Grace Gardner on Playing Ten Instruments, Her Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do, and Her Newest Single ”Deny Me”
[UNPUBLISHED:] Your song “Deny Me” is so beautiful. What was the inspiration behind the new single?
[GRACE :] Thank you so much! A lot of my personal growth in the past year has consisted of me realizing that closure doesn't necessarily have to come from someone else, and I can find resolution through my own thinking and processing and writing, but "Deny Me" came from a place of feeling physically unable to move on without a "yes" or a "no" from someone. I'd spent months sitting with my feelings and mulling over the possibility of a relationship, feeling stuck in this will-they-won't-they limbo, and I felt like I needed that verbal closure from them to really shut the door and move forward.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What was the process of creating this song?
[GRACE :] I was sitting with this heartache that felt so intense it genuinely left me feeling sick. I was physically ill from it, and I didn't think that could happen to a person, but it forced me to confront the fact that love is SUCH a powerful thing. I was calling my best friend one night several months ago talking about how devastated I was feeling, but also how angry I was at myself for not being able to move on. After that conversation (and her much-needed reassurance), the lyrics poured out of me in a matter of minutes. The song felt like a cohesive story, and I was playing along with it in an open tuning on my guitar just to focus on making the lyrics as evocative as possible. After putting together a melody and basic chords, I saw a riff from Citizen Papes on TikTok that I used for the verse — it fit perfectly and I'm so thankful he's on the track. Such a full-circle feeling! I spent a few weeks producing it and bouncing out versions to send to my friends, and after getting some magical contributions like strings and background vocals, it was ready.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Where do you find your inspiration?
[GRACE :] I write straight from my heart. A lot of my lyrics have a right-out-of-my-diary feeling. Writing has been how I get through every pocket of tension or sensation in my life for so many years, and those feelings (and the subsequent urge to write) can come from anywhere, but for now it's mostly been about relationships, love, and heartache. I don't think there will ever be enough love songs because everyone has a new perspective.
[UNPUBLISHED:] How do you hope your fans receive the new single?
[GRACE :] I wrote "Deny Me" to get me through the periods of my own heartbreak where I felt isolated, where I felt like I'd never find love that electric again. Even though I never got verbal closure, writing this song patched up my need to go looking for it. Writing "Deny Me" helped me grow up a little in that way. For everyone who listens, all I hope is that they find comfort in it. If it's a song that serves as a testament to how strong their relationship is, I'm honored to be a part of that. If it's a song that pulls them through their heartache, then I'm healing right there next to them.
[UNPUBLISHED:] In your opinion, where would be the perfect place to listen to the song?
[GRACE :] Anywhere the listener finds tranquility and peace. For me, it can be a Sunday morning wrapped up in blankets, it can be watching the sunset at the park by my house, it can be driving over the bridges in my town at night just to see the lights on the water. It could be an art museum, in the arms of someone they care about, at midnight on the hardwood floor. It can be anywhere!
[UNPUBLISHED:] I read that you play ten instruments, which is wild, do you have a favorite instrument?
[GRACE :] I do! I was super bad at sports in middle school so I had a lot of time on my hands. My favorite is guitar — I've been playing for 12 years, and I just feel like I can be so expressive through it, like an extension of myself. But the coolest one is lap steel guitar. I was raised in Texas and on old country music, so I just love how it sounds.
[UNPUBLISHED:] How do you think being well-versed in many instruments has helped make music?
[GRACE :] It's shaped my musicianship in so many ways. It's really encouraged me to not box myself into one particular sonic influence — my EP coming out early next year is taking inspiration from folk, singer-songwriter, indie, and even rock in some spots. It's pushed me to break free of any one chord progression or style. It's made me really intentional about how I'm composing songs and what chords I'm putting where. And it's made hanging around other musicians so much fun, just bouncing ideas off of each other and feeling like I know what I'm saying.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Where do you hope to see yourself in five years?
[GRACE :] I always shy away from being too ambitious or dreamy...but I know I'll have at least a few albums by then. I'd love to tour a few times too, because I was playing live shows for years before "Deny Me" came out. Writing with other people has become such a special process for me, and I'd love to keep doing that. This is the first time I've felt secure, confident, and good about any path I've been on, and I know I'm going to keep writing and releasing music that speaks straight from my heart to yours. No matter what that looks like, I'll be doing it full steam ahead. One more specific goal I have though...I would love to compose and arrange an album that can be played with a live orchestra, like so much of Laufey's discography and Faye Webster's "Car Therapy Sessions." And a Tiny Desk appearance. Scary Pockets too. I could be getting ahead of myself.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What is one fun fact about that not many people know about you?
[GRACE :] I'm a black belt in Tae Kwon Do!
