Julien Baker

“I love 'Exit West' by Mohsin Hamid. It's a magical realism retelling of the refugee experience, where people find these magical doors that transport them to another country.”

“I hate those articles - this is a pet peeve of mine - like move over X, here's the new Y. And it's just like, X didn't become obsolete because there's a person doing a similar thing. You also don't have to be like the new old-thing, you're just the current you-thing.”

“There are people I haven't seen for a year and we will do a show or something and when we hang out it'll be this instant endearment. I'm like, 'Our lives, the cosmos, are intersecting, and this will bring us closer together again. I have no doubt.'”

“One thing I'm super aware of in my music when I'm writing is: 'Am I overcomplicating this?' I'll write a song about some deep existential quandary and explore all these dumb thought waves, and then think 'Is it effective to say that? Or is it effective to say one simple thing that communicates the feeling better?'”

“The thing that is comforting about being a touring musician is whenever I say bye to my friends, I'm like, 'I don't know when I'll see you again but it'll be sooner than I think and if it's not soon then it won't matter.'”

“My dad took me to the skate park every single weekend to see alternative bands.”

“Ultimately, I feel like there is just a pervasive evidence of God. Though I know that is maybe a controversial thing to say.”

“Writing songs has always been a process where I divulge a lot, just because music is a tool for me to sift through and process intense emotions. But having music be my primary occupation has changed how I interact with art.”

“When I am writing alone I try to just write for myself without thinking, like, this will go on a record.”

“I stan my friends!”

“Cameron Esposito is a musician and podcaster from the States and she's hilarious.”

“Some shows feel very reverent - when you're in a seated theater, no one really sings. I love it when people sing! I wish people would sing all the time. Because one of my favorite things when I get to do as a musician is step away from the microphone and listen to everyone sing together.”

“I think it's possible for Tennessee to be flipped to a Democratic majority, which would be beneficial to enacting policies that I would like to see, but beyond party allegiance, we have an opportunity to involve ourselves in change that will empower us not just now but in the future.”

“Tolerance exists.”

“Especially with women in music there is this unnecessary competitive element. And, like, why? Why do people do things where they try to put peers up against each other?”

“I'm not going to force your participation in a conversation, I'm going to say I can be an example that these things can exist and don't have to be mutually exclusive. Like being a queer artist and being a Christian. Those things don't have to be mutually exclusive and I'm just going to be honest about them so that you know.”

“I do have a little bit of trouble with candor around the things that I used to do. I think it's probably just resultant of shame and embarrassment and not wanting to be defined by the life that I used to live.”

“If I can say so without sounding presumptuous, I want to model women being collaborative instead of competitive.”

“It's super cool to me when my manager screencapped Sharon Van Etten saying my album is great on Twitter and I about cried 'cause she's a hero. And that led to... I got to have lunch with her! I got to meet a hero!”