Grace Gardner Interview

We are excited to share our q&a with the talented singer-songwriter, Grace Gardner. Gardner's innate ability to tell a story through her music has quickly enraptured her audience. The Texas native's captivating vocals and mesmerizing instrumental performances blend her influences, from the legendary Stevie Nicks, to the iconic '70s rock, southern folk, and New Orleans jazz. Her debut EP, Peach, is a sensational showcase of her unique and authentic sound.

With ten different instruments showcased throughout Peach's tracklist, Gardner's virtuosity is unmistakable. The EP is a reflection of her musical journey, delving bravely into the difficult moments of her young adulthood and offering a cathartic release for her emotions.

Don't miss the chance to experience Gardner's music for yourself. Peach is now available on all major streaming platforms. We recently had the privilege of interviewing Grace for 1824, where she shares insights into the creative process behind her latest release and draws on her Texas roots. Catch the exclusive interview below!

Congratulations on your upcoming EP! What are you most proud of on this release? And is there anything you learned through the process of making Peach that you think you'll carry with you into future projects?

Oh, absolutely. I think for the second one, I was really stubborn in the production. Honestly, in a way where I didn’t trust anyone else to channel what I was thinking in my brain into logic. So I spent hours and hours on Logic and learned it myself, which was fine for a while, but it's also grueling work. So I learned to delegate responsibilities. I started to get to a point with my career where I'm welcoming people to my team and having a tour manager or a day-to-day manager. There’s these new components of things I didn't know even existed because I'm just a girl from a small town in Texas. I’m not really familiar with this world at all, so learning how to delegate was the biggest thing, and relinquishing some responsibilities

What did you learn through the process of making [Peach]? What do you think you'll carry with you into your future projects?

It was fun to collaborate with a lot of my friends on it. I live pretty far from a lot of my collaborators since a lot of my musician friends lived in New Orleans and I guess I can touch on later like why I chose to move to Austin, but all my collaborators lived there. Some of them were up in Canada, out in LA, or out in London. Learning how to coordinate all of that was great, but a little stressful.

And I read in a previous interview Twenty Minutes Later that you mentioned that your song “Deny Me” feels more like you because you were more secure in yourself as a musician. While working on this EP, has that process continued? Feeling more like you're coming into your own sound?

Yeah, I think every song I release continues to give that feeling. “Deny Me” was important to my healing from that heartbreak at that point. And then I released “Scorpions” as a part of a project, but it also came at a really good time in my healing at that point. And then I released “Parcel,” and that was kind of a final moment of anger just one final “screw you” to the universe type of thing, until I can let it go close to the box type of sitch. So everything has really come at a good time, and I feel more in touch with my artistry with every release. I really loved “Parcel” I'm an alternative girl. I loved Sleeping With Sirens in middle school. That was my Jam. I’m a big fan of guitars and loud stuff. I want to go more in that alternative direction, in like the Madison Cunningham zone. “Parcel” was really in touch with them.

Speaking of Parcel. Was the preconcieved idea of the song or what you invisioned similar to the final outcome?

Not even a little similar. I was looking back in my text messages, actually, because I felt like I was probably going to be asked about this. I'd written it in August, and I had just moved to Austin from New Orleans and the person that it’s about was mailing me the rest of my stuff. So it started out as really sad and acoustic, and my music director who also lives in New Orleans was like, “Dude, you got a pep it up a little.” This sounds like it could have a little bit of edge. Growing as a musician in New Orleans made me much more inclined to have more percussive guitar and instrumentals, so it ended up not at all being acoustic and being much more angry, but I love it so much more. But we're kind of seeing if we want to do an acoustic little B-side situation just to see.

And my final question. Something that draws me to your music is the vulnerability in your songwriting and how it seems to come from personal experience. Do you feel like songwriting helps you better understand the situation you're writing about? or maybe even change the way you view what you're writing about?

Honestly, I feel like I use it in both ways. I definitely use it as a processing tool. I have since I ever since was little to gain some kind of understanding. At the time when I started writing when I was in middle school and high school I was experiencing things and feeling things that were too big for me to comprehend. I do it to get some understanding, but I also like to write from other people's perspectives towards me. Like, I've tried to write from my ex's perspective. I use songwriting really as a tool to gain an understanding of the things around me.

Thats it for me! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions.

Thank you dude, I appreciate it.