Meet: Gracie Gray

LA-Based  singer-songwriter and producer,

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Join us as we chat with Gracie about her newly released album, Magnet, the process of making it, what creative freedom looks like, and more.

Photo by: Jeffrey Robins

Before we start, for those who don’t know you, can you share with us what you do and where you’re based?

I’m a singer-songwriter and producer based out of Los Angeles. Currently, I’m living in upstate New York, in the Catskills. It’s kind of recent, so I’m not sure if I’m based out of here, but I am here.

Your newly released album Magnet explores themes of human connections and the complexities of attraction. Could you tell us more about the concept behind the album and what inspired you to explore these themes?

I was writing from a place of yearning to understand myself and my own experiences. If I could write about anyone else and have more of a vision, I would. But instead, it comes from the human place of no binary answers to most of the questions I want to ask. Everything becomes more complicated the second I try to explain it because the unfortunate reality is that nothing is completely easy to understand or static in real life. It’s all complex, and the meanings change with time. So, especially in the realm of human connection, I felt like Magnet was the best word to describe something completely natural but difficult to explain. 

Your music has drawn comparisons to artists like Mazzy Star and Grouper! Who are some of your current musical influences, and how have they inspired your songwriting and production process?

Definitely inspired by both of those artists in the realm of production and mixing. They’re really special to me. Currently I feel a bit open to anything inspiring me, and trying not to get too obsessed with any artist in particular. I really want what I’m working on right now to be as genuinely close to the roots of it as possible. I know it sounds a bit wooey but I feel really lit up and inspired by nature right now…searching to recreate sounds and moments I have outdoors.

Your single Envy has a deeply personal and emotive quality. How did the songwriting process unfold for this track, and what was the journey like from its inception to its final version on Magnet?

Envy was the very beginning of me trying to do things differently. It was written towards the end of the writing process for my first album, Oregon In A Day. For that album, which is mostly acoustic and sparse, I just let the songs be exactly as they are, with little production tricks or dynamics shaping them. But for Envy, I decided to create a drum loop first and write to that, which is also why the drums are pretty repetitive for that song cause I got used to the loop and made the dynamics happen everywhere else. I tried to fit it into Oregon In A Day and then Anna, my second album, but it didn’t work with any of those albums. So, Magnet was perfect for it, and here we are. 

Looking back at some of your earlier works like Oregon In A Day, how do you think your sound evolved since?

I feel like it’s evolved in terms of I love to try more experimental sounds, instead of just imagining what can be done in a live setting. Overall, some of the songs I make now and in the future will continue to be more sparse like Oregon In A Day, and some I’ll be able to play with production wise, as is heard with some on Magnet, particularly with a song like Sea of Glass. 

Thinking about evolution, growing up homeschooled in LA, do you think your upbringing shaped/influenced your music and creative process?

It definitely allowed for it. I had a serious amount of free time. And wasn’t down to put that energy into sports. When I was around 13 I got into volunteering at therapeutic horseback riding programs, and the rest of my time was spent learning how to record my songs on an 8-track Zoom digital recorder my Dad had been using. 

You mentioned that producing and mixing Magnet was a growing experience for you. How did you approach the production of this album differently from your previous works?

The biggest difference was recording drums with a new collaborator, Ryan McDiarmid. Like other albums, I had recorded everything else already to a drum loop, and tracking drums came last. But they make such a huge difference, especially how they are recorded and what drums are used. He put a lot of time and thought into all of it, and I think that new influence definitely changed the sound a lot.

In that same vein, what role does creative freedom play in your solo projects?

The biggest role, absolutely. I think I’m not really the kind of person that collaborates well if I care as much as I do when it’s my songs…I really feel like it’s my responsibility to get the most genuine representation of the feeling I’m trying to convey. So working with someone else in a creative sense can be challenging if we’re not in the same place all the time, which is unrealistic. So, working on things myself is just where I’m at right now; it’s where I’m able to fully execute things without navigating someone else’s input. I don’t feel this way about everything, but with my songs, I usually know exactly what I want, and I am pretty set on that.

If I’m helping with someone else’s songs, it’s much more of a relaxed situation, and I get to really learn from others’ perspectives in regards to their music and how they feel.

We know Magnet took over three years to make—that must have had its challenges and rewards. Can you share a bit with us about those highs and lows?

I think the highs were the writing process and demo-making process. I felt proud of the songs. The lows were the mixing and production stuff when I had to fix issues…I am not the most tech-savvy dude there is, so asking for help on things was a must. I had to buy different programs that ended up not working well with my computer, then change everything to go back to what it was before I tried to fix it… stuff like that haha. Definitely felt like I shouldn’t be doing it all at some moments, but at the end of it, I understood why I needed to and that it was worth it. 

You mentioned that your solo project allows you to explore and grow without constraints. How has the journey of self-discovery through music influenced your personal growth and artistic expression?

Quite a lot. Releasing music under your own name can be an identity challenge at times. But overall, I think that the issues it brings up in me are things I should look at anyway. 

With the release of Magnet, what are you hoping listeners take away from this album?

I hope that whoever is meant to connect with it gets the chance to hear it. I don’t really have control over blasting it through the radio or giving it that opportunity. But I do think that it will find people in time if they’re open to it. 

Before we let you almost go, where can we find more of you?!

I’ll be playing an album release show (in real life!!) at Permanent Records on August 3rd. Besides that, my Instagram kind of promotes shows the most, as well as new releases. 

Let’s Get Deep 

What’s your theme song?

Somewhere Over The Rainbow

Night In or Night Out?

Night Out

When do you feel most you?

Sitting on the porch, imagining I’m a tree

What’s something you’re obsessed with right now?

Growing my own veggie garden and making a gigantic salad from it.

Call or Text?

Call

When was the last time you cried?

Yesterday

When’s the last time you laughed (like a big belly laugh)?

Yesterday

Current favorite follow on social media?

@safetravelspresents on Instagram. 

Lastly, what’s one thing you would tell your 16-year-old self?

Don’t try so hard in school

Find More of Gracie here:

Instagram: @graciegray.mp3

Listen to Gracie’s Playlist: Here