A Quick Chat with Lili Violet

Since your last release, how has your music evolved both in style and production? 
My last release ‘Blue’ only came out a few months ago and features on ‘Dear Lilith’ and I worked with Jarred Young again for the entire EP. Still, I think the final two tracks, ‘Whiskey Or Love (Rose-Coloured Glasses)’ and ‘Cut ‘N’ Run’ are more ‘theatrical’ pieces in terms of the production being bigger, instrumentation diverting from the usual early 2000’s pop/rock guitars that ‘Anxiety’, ‘Time + Space’ and ‘Blue’ feature, and they’re the start and finish to the storyline of ‘Dear Lilith’! 

Can you share any memorable moments or achievements from working on ‘Dear Lilith’?

We recorded ‘Blue’, ‘Whiskey Or Love (Rose-Coloured Glasses)’ and ‘Cut ‘N’ Run’ around the same time. We’d set aside I think 3 or 4 weekends to smash it all out. I had just lost my grandfather so being in the studio and singing about loss, trauma and mental health was actually quite an emotional experience but having the relationship I do with Jarred, it was quite therapeutic. I remember when we first figured out the riff for ‘Blue’ and being so excited for this next stage of the project seeing as we’d already completed ‘Anxiety’ during lockdown over Zoom in my bedroom with my Oodie as the sound-proofing and ‘Time + Space’ only just as Jarred moved back to Melbourne post-covid, so it was nice to finally spend some time figuring out the tracks I wanted in the EP and having space to just muck around until it felt right. 

"Whiskey Or Love (Rose-Coloured Glasses)" is the focus track of your new EP. Can you dive deeper into the inspiration behind this song and how it came together?
I’ve always been someone who had many long-term relationships. I even had a 2-year relationship from Year 7 to Year 9. During Covid, I went through a breakup of a 3-year relationship and let me tell you, ‘casual’ dating after having several long-term committed relationships feels weird, especially when you’re also going through the process of mental illness diagnoses, being in and out of lockdowns and only just moving out of home. This track is ultimately about how I really struggled to identify whether the attraction I was feeling towards these people I was dating, was real or whether I was lonely, bored, sad, or looking for any sign of ‘green flags’ that this person was into me for more than a one-time fling. 

Your music delves into sensitive topics like sexuality, identity, mental health, and disability. How do these themes manifest in ‘Dear Lilith’ and particularly in ‘Whiskey Or Love (Rose-Coloured Glasses)’?
‘Dear Lilith’ is essentially a love letter to myself. Growing up with family being in and out of hospital, death, childhood bullying, and my mum being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis when I was 7, I always was putting people first, always helping others and making myself further unwell and further unstable. It wasn’t until 2021 when all of the changes like moving out, lockdowns and breakups happened that I realised how much these incidents when I was growing up actually impacted me. When we were writing the final tracks to the EP, I wanted to be more vulnerable than I was in previous tracks. I wanted to show how the songs (that seemingly don’t sound like they’re related) are related. ‘Dear Lilith’ is an apology to my inner child who went through so much but didn’t have the skills or knowledge to handle it and put it all into her interpersonal relationships that inevitably crumbled. ‘Whiskey Or Love (Rose-Coloured Glasses)’ sounds like a happy, boppy, colourful track, but it isn’t until you get to the end that you realise it kind of sounds like I’m in a delusional state, which is where I was when I was making not the smartest decisions dating for validation that my inner child so badly wanted. 

If ‘Dear Lilith’ could be the soundtrack to any film or TV series, which one would you choose and why? How do you think your sound would complement the visual storytelling? 
I don’t know if I could label just one TV show or movie that the EP would be the soundtrack of, but I can imagine how a scene for each song in the TV show/film would go. I imagine it would definitely be an early 2000’s teen drama or coming-of-age film. The closest thing I can relate it to is ‘The Edge of Seventeen’.  

The girl is bullied by the popular kids, and wants to get the attention of the heartthrob, but works hard to improve herself after realising that’s what she needs. Instead of ending up with the jock or heartthrob, she works throughout the film/series to love herself! (I’m ready when you are Universal)
‘Cut ‘N’ Run’ would be the introduction song where the protagonist has just had a fight with her parents and is feeling pretty depressed/anxious and runs away. Slamming doors, yelling, and smokey rooms. 
‘Anxiety’ would be of her walking through a busy city with people walking past, rain pouring, saturating her clothes, mud on the ankles of her pants as she cries, no one noticing her at all. 
‘Blue’ would be the moment where she starts to realise the people in her life are doing more harm than good by making her change herself for their mould. I imagine this as she sees a text on her friend’s phone where her ‘friends’ are talking badly about her. 
‘Time + Space’ is the realisation that the gaps she felt inside her couldn’t be filled by anyone else. She needs to start the work to love herself again. I imagine this as a similar scene to ‘Easy A’ where Emma Stone embroiders the red ‘A’ on all of her clothes with Joan Jet’s ‘Bad Reputation’ in the background.
‘Whiskey Or Love (Rose-Coloured Glasses)’ would be where she starts to feel those thoughts of people-pleasing take over again and the temptation to make silly decisions for others’ validation comes back but she fights the cycle. The end scene of the movie/series is her driving along a long, straight, road looking out in the distance with ‘maybe next time I won’t fall in head first’ being the final line of the movie as she looks out the window, back on her old city. 

If you could have dinner with three people, dead or alive, who would they be and why? How do you think these conversations would influence your music or outlook on life? 

I think right now, it would be great to pick Chappell Roan’s brain about the masterpieces she creates. Her persona is really bloody awesome to me. I love how she creates these characters for each show and each music video. She is a once-in-a-lifetime artist and although she’s early in her ‘fame’ I would be really interested to see how she’s handled this sudden rocket to stardom. It’s so cool to see happen but I can’t help but imagine there’s been a LOT of problems she’s faced that would be great to know especially as an emerging queer femme artist. 

I’ve always loved Frida Khalo and everything she stood for. The advocacy she participated in and her art has always been something I’ve been fascinated by. Growing up she was another inspiration as I had hair between my brows and was bullied for it and my mum always used to say something along the lines of, ‘If Frida looked gorgeous with it, so do you.’. 

The final one would be Amy Winehouse. I’ve been covering ‘Valerie’ for over a decade as it’s one of my favourite songs of all time. The talent she had, the struggles she went through, while on the world’s stage. She was so young and dealt with so much in an age where paparazzi were everywhere and there was no chance for her to get the help she needed. She also brought soul and jazz into the mainstream which I also think is pretty badass. 

I think sitting in a room eating and chatting with these three powerhouses would be iconic, amazing and truly thought-provoking. 

When you’re not making music, what might we find you doing? Are there any hobbies or interests that you pursue outside of your musical career that help you unwind or find inspiration?

Apart from music, I enjoy advocacy in the disability and mental health space but aside from that, I dabble in my range of half-mastered ADHD hobbies. You may see me at a show with little packets of resin earrings in a range of colours from pink, blue and purple and surprise, they’re all handmade personally by yours truly! In my downtime, I’m a sucker for online shopping sales, youtube funny video compilations or sitting down with a comfort show (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Parks And Rec, New Girl, Community) on the TV while I do paint-by-numbers, drawing, knitting or anything in my cupboard of activities. 

Your EP launch at Nighthawks in Collingwood sounds exciting. What can fans expect from this event, and how are you preparing to bring ‘Dear Lilith’ to life on stage?

The EP launch will also be a bit of a birthday party as it’s on my birthday! I’m planning some decor surprises (glitter is highly encouraged!), I have some amazing local talent and friends, JAMISON and Kaiyah Mercedes opening for me, it's my first headliner show and the first show with two guitarists to try and bring the live show as close to the recordings as possible! Lots of firsts for this show and you’ll have to be there to see the magic I have planned so you can grab your tickets here https://events.humanitix.com/dear-lilith-ep-launch 

You’ve mentioned that songwriting started as a therapeutic strategy for you. How do you hope your music, especially the tracks on ‘Dear Lilith’, will impact and resonate with listeners who might be going through similar struggles?

I know many people experienced bullying and trauma as children. I know we often do feel alone. I know it can be really hard to get the help we need and the support we need when we’re feeling down and low. I’ve been in that exact space. Unfortunately, we live in a world where these things are so common. If even one line of one of the songs in this EP resonated with someone or made them feel seen, understood or supported, then I’ve done my job.