Grace Gardner on Her Newest Single ”Parcel”
[UNPUBLISHED:] Unpublished is so glad to have you again, and congratulations on your new single, “Parcel!” While this song features your consistently beautiful vocals and cathartic rhythm, it also highlights a distinctly different sound from your previous singles, like “Deny Me” and “Scorpions Don’t Live Forever.” Did anything specific inspire this change?
[GRACE GARDNER:] Thank you so much! And you're very right. "Parcel" is different than the tracks released before it in a lot of ways, but the biggest thing that stays the same is the hyper-specific, deeply emotional lyricism. The sound is different than what I’ve released before, and that was an intentional decision; with my EP, coming out in March, I wanted to experiment with a lot of sounds and find what felt comfortable. It’s been interesting learning the distinction between sound inspiration and music I just enjoy, too. “Parcel” is a foray into an angsty singer-songwriter, and veering more towards Rock than Folk. I love “Parcel” both full-band and stripped back, but when it came to the recorded version, it just came to life when it was lush with instrumentation, so it’s full-sounding.
[UNPUBLISHED:] I find the fact that you self-wrote and self-produced this entire track, incredible! I’m sure the process was a doozy; can you tell me a little bit about what the process itself was like, what difficulties you encountered, and some things you found to be surprisingly easy?
[GRACE GARDNER:] Thank you! I self-wrote and self-produced all the tracks on my EP, and while it was really rewarding and fun, it was a steep learning curve. I got Logic Pro in the summer of 2021 and was drilling YouTube tutorials until I got the hang of everything. Part of learning to produce by myself was also born from stubbornness, admittedly. A lot of producing isn’t intuitive — some of it is, but I didn’t have access to GarageBand when I was young or anything, so I felt late to the pitch — so I was learning from everything and everyone I could. I’m sure I was annoying to my friends that identify as producer-first. I would make inspirational playlists and take notes on all the songs with timestamps of sounds like, “Learn how to replicate this!” It’s a whole lot of trial and error, but once I developed my “producer’s ear,” it became a lot easier to hear a texture/concept in my head and bring it to life on Logic. One thing about the process itself is it took a lot longer than anticipated.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Are you the type that can force creativity, or do you need to wait for it to come to you?
[GRACE GARDNER:] I’m lucky that creativity comes fairly easily to me and I don’t necessarily need to foster an environment for it, but I usually feel a lot more of that catharsis if I do create an intentional environment. That could just be my friend’s garage studio, writing with someone at the park, or lighting candles and incense at my apartment when I’m just writing by myself. I always feel like writing — if I don’t feel like writing about my own life or emotions or experiences, I’ll write about one of my experiences from another person’s perspective, or make up something completely. I wrote a song about Geoguessr last week. It does come from all directions.
[UNPUBLISHED:] If you had to choose, what is your favorite lyric in “Parcel” and why?
[GRACE GARDNER:] I think my favorite line in “Parcel” is the first line of the chorus: “Summer’s end scrapes my knees.” To me, it resonates in multiple ways. It calls to that feeling everyone gets when school starts up after the summer break, everyone’s getting into a routine, and the weather starts to turn. It’s a bittersweet feeling, rough enough to make a scratch but not a scar. And there’s another layer there when you factor in the ending of summer loves, and what happens when you don’t leave off on good terms after something that felt so innocent and quick. And there’s also the personal part of it because I got my heart broken in July, and I wanted nothing to do with Summer. I just really love that line and how it captures that transition.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Is there a certain place that you find easiest to write at or a place where you generally enjoy writing or brainstorming?
[GRACE GARDNER:] I love being outside. Huge fan of the outdoors. I love going to these places to write — the park, my favorite coffee shops, libraries, anywhere I can perch for a few hours, and “word dump” into a journal. The most vulnerable, and often saddest, songs I write though usually are written late at night in my bedroom with one distant light on. I’m thankful that I can write in a lot of different places, and I’ve become a lot more fond of writing with people than I used to be.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What do you imagine people should be doing while listening to “Parcel?”
[GRACE GARDNER:] Something cathartic. Writing and producing “Parcel” was a cathartic experience for me, and there are a lot of ways I express that other than songwriting. Go exercise, scream in my car, dance with my friends. I think it’s a versatile song in that it’s upbeat so it’s fitting for commutes and getting ready and hanging out, but the lyrics are not upbeat, so it’s great for cry/yell playlists too.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What is one of the most important messages you would like fans to extract from “Parcel?”
[GRACE GARDNER:] Don’t wait to move on when you know you have your answer. The experience of loving them — and them loving you back — was unforgettable, and it’s okay to keep chapters closed. It’s going to hurt when it feels like you never knew them at all, but you’re going to get to know yourself a lot better while you deal with that hurt.
[UNPUBLISHED:] I’ve heard you talk a bit about other artists’ music that you enjoy--like Laufey and Lizzy McAlpine--are there any artists specifically that inspire you to create music or to achieve a certain sound?
[GRACE GARDNER:] I have an inspiration playlist for “Parcel” specifically! It has amazing and inspiring artists like Alix Page, Lizzy McAlpine, and Christian Lee Hutson. I think they channel catharsis and processing in such beautiful ways, lyrically and sonically. Artists that inspire me overall are Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus — their lyricism is unmatched and the way it’s paired with alternative sound is so compelling. They’re incredible artists. I’m also a huge fan of folks like Allison Ponthier, Arlo Parks, Julia Jacklin, and Faye Webster too.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What does making music mean to you?
[GRACE GARDNER:] Music is a connection. Music unifies people. That’s all I’ve ever seen it do. Music brought my dad and me together when I was little — we played “guess that one hit wonder” more times than I can count. Music brought me my friend group through middle school when I found other people equally obsessed with One Direction (and subsequently 5 Seconds of Summer). Music brought me stability when I started experiencing mental health issues in high school and continued to be my rock through college and afterward. You can see the community that music brings about at concerts, on social media platforms, and in big spaces, but it’s so special when it brings people together on a small scale. Music has helped me process emotions I didn’t know existed. Music music music! I just can’t say enough about it.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What can we look forward to from you in the near and distant future?
[GRACE GARDNER:] After “Parcel” comes my debut EP, Peach, on March 3rd! I’m so far beyond excited to put out this first body of work. I’ve already started working on my debut album, and I’ll be joining Adam Melchor for a few of his tour dates in March as well! I’ll be putting out merch, doing shows, doing the whole shebang - you can follow along @gracegardnermusic on Instagram and TikTok!
[UNPUBLISHED:] If you could write a letter to yourself from 10 years in the future, what would you say?
[GRACE GARDNER:] This would be a letter to my 12-year-old self, and I would tell her to keep doing music. There were a lot of times I got distracted by career paths I thought were more secure but didn’t want or people who told me music was silly to pursue. But it felt right ever since I picked up a guitar for the first time when I was 9, and I hate how cliche that sounds, but from that point on, I just knew that was it. Keep writing, keep sharing what you make, and keep learning instruments and programs. Keep singing even if no one’s listening. Go all in on that passion because that spark is enough. Go to as many shows as you can. Listen to as much music as you can. Run straight at the dream and never stop.
