is no one's business.
(05:08):
I'm talking about my feelings right now.
Exactly.
I love that.
How do you practice self care afterpouring out all your emotions into a
public space where anyone can listen?
Do you have any practices that,like, kind of help you keep
grounded and refuel your creativity?
Or is it just, like, part of your lifeand it's what you're used to doing?
(05:33):
Meow.
Um, I don't know if he's feeling this.
I feel like Em's been on this.
I feel like I'm, like, And maybe Ihave this wrong, and if you don't want
to talk about this, edit this out.
But like, I feel like Em's been on aself care journey, like, this past year.
Is that true?
It's very true.
Yeah, um, I think, to be honest, for awhile, the attention with Numb Little Bug
(05:55):
was so much that all of a sudden I gotmy internal value from being an artist.
And like how people saw me,which has never been me.
Like I've never really cared about that.
Um, so, you know, during the kindof eventual, like fallout of a
viral song, I was really struggling.
Cause I was like, okay,if I'm not this, who am I?
(06:16):
Um, and so I just took a step backfrom music for like kind of a year.
Cause I was trying to write, I was doingsession hell where I was just meeting with
every songwriter, every producer, and justlike really struggling to find my voice.
And like, Why?
Like music became not fun for a while.
And, um, I think during that year off,I kind of reconnected with all the
(06:37):
different parts of me that aren't justa musician, but like, I'm a friend,
I'm a daughter, I'm a girlfriend,like I'm a cat mom, you know?
Um, and I think finding ways tolike separate all those sides.
So like at this point nowI'm coming back to music.
With very clear boundaries as tolike, when I put my phone down.
And, after a session, like, makingsure I hang out with my friends
(06:59):
and we don't talk about music.
That's very clear withmy friends sometimes.
Like, I will leave the room ifwe talk about music for too long.
Um, so, yeah, that's what What, what timedo you put your phone down every night?
Um, I'd say around like six ish.
Nice, that's really good.
Yeah.
I've gotten better at it.
I'm like, for me, I'm, I'm onthe opposite schedule right now.
(07:21):
I, do you know what the, um,have you guys heard of The Brick?
Maybe you've gotten adsfor it on Instagram?
Okay.
No.
Am I allowed to talk about aproduct on your podcast, Jack?
Oh yeah, totally.
Talk about whatever you want.
Okay.
So there's this product, it's called TheBrick, and it's like an actual device,
it's also a magnet, so I keep mine onmy fridge, where you tap your phone to
it, and then it locks you out of everyapp that you want to be locked out of.
(07:45):
Um.
Yeah, so like for me, well, I mean, ifI was like promoting a song on TikTok
right now, I'd do the opposite schedule,but because like I am in like the
writing process, there's just no reasonat all for me to be on social media.
It's not beneficial to my workflow,to my mental health, to anything.
But it is nice to do likea little scroll before bed.
(08:05):
So, um, I will brickmy phone all day long.
And then like at 6 PM, I like halfbetween like six and nine, if I want to
like play my iPhone games or like lookat memes, um, I literally, I cannot
change it, recommend the brick enough.
It's life changing becauseyou can still use your phone.
Um, And it's interesting, I'lllike, find myself, ugh, this is
(08:28):
embarrassing, but actually I'm surethis is a really human experience.
I will find myself feeling a momentof discomfort, like, this is a little
discomfort, this is a silly one, buta new mix has been sent to me and I'm
thinking, I need to open this mix andI'm going to need to make decisions.
And like, that is a veryoverwhelming feeling.
And without thinking about it, I openInstagram and When my phone is bricked,
(08:49):
I press Instagram, and then the app popsup, and it says, this is a distraction.
And I think, oh, wow.
I didn't even mean to open Instagram.
That wasn't a choice I was making.
It's like this, like, impulse that youdo it before you can think about it.
And if Instagram had been on myphone, I would have been scrolling
before I'd been thinking about it.
But now because it's bricked, I seethat and I think, Oh, do I actually
(09:10):
want to be on Instagram right now?
Or do I want to, you know, beokay with being uncomfortable?
Like that's where growth is.
So what I like about the brick isthat it's not just a thing that you
can immediately say, dismiss, let mego to Instagram anyway, I would have
to get up and walk to my kitchen and.
Ask yourself, is it worth it?
Anyway, sorry if that was like such.
Every time I hear myself backin an interview, I'm like,
(09:30):
why am I talking about this?
This has nothing to dowith what the question was.
I love it.
But like, I'm gonna buy one.
Like, yeah, I got to get oneof those codes so I can like
make a resource out of it.
Right.
I literally am recommendingit to everybody.
That sounds wonderful, especially likeI find myself opening my phone as soon
(09:51):
as I wake up and I'm bombarded withlike messages, anything new that's
happened and like having that wouldbe such a Great way to wake up and
just like yes only having what I need.
I really recommend it before bed, too Ibreak my phone before bed, too Because
then I'm not like like I'll stay upway later if I have my phone to scroll
on and I'll stay in bed longer When Iwake up in the morning, but when you're
(10:12):
bricked you're like now I'm readingI'm learning Spanish right now so I
have Sailor Moon in Spanish becauseit's like a Yeah, that's so cool.
Thank you.
It's a story that I'm familiar withso I can like kind of know like
the idea of what's going on andthere's pictures so it's helpful.
So I just read a little of that beforebed if I'll sleep in the morning.
I'm like, okay, it's time to get upbecause there's nothing to scroll.
(10:35):
So
would you ever create a song in Spanish?
Have I?
Maybe.
Uh.
You sang me, oh no, you sang me a song.
Yes, okay, I have written somesongs in Spanish, but they're
like not for public consumption.
Yeah.
(10:55):
No, it's okay.
Okay, I just like totally told the secret.
It's not the end.
You know, you're in the innercircle, Em, so you know.
Um, but, uh, you know, I'd be embarrassedto sing one of my Spanish songs because
they, um, You can really hear how,well, I mean, I don't know, whatever.
I'm a beginner.
Estoy un principiante.
Um, but you can hear how much I'mobviously not a native speaker in Espanol.
(11:19):
Do you speak any other English?
I'm still in my like Biblioteca stage.
Do you speak any other languages, Em?
I'm trying to learn Farsi causehalf my family's Persian and I
don't know what they're saying.
So.
That's, that's my quest right now,but I'm, I'm, it's not going well.
It's, because it's also, itgoes, uh, the opposite way.
(11:42):
Oh, you, like, right to left?
You read it right to left.
Oh.
Yeah.
How are you learning it?
That would throw me for a loop.
It's, uh, it's this thing calledMango, which I got access to in
college and they forgot to take me off.
So that's how I'm using it.
Are you learning a language, Jack?
I am not currently learning a language,but I was learning, um, Muskogee
(12:04):
Creek, the indigenous language.
Um, and it was really cool.
So it's, um, I'm in Oklahoma, so there's alot of indigenous communities around here.
And so, um, my Creek teacher isjust like her and four other people.
And it's not a. Spoken languageanymore, but I'm so sorry.
It was really cool because everythingis so like culturally connected Yes, and
(12:25):
so like the meanings were like beyondjust like what we have in English.
We're like this means this exact thingYeah, and so learning like the history
and everything behind it was like suchan amazing experience, especially being
in Oklahoma and like Learning aboutlike indigenous people my whole life,
but now actually like getting to speaka little bit of it Yeah, what made you
decide that you wanted to learn it?
(12:46):
Are you connected or do you have?
So an English are youan indigenous person?
I'm not an indigenous person,but I just felt like there was so
much there to, for me to learn.
And in Oklahoma, there's been a lotleft out when they teach us, like we
have to take Oklahoma history, but it'sin Oklahoma's version of our history.
(13:09):
And so by taking Creek,I kind of got to learn.
What actually is going on in like,being in that world a little bit closer.
That is literally so cool.
You are inspiring me.
Right now, on top of Spanish, I'm alsolearning Quechua, which is one of the
indigenous languages of South America.
Yeah.
And what you say about the connectionof words, how like in English,
(13:31):
English is not a very poetic language.
It's not a very spiritual language,but it is a very practical language.
I know.
It's a great language to just getinformation across, um, and like, I
love learning how, like, the cultureis embedded in the language in Quechua.
Like, the first thing in my firstlesson, my teacher was like, Okay,
the first thing you need to knowis that in Western languages, there
(13:54):
is, um, A concept of good and bad.
Things are good.
Things are bad.
In the casual language,this concept does not exist.
Things are either in balanceor they're out of balance.
So when you meet someone, you don'tsay like, you ask them how they are,
but they don't say I'm good or bad.
They say I'm in balanceor I'm out of balance.
And he's like, because what you need toknow is that like something that is like
(14:17):
good for you might not be good for me.
So, it's not that it, the thing isinherently good or bad, it's, it's
in balance, and I'm like, my brain'sexploding, I'm like, this is so awesome,
this is the coolest thing I've everlearned, and it was making me think,
like, I would love to learn more about,like, um, the indigenous cultures.
and the peoples in theplace that I live, you know?
(14:39):
Um, but I, I like, don't evenknow where to begin there, but you
know, I guess I can just, Googleexists so I could Google it.
If y'all are ever in Oklahoma, come talkto me and we can go do all the things.
Yeah, that'd be awesome.
Hell yeah.
So speaking of things outside of music.
Do you do, uh, have any otherlike hobbies or passions that
(15:01):
you do when you're not working?
I want to hear from Emma,I just talked for too long.
For me?
No, no, um, For me, I wouldsay, I have a book club.
So I love to read, and I loveto gather my little friends
and talk about little books.
Um, and, I'm also into fencing,I've been fencing since I was 8.
(15:25):
Shut up, that's so cool.
How did you get into fencing?
My dad's been doing it forever, and so hestarted teaching me in our driveway, and
then I just kind of like, fell in lovewith the concept of, like, that's insane.
That sounds bad.
That's so cool, though.
(15:47):
Safely stabbing your friends.
I've never met anyone that does fencing.
I've only seen it at, like, on Olympicsand things, so that's really cool.
Yeah, it is cool.
What's been your, like, favoritebook that you've been reading?
Um, we read Agatha Christie'sAnd Then There Were None.
Which I loved, which is a classic.
It's like a murder mystery and basically,it's kind of like, um, glass onion.
(16:12):
Like people slowly startdying and you're like, why?
Yeah, how?
Is it also a play?
Yeah, or maybe I'm mixingup with something else.
I don't know.
How big is your Yeah, rightnow we're No, go ahead.
I was just gonna ask how manypeople are in your book club.
(16:32):
Oh, it's about Like 14.
Oh, that's a good, that's likea perfect size, I feel like.
Yeah.
Tessa, you're welcometo my book club anytime.
It's the Girls in the Gate.
Okay, literally, thankyou, but um, could never.
I hate reading.
I am not cultured in that way.
I wish, I wish, like I know howmuch joy people get from it.
(16:53):
I, I know audiobooks are reading, butlike, even, yeah, I don't know, it's just,
Not my preferred way to learn, but pleasedon't judge me or everyone whatever judge
me or maybe I'll get into it later It'sjust you know what I'm accepting myself
for who I am right now And I have a lot onmy plate, and I don't want to add reading
to it, but I would like to hang out
(17:15):
Yes So how's your experiencein the industry been affected
by your personal identities?
Or is that something that's not reallyin consideration when in the industry?
You know
(17:37):
I am a woman But I amalso a cis white person.
So, like, do I experience
I'm thinking about it.
This long pause is me thinking about it.
Okay, this is gonna be a weird thing tosay, but I feel like I Like I'm a very
(18:02):
tall person if you've never met me andI feel like honestly, I would experience
more of the being dismissed as a womanif I were shorter and like maybe that's
like a weird thing to say, but I just feellike me personally, this is just my story.
I'm not speaking for all like womenin the industry, but I have not found
(18:22):
like You know, being a woman to be areason that I felt, like, in general,
uh, dismissed or not taken seriously.
I've always felt, andmaybe I'm just very lucky.
But I also, I do think that being tallis part of it, and the other thing that
I think maybe is part of it is that I amnot very, like, femme in my presentation.
(18:44):
Um,
and that is my theory on why.
I have not I I have in generalexperienced people taking me seriously
Honestly, the only time I experiencepeople like not taking me seriously
is people like Not like boomers whoare not in the music industry being
like they're like, what do you do?
(19:04):
I'm, like i'm a singer songwriter andthey're like Oh, do you write your songs?
And I'm like, yes.
Why did, why do you thinkI said songwriter in the
first part of the sentence?
You know, like, but whatever they're,they're all doing their best.
So I don't know.
Does that sound like, what doyou think about that answer?
Jack?
I love it.
Okay.
Great.
That is a perfect answer.
Yeah.
Like there are no ruleshere at Pop Palace.
(19:27):
We just like to hear what everyone hasto say just about the girls and the gays.
So your answer, as long asit's honest, we love it.
Okay.
Iconic Slaya.
Thank you.
How about you Em?
I would say I've definitely been insome sessions with male producers and
writers who have kind of written the songaround me, assuming that I can't write.
(19:50):
Um, I don't, it doesn't happen veryoften, but there's sometimes I'll
just get steamrolled or I'll havean idea and they'll be like, cute.
And then like move on to the male writerand be like, what do you think of this?
Um, and they're not going to get, youknow, a cut with me if they do that.
Um, So I kind of just like, when I saySession Hell, it was, you know, meeting
(20:11):
a lot of people and like, kind of seeingwho doesn't, I don't know, there's lots
of lovely people who just like aren'tthe right creative fit, but also some
people who like maybe aren't the most.
Respectful and I don't know if it's beinga woman or like I'm kind of if you meet
me I feel like I'm a bit of a littlemouse and maybe you think I'm quiet But
that's also like my artist project is likethe little mouse speaks, you know um, so
(20:35):
Yeah, I would I would say We've had, we'vehad some moments like those, but we just
kind of move on and don't think about it.
Yeah, definitely.
Honestly, when I hear you saythat, I'm like, maybe I've
just been profoundly lucky.
Maybe I just, like, happened to, like, my,like, star collides with other stars that,
um, don't have a chip on their shoulderabout, you know, women also being people.
That could also just be the case,that I just met good people.
(20:57):
I mean, I did.
I know, literally everyone I workwith is good people, so, and, um,
I've also been pretty lucky that,like, a lot of the first people I
worked with have just been people I'vecontinued to work with forever, um.
That's awesome.
Nice.
You know, Estabian.
For me it was like finding,finding those people for two years.
That's so hard.
I'm like, honestly, I'm so sorry.
(21:18):
Like that's a hard process.
It makes you second guess yourselfand feel like, am I a real artist?
I did a little bit of that whenI first came to LA, trying to
find a few new collaborators andyou're like, maybe I'm bad at this.
Maybe I only thought I was good atthis because I was doing it on my own.
But now that I'm with all theseprofessionals, maybe I'm nobody.
That was my experience with it, whatI did a little bit, and, and nothing
(21:39):
to do with the people I wrote with.
They were great, but I, you know,that's the own internal monologue.
Anyway, cool.
Yeah, the process is tough.
Okay, so I have two more questions.
I don't want to take up too muchof your time, but I have an hour on
my books for this, so I'm not busy.
Oh, okay, perfect.
(21:59):
Yeah.
So, y'all's fans, youhave a lot of queer fans.
Does that something that Resonatesin your music or is it just like
happened just happened queer peoplelove you And this is that a vibe?
Yeah, okay Can I just say like I feellike so profoundly like honored that
(22:21):
like my fan base is so gay I'm, likehow what because I don't feel that
i'm like What do I feel like cool?
I guess in my worst moments, I don'tfeel like I'm cool and like all
My gay friends have the best taste
You're literally so cool.
Oh stop stop.
(22:41):
Oh my god, and I was I was talking tomy friend Athena about this they do
all the my costume design they're aqueer non binary person and I'm like
Athena, I'm like, I know you can'tspeak for the entire like, you know,
queer population, but um, why do youthink queer people like me so much?
(23:05):
Like I'm like sometimes I feel likeBad that maybe like I wish I could
Um, and I feel like it should bemore to them, you know, I get asked
to, I've been asked a bunch oftimes to pay at like pride events.
And I always say no, becauseI'm like, I feel like it should
be a queer artist up there.
I just, you know, like, this is anopportunity to celebrate queerness.
(23:25):
And I feel very celebratedby my queer crowd.
But I don't, I think it's betterto have someone not me up there.
And or people just think that I ama bi woman often, they're shocked
to find out that I'm straight.
I'm like, why do you think,why do people like me, Athena?
And Athena's like, this is mybest guess as only one person.
(23:48):
Um, you are profoundly yourself.
And you're, you, okay, I'm sorry.
I hope it's okay that I big upmyself for a second with a sentence.
Um, uh, But they're like, you reallyjust put yourself out there as who
you are and part of the, oh my god,I feel so stupid being, uh, talking
about the queer experience right now.
Whatever, everyone will forgiveme, I'm doing my best, I'm
(24:09):
just figuring things out.
What Athena told me is that, um, They'relike, you know, to be like a queer person,
you have to be so brave to be yourself.
Oftentimes, you know, in this country.
And there's a real, like, it is areal self discovery, a real work, and
a real, like, yes, this is who I am.
(24:33):
Um, Athena's like, even thoughyou are not queer, you do that.
And I'm like, okay, that'sreally nice and thank you.
Yeah.
And I don't know, doesthat all sound good?
Oh, that makes so much sense.
Like, as a queer person growing upin Oklahoma, like, seeing you gives
me the Even though you're not queer,I see people living their true
(24:53):
authentic selves, and it gives melike, the courage that I can do it too.
Yes!
I'm punching the air!
Can I tell you a belief I have?
Yeah, definitely.
Uh huh.
100%. Okay, this is my belief, like,My friend, uh, Chloe Lilac told me
this, um, who is another artist.
Um, I was I love her.
I love Chloe.
Oh my god, I love her.
(25:14):
I was having a really, like,insecure show day, there was like, an
industry person coming and I alwaysfeel I play my worst when I feel
I'm being judged by the industry.
And Chloe said to me, Tessa,this is what you need to know.
Your job as an artist is tofind the person you were.
Before the world made you feel beembarrassed for who you are and to be
(25:35):
that person as bright like shine asbright as you can as that person because
when you let yourself be who you are,you give everyone else to be permission,
give them, sorry, you give everyoneelse permission to be who they are too.
And I'm like, I've just like,I've carried that wisdom with
me since Chloe said it to me.
And, um, and I believe that as anartist, but my truth is also that
(25:58):
I believe that as a person and my.
like desire for humanity isto be like, yes, shine bright.
I really do.
I really do believe that every personis special and beautiful and the,
you make the world more special.
Sorry.
You make the world more special andbeautiful when you let that light shine.
(26:20):
That's my belief.
And so there, Tessa, I'm saying tothe judge in me that's saying that
was stupid you talked for too long.
No, that was not stupid at all.
And that's like so meaningful for,especially queer people that don't see
other people being them true selves, likeOklahoma, I keep bringing up Oklahoma,
(26:42):
but it's very much like live one way,you act one way, and then you see other
people aren't, and you can be thatother person, and it's okay, and you
can feel your real happiness that way.
Yes.
Yeah, I love that.
Yes.
Authentic.
Authenticity.
How about you, Em?
How do you feel aboutqueerness and queer fans?
(27:04):
I love my queer fans.
I, I opened for King Princess, um,one of the first tours I did, and I
remember, like, Like, I don't know ifmy songs necessarily cater specifically
to queer people, but like the amountof fans that stayed from those shows
and came to my headline shows waslike, kind of similarly to Tess.
(27:26):
I was like, wait, am I, I'm coolin the, in the queer community.
That's awesome.
But like there was one, uh, at my firstshow in San Francisco on my headline,
there was a trans woman who came up to meduring VIP and she was like, When we met
at the, at the King and Princess show,like you said, my name was beautiful
(27:48):
and that's just never left me and nowI'm like a fan of yours for life and
I'll be at all your shows and I wasjust like, there are little things that
we do sometimes that we don't realizeare, are meaningful to other people.
Um, and it was just sospecial to see her there.
And I think about her often.
That's beautiful.
That is so beautiful.
I love that.
I love that so much.
(28:08):
Um, to me, like, Women in music, andlike pop, pop women specifically,
were like my superheroes.
Like, I didn't look up to,like, these superheroes.
I looked up to, like, women in pop.
And to me, it was even cooler,because they're real life.
Like, I could go seethis person in real life.
And so, y'all are doing that same thingfor queer people now, and I'm, I'm really
(28:30):
grateful that y'all are here and doing it.
And it's really nice.
Me too.
Wow.
I'm, I'm so gratefulto be on this podcast.
Thank you so much.
Of course.
So I have one last question.
At Paw Palace, we like to ask allour guests to create their own royal
court going off the palace theme.
So we pick one personwho's like your ultimate.
(28:50):
I idol would be in your throneand then you can have like two
or three people in your court
Like someone I want to serve likesomeone I want to serve Like it could
be someone you want to serve someonethat's just like your icon your favorite
So like for me my on my throne, I wouldhave like madonna next to me grace
(29:13):
jones and like Probably Dochi and Lana.
Yeah, oh my god.
Like, okay, at this moment, I reallywant to say Megan Lee Stallion.
Is like my, like, right hand man.
You know, I'm like, oh mygod, I love you so much.
Um, like, I think if you'd asked methis even like two years ago, I probably
(29:33):
would have had Doja Cat up there too.
Um, but like, now I'm like, uh,
I don't know.
It's just to be honest.
I'm a little bit out of my pop era.
Like right now I'm like, Oh, like I wantto listen to acoustic songs about healing.
That's, that's the shot right now.
Um, and I, I do feel like, you know,to be honest, Megan Lee Stallion
(29:56):
is healing me with her songs.
Um, but I feel like I'mlike, am I being healed?
I don't know.
Maybe music is healing.
Um, I feel like on my left, I like wantto put, uh, Olivia Barton which um,
her last record This is a good sign.
That is literally all Ilistened to last year.
I listened to it on repeatUm, and it is it it's not pop.
(30:19):
It's all like acoustic.
Um songs about What it is to be aperson that is healing and figuring
things out and what I like aboutolivia's music too Is that like the?
There's often like a twist ofhope even in the sad things.
Um, but then I'm like, ohmy god, who's my court?
As soon as this podcast ends, I'mgoing to think of a million more
(30:40):
people I wish I would have said.
Um, so, uh, it's hard notto pick Kendrick Lamar too.
Like, that's not pop either.
Okay, you can have two.
Okay, that's all I'll say for now.
That's all I'll say for now.
What about you, Em?
Okay, perfect.
I'd say my whole career, ReginaSpektor my god, Em, I was going to
(31:01):
tell you that your new sound songis giving Regina Spektor so big.
I'm like, oh, I'm living for it.
I'm obsessed with her forever, forever.
Um, I'd say Fiona Apple is up there.
Um,
(31:24):
Sarah Bareilles is up there.
And then, from the more,like, modern releasing a lot
now, I'd say Lizzie McAlpine.
I'm a huge fan of hers and her show isone of the best things I've ever been to.
I love Lizzie.
So good.
Um, she hurts me in the best way.
Me too.
Awesome.
Am I, are those all my slots?
(31:45):
Yeah, that was perfect.
Okay.
Well, it was so lovelyto meet both of y'all.
I'm sorry about the scheduling mix up.
No, this was even more fun.
Yeah, I'm glad y'all know each other.
And, um, I just wantedto thank you so much.
It's so I'm so grateful thatyou guys said yes, and are
willing to share on my podcast.
(32:07):
Oh, it's my pleasure.
Literally any time.
Can I give my own project a shout out?
Of course.
Yeah.
Just in case you have any fanswho like, you know, don't know
me, but they're like interestedthat you guys my name is Oh, yeah.
Tessa Violet.
I have Such pop songs as crush andyes mom and bad bitch But also my next
(32:27):
project right now is all healing mantrasto heal and you should listen to my
new song my body's my buddy, which isConceptualizing what would it feel like
if I didn't You know, look at my body andthink it was me, but instead experienced
it as a friend that is with me throughmy whole life and my whole albums.
(32:51):
Thank you so much.
Um, and yeah, the whole, my wholenew project is that sort of stuff.
So if you're into that sort ofstuff, you're going to like it.
When will I finish this album?
When will it come out?
I don't know.
Where can we find you onsocial media and the internet?
I'm Tessa Violet everywhere you can findanyone, but I'm most active on, I'm super
(33:13):
active on Twitch right now, randomly.
Um, but I guess besides that,Instagram, TikTok, Blue Sky, I'm
no longer on Twitter, RIP Twitter.
Right.
Perfect.
Alright, Em, and I did see youwere talking a little bit on
Instagram about some new stuff.
So, Oh, yes.
(33:35):
Um, I'm working on my album right now.
I don't know exactly when it's come out.
I have like a projected hopeful date,but we'll see how it actually happens.
Um, and I'm, I'm by hold on all socials.
And unfortunately I deleted TikTok.
So I can't get it back.
I can't post on TikTok, but Ithink my managers will post for me.
(33:55):
So if I don't respond to it.
Yeah.
I kept clicking it and I was like,Oh my gosh, I spent too much time.
And I was like, Not working andI deleted it and I can't get it
back and I'm like, I missed it.
Yeah, I'm like, I've spent so muchmore time doing other things, which
has been nice, but yeah, definitely.
Can I just say one more thing that Igot M's last name wrong at the beginning
(34:18):
and it's because the first time Igot it wrong, I then told myself,
it's not the one you think it is.
It's the other one.
And in my head, I'mlike, it's the other one.
And I hear it again, I'm like, damnit, it is the one I think it is
now because now I've learned it.
Anyway.
Muy bien.
I didn't even notice.
You said Behold?
I didn't notice at all.
Now you know?
No, but now I know.
What the And what the heck, Tessa?
(34:41):
Don't spit on me!
Anyway.
Perfect.
Slay.
Perfecto.
Awesome.
Thank you all so much.
I hope you have a wonderful restof your day and a great weekend.
Thank you.
Bye.
Bye, everybody.
Love you.
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