Interview: Theia finds her stride in being shamelessly herself
New Zealand singer Theia releases her new, hugely rousing EP ‘Not Your Princess’. In just her second EP, Theia blurs the lines between feelings of empowerment, freedom and helplessness; highlighting the fact that these emotions all form part of the human spirit. Theia talks about her growing confidence, and how it translates onto her latest body of work.
As Theia introduces herself to me, she exudes personableness and liveliness like no other. As we plunge into conversation, her fervour to advance as a musician through collaboration and continue exploring the avenues of music is enlightening.
You speak about collaborating with other writers and artists, did you do that on ‘Not Your Princess’? How did that come into fruition?
Yes, so I basically had a session [in Sydney]. My manager knew Quinn who produced ‘Not Your Princess’ and knew his team. They were keen to try us in a session together. I didn’t really know anything about him and what his vibe would be and if we’d even connect. It was kind of like a blind date situation. I went in there and about an hour in we messaged my manager a voice note of the chorus. Honestly, it just went from there. She was like, ‘you’ve gotta finish this’. That day, it was done. It was so quick and so easy and just a really, really cool vibe.
Did you have the raw idea before meeting?
I’m a total lyric fiend. I have pages and pages of notes on my phone and hooks on my voice memos. I keep all my ideas in different little files. Sometimes I’ll see a couple of words, sometimes they’ll be entire sentences. I’m in this really sassy, angry and passionate mood with all of my writing at the moment. The first note I’d written down that I saw just said ‘I’m back with a vengeance’ and something about ‘none of your business’ and ‘bow down in my presence’ and all that and it kind of just automatically hooked me. The first lyric that I probably came up with was ‘I am not your princess, stay out of my business’. It was very natural and cool.
Do you think Quinn was surprised by your boldness and ability to be forthright?
Yeah! That is one thing that really impressed me. I’ve obviously worked with a number of dudes and they’re all fab in their own way. For me to go in with a guy I’ve never met, I kind of walked in and told him the vibe sonically in terms of production. It all of a sudden came to me that it’s going to be ‘I am not your princess stay out of my business’ and all about pushing back against the patriarchy, especially in music and being a woman. I know that I shouldn’t be surprised, and it should be a given that no matter what your views are, when you go into a space it should be safe.
He handled it incredibly and it’s amazing. He totally understood the concept. He’s a great dude. A really, really cool dude. I think this is just a cool partnership. Also, musically, you’ll notice that the bridge in ‘Not Your Princess’ is super turnt. It’s all 808s and kind of hip hop meets rock as well. He’s got a background in metal which is really cool, so I think he brings a lot of edge to pop which is what I’m about. I was impressed with how openminded and respectful he is. He doesn’t challenge me, just supports and goes with the vibe.
The bridge in ‘Not Your Princess’ takes its own mould, being the climax of the song, and has an emphatic, anthem quality.
Can you talk about that arrangement?
I really wanted it for this song because it is so strong and powerful and so statement. I agree that most bridges are this moment where it seems like ‘oh crap, we need a bridge, let’s just put something in’. For this song I just knew. Every section of the journey of the song… you have the verse and it’s one pop of a vibe, then the pre-chorus and then the chorus. Each one has its own energy and is like a hook in itself. I just knew for the bridge I wanted it to be that chanting, really strong, girl power almost Icona Pop meets M.I.A, meets Charli XCX sort of thing. I really love Brooke Candy and Natalia Kills. I just wanted it to be turnt and crazy with loads of 808s and I told Quinn that I really want a distortion.
We did the verse, pre-chorus and chorus in the first sitting we had together, then I went away, and I wrote the bridge in an Airbnb. It didn’t have any prod (production), and I told him the world that I wanted for the prod and he did it. He came up with a really cool dog bark in there. It’s like a pitbull and he put some verb and distortion on it and it almost turned into a drum, which is so sick. It was a combo of both of us. I’ve heard a lot of people compliment the 808s and the artfulness of the bridge which is incredible. I’m all about making the bridge really, really sick and in my new stuff it’s definitely being [explored]. In ‘Candy’, ‘Not Your Princess’ and even the new stuff I’m working on beyond this record, the bridge is the peak of the song. It picks you up again.
Do you think the song getting on radio gave you more confidence? Seeing something that steers away from the norm make it mainstream?
Completely! It really did. It was really cool because there are no rules. It’s its own beast. Whether you talk about any platform, like YouTube, Spotify or even radio, there are so many songs that don’t make the cut and it’s not always down to the song. It is also down to the gatekeepers, or whatever it is. It’s mind blowing that it has made it on radio and people are hearing it. It’s more of an encouragement to myself to follow my gut and not to cater to any particular thing and make what I really love.
Theia fights fire with fire, using the track as a vehicle to break ties with objectification. In a climate where femininity is synonymous with weakness, Theia proves that femininity is valuable and should be welcomed with open arms.
What events and people have instilled in you that femininity is strong?
In this particular climate, all over the world, women are definitely underdogs. It’s happened for ages and it’s something that’s finally being spoken about now. For me personally, it’s so weird, all of these things you don’t really think about. You’re just trying to survive and get through, and when you’re in this industry you get asked questions and it makes you process things.
I’ve always been that kid on the outside, from when I was at school. I’ve done my dash where I spent years trying to fit in and it never worked. I was always on the outside, I was always that loser, bullied kid. I tried so many times to fit in and cater to what I thought other people wanted. Finally, I just realised whatever. It’s cool being on the outside, because it makes you realise that you can’t please anyone and the best thing to be is yourself. People love that. People are hungry to see people that are totally themselves.
In terms of being a woman, I find a lot of strength in it. I also find that is the source of most of the prejudice, especially being in the music industry. You’re fighting against that all the time. Online, it was really interesting. This is the first song that I’ve outright released that has a feminine pronoun in it. This is the song I’ve received the most hate from. There’s comments online, mostly all dudes that tell me to kill myself.
It’s indicative of the climate right now and how triggering it can be for some people seeing a woman say ‘enough’s enough’. I’m no-one’s princess. You won’t tell me what to do, I freaking do my own thing. That’s full on for some people and that’s exactly the reason I need to do this. That gives me strength. I would rather provoke instead of not give anyone any emotion.
Even the music video, there’s so much pressure put on artists to conform to that image of opulence. I don’t want to go into thousands of dollars of debt trying to make a music video. I’m going to do it on my laptop and it’s going to be sick and people will love it because it’s genuine and I’m doing it in my bedroom where I make my music. It’s been the most positive [reaction]. Obviously, there’s people that are after negativity and want to hassle you and whatnot, but [the rest] is amazing. All of these things give me more strength and I realised that being myself if what makes me happy. This whole record came so quickly and every song came so quickly. Whereas my other record, I was making music and I loved making [it], but I definitely felt so restrained. I feel like I’ve come into a new sense of freedom and that’s just dope.
Theia’s newest EP ‘Not Your Princess’ contrasts significantly from her first self-titled EP. ‘Not Your Princess’ showcases Theia’s evolution into a more daring and thrilling avenue of music. As she breaks ties with pain and claims her independence, she brings an edge and unpredictability in her musical approach.
Was this more boisterous approach something you always endeavoured to tap into, or something you discovered more recently?
I feel like I’m making the music I’ve always wanted to make. It was kind of always there, because even my demos before I was even Theia were quite experimental. Funnily enough, they sounded more like what I was making now. It’s been a huge journey. Growing up and finding my feet a bit, everything happened so quickly after my first song ‘Roam’. I felt slumped and then just made my first EP. I love the songs [on Theia] of course, but I feel like I’m in a place of strength and not caring anymore.
It is an incredible testament because the music I am making now, like ‘Candy’, ‘Not Your Princess’ and ‘Bye Bye’, that’s the stuff that everyone’s reacting to and that’s my favourite stuff so far. It is way more out there, and I’m already onto my new stuff which is even more out there. When you are yourself, that’s the easiest thing to be. You don’t have to strive for anything else and there’ll be people that don’t like you, but more so, there’ll be people who appreciate you for being you. It’s pretty hard in this world to be authentic and genuine.
Why do you think social commentary and addressing stigmatised and tabooed topics through music is something people gravitate to?
I think that people are hungry for authenticity. People are after other people who say the things that they can’t say themselves. Or, they just don’t know how to process or put into words how they feel; That’s why I’ve always loved music because when I was younger I wouldn’t talk about any of my problems. I just couldn’t figure out how to articulate how I was feeling. When I would hear music, I was like ‘oh my god! This is how I feel!’. I put the good and bad in the music.
I used to be like ‘it’s not all autobiographical’, and I understand that some people’s music isn’t and I’m sure there will be times where I don’t write about my own experiences, but for now, it’s incredibly freeing [to write about my experiences]. It took a lot of emotional reinforcement to be able to release ‘Bad Idea’ because it’s about self-harm and recovery. When I did, I thought ‘wow, the amount of people that said that this meant to much’. ‘Bye Bye’, ‘Candy’ and ‘Not Your Princess’ helped so many queer kids come out. Obviously, this is the fruit from being yourself. It’s more in your face, but more people connect with it.
Do you think that creating an entire persona and image is important to have alongside the music?
I think both are important. The artists I adore, like the Bjork’s, Gaga’s, Brooke Candy’s and the Rihanna’s all have such a strong sense of self. I understand that an on-stage persona can be completely different to who you are, but for me it’s a form of self-expression. I am Theia and Theia is me. In the art. I’m in full on, high-fashion and frilly dresses, but with heavy necks and crazy boots. I [have] street looks, everyday wear and I’ll wear a vintage tee and a big huge jacket.
I always get comments with people saying ‘you’re so fashionable’, and I think ‘thank you, that’s incredible’, but I’m just doing my thing. It’s definitely a huge part of me as an artist. In the same way my music is me just being who I am, talking about what I want and pushing the boundary of what people are used to hearing and seeing or being comfortable with, it’s kind of the same thing I try and do with my fashion. I just want to evoke emotion and be myself and do something fresh.
Can you talk about also evoking emotion in the way you pull on your vocal delivery?
I think when I look at my first EP, the tone is sweet. It’s very sweet and ethereal. You can still hear emotion, but this ‘Not Your Princess’ EP is definitely more in your face. I’ve experienced more freedom and opening up a lot. It’s a physical thing and you can hear it in the music. I never used my full voice and [was never] open with my vocal. In this record, you can hear in the same song, I’ll have some shouty, like in ‘Not Your Princess’ in the bridge, in the chorus it’s quite open, but a little husky and in the verses it’s almost like a sing-shout. It’s so different. I think I’ve opened up completely.
In ‘Bad Idea’, it’s sweet, but hurting. It was just a more open sound, open lyrically, production wise as well. It’s been really interesting, as I’ve grown my lyrics are more in your face and so is my vocal because I’ve given that permission to myself to be like ‘you know what? You don’t have to try and be so careful and make everything sound pretty’. The truth is, my voice is my voice and I’ve got my own unique tone. Regardless of whether I am using my full voice, or falsetto or shouting, it sounds like me and it’s beautiful. It’s all in confidence and it’s been an incredible journey.
The latest EP brings forth an extensive display of sounds in production. Theia creates waves of eeriness and mystery, yet balances it with the inclusion of tracks that exhibit a lighter, more colourful energy.
How has the journey of production developed itself?
The production has come into its own. I get turnt to heavy, sassy and edgy, huge sounds and a lot of hip hop, trap and also rock influences. I’ve been listening to a lot of that. For instance, in ‘Bye Bye’ I went in and I said to the producer the sound I want. I want[ed], Rihanna, her ‘Anti’ album meets radio hit. That’s how we made [it]. It kind of is a hard [song], but with dashes of ethereal and stereotypically feminine sounds.
I’m playing with a lot of distortion at the moment. In ‘Candy’ half of the lead vocal is distorted and in ‘Not Your Princess’ as well. I’ve been inspired by Neil Young and Natalia Kills as well. I love using those different textures. As far as production, I’m using different textures. It’s so fun and I don’t put limits on anything now. I just want to experiment and see how it goes.
Has it been challenging to have an abundance of tools?
As in overwhelmed? No! When I felt most overwhelmed, through some self-reflection in a really downward period was just before I wrote ‘Candy’. The most overwhelmed I felt was then because I was like, ‘crap. What am I doing?’
I [was] spending my time freaking out about what people think of me and what I’m going to do next and what my sound is. I realised that, and my team was amazing. Before ‘Candy’, I honestly had some days where I felt so low and lost. I went in [to the studio] and it was absolutely terrifying because of how I was feeling. ‘Not Your Princess’, the next song after ‘Candy’, I went in and I was like ‘I know exactly what I want to do’.
It’s always been there, and I know the sound I want, I just had to give myself permission to just do it. Weirdly, the most overwhelmed and challenging time I experience was when I wasn’t making that. Now, I feel like I’ve stepped into this new sense of self and freedom as a person and a woman. I feel more fearless and strong.
Do you think the hardship you faced and getting through the low points gave you an added sense of pride in your work?
Oh, for sure honestly. I’m kind of like, I wish this happened earlier, but the low points give you time to think and figure out exactly who you want to be. If it was great all the time, if you were just experiencing highs all the time, you wouldn’t have time for self-reflection and be able to decide ‘is this where I want to be? Is this what I want to be making?’
I’m really thankful for it because I don’t know if I would’ve turned off the receptors and decided to step into who I wanted to be and the sound I wanted to make [without it]. Now I just feel so happy. That anger is also what has driven me. That anger of being on the outside, not being good enough and having people pass you by or not believe in you and take you for granted fuels my fire. So, thank you to everyone that’s done that. I’m just feeling great.
Theia uses her creativity and forwardness to help listeners find their own voice. Her talent is insurmountable, clearly noted by the fresh perspective, and assertive attitude she advocates in her music. She breaks through the world’s chaos and turmoil, using the EP as a vehicle to preach the message that, “it’s okay to feel like you don’t fit in. I love you and people love you. There’ll definitely be somewhere for you to fit and the coolest and probably the most brave thing for you to do is to decide to be yourself”. ‘Not Your Princess’ captures Theia surging through, unperturbed by any troubles and being genuinely ecstatic about the direction that life is taking her.
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