Singer/songwriter and rapper Kat Dahlia sits down with MC and reflects on past SXSW experience as well as the release of her first album.
Music Connection: What are your plans for SXSW?
Kat Dahlia: It’s been really awesome so far. We’re here at the W Hotel, so it’s super poppin’. And the music acts that we saw yesterday were super dope. Tonight I have a show at Swan Dive, tomorrow I have a show at the Radio Convention for the Radio Convention Center and then I have a Perez Hilton show at night, so I’m super excited.
MC: How do you prepare for something like SXSW?
Dahlia: Makeup, hairbrush, shoes. Lots of shoe options. Flats.
MC: Have you done SXSW before?
Dahlia: Yeah, I think it was three years ago I was here, and it was really fun. I remember, like, coming back I’m kind of going through the streets three years later, seeing how much time has passed and all of the stuff that’s gone on in my life. And how this city’s changed. Downtown is growing. So it’s really cool to see.
MC: How did that experience prepare you for this year?
Dahlia: I feel like, three years ago, I was such a baby. I feel they kind of just threw me on stage in front of weird, random…I was just so scared, it was such a different time. And now I think, the music is there, I’ve created the music, the staging and the show is just different. Everything is just way more put together. It’s been three years, so.
MC: Do you feel SXSW has affected your career?
Dahlia: Definitely won’t ever forget my first performances here three years ago. And just how it was such a staple, and it was something that happened so soon into my career, so it definitely surged me into the world of performing. And kind of gave me this…go, do it! You’ve gotta do it, no matter how uncomfortable or whatever it is. If you feel ill prepared, you just gottta go. The show goes on.
MC: Your debut album My Garden had a few production setbacks that pushed back the release. What’s your best advice for artists facing those same setbacks?
Dahlia: Don’t throw in the towel, put it out. Just put it out. It doesn’t matter if you have 100 hundred hits on there or not, just put out the music if you believe in it. And just let it do its thing. Just do it for the fans as opposed to doing it for this whole idea of, “Am I going to have 1,000 hits on there?” Just put it out if you believe in it.
MC: How was your experience putting out your first album?
Dahlia: It was a long process but it was really fun. It was a good discovery journey for me when it came to music. Because I feel like I tried everything on that debut album and if you listen to it, it’s so many different genres mixed together. So I kind of ventured out and just branched out into whatever I liked. And it was a cool process for me. And meeting so many dope producers that I grew up listening to that were like “Yeah, I wanna work with you.” and it’s like, “Really? Okay!”
MC: How do you balance all the different genres you’re influenced by in your music?
Dahlia: I don’t think it’s a conscious thing when it comes to balancing genres. I think that it’s just a fluidness of creativity. I don’t really think too much about it. I like to just mix whatever it is that I like when it comes to melodies, lyrics and then mixing it with something in production that yeah, does feel a little pop, feels like something that I would want to sing to, but mixed with something a little more, [that makes you want to] nod your head.
MC: Do you have any new music coming up?
Dahlia: I’m working on new music now. I’m working on the second album, and I’m really excited about it. Me and my boy, Arthur McArthur, are just creating some new cool, really, really, cool stuff, and I’m excited to put it out. So we’re working on the second album this year.
MC: Your single “I Think I’m in Love” was featured on Grey’s Anatomy. How was that experience and how did it come about?
Dahlia: Yeah, [my friends] hit me up and they’re like, “Oh my God! You’re on Grey’s Anatomy!” So I watched this scene, and it’s this super lezzie scene, and I’m like “Yeah! Go, go!” It’s super exciting, I don’t personally watch the show, but so many of my friends will just hit me up randomly, especially when it re-runs, and I’ll just start getting a flow of texts like, “Yo! I heard you were on Grey’s Anatomy!” It’s cool to definitely touch out to the masses like that, and to have so many friends to be able to hear me and get excited for me is cool.
MC: What can fans expect from your live shows?
Dahlia: The live shows are super fun, they’re energetic. They’re extremely musical. (jokingly) If you like good music, then, come see me! This is where you gotta go, for the good music, for the good stuff!
It’s all energy, it’s all fun, I like to have fun with my fans and talk with them, or like, people in the crowd, and just have a good time.
MC: What advice do you have for a new artist interested in doing SXSW?
Dahlia: Come out with your best. Come out with your best stuff. These sets are really short. And then you have people that may have never heard of you before, so many people that are huge music lovers. I mean, this is definitely a concentration of people in the business and people that just love and are obsessed with music, so come out with your best. And just know that you’re in a place of appreciation.
MC: What does the rest of 2016 have in store for you?
Dahlia: My Garbage, just kidding. My Garden, that chapter is over. It’s always going to be a special chapter, but I’m really excited about this new chapter, this new album that I’m working on.
Just the music, that’s all that really matters. I’m just excited to finish it and put it out. [And] South By, that’s pretty exciting!
Photo by Siri Svay
