INTERVIEW: Lulu Simon Spills the Meaning Behind Her Newest Single ‘Strangers,’ Shares What She Is Passionate About, and Discusses Her Love for Sensitive Pop
Lulu Simon is using her sound and personal experiences to create her own path and share her passions through music.
Simon uses her latest single “Strangers,” inspired by her own experience, to share powerful vulnerability with her listeners. Her music is both cathartic and motivating. She grew up surrounded by music and has used that to develop her own voice and sound. Nothing is stopping this vibrant artist from making her unique voice heard. When Lulu decided it was time to go full force with her music, she independently released her self-titled debut EP in 2019. The EP included hits like “How To Be Alone” and “Wasted.” Read our exclusive interview with Lulu below to find out more about growing up with a musical family, her love for acoustic songwriting, musicians that have influenced her, her message for fans, her dream performance, what’s next for her, and more.
GLITTER: Where are you from and where do you reside now?
LULU: I’m from New York but as of October, I’ve been living in LA for 2 years now.
GLITTER: What was it like growing up with a family where playing and creating music was at the forefront?
LULU: I mean it feels normal to me ’cause I don’t have anything to compare it to haha. But I suppose because it was incredibly supportive and nurturing, it made me feel like I could do it on my own, which I can and do so A+ I’d say.
GLITTER: You’re making a name for yourself and creating your own sound and path. Has singing and songwriting always been your passion?
LULU: Yes it has! I feel like I’ve always known this is what I was going to end up doing. It’s destiny.
GLITTER: What caused your love for acoustic songwriting?
LULU: Just being able to hold my instrument in my hand and thus hold the power of song in my hand made it that much easier to write. It feels more personal to me to be able to sit down wherever and get cozy with my guitar and write.
GLITTER: What was it like learning to play both the piano and then the guitar?
LULU: I feel like learning to play an instrument when you’re young is such a gift. Knowing how to play piano made me more confident in my ability to learn guitar.
GLITTER: How has your older brother Ade helped you on your journey?
LULU: Ade is just one of the most talented musicians/songwriters I know, so I feel incredibly lucky to have his perspective and input on my work. I think he just makes me a better songwriter by having such a thoughtful and creative ear.
GLITTER: Do you have a favorite memory associated with music and growing up?
LULU: When I was younger I used to be a bit of a scaredy-cat and I remember I was in DisneyWorld with my family. My older brother Ade convinced me to go on Space Mountain, which was my first rollercoaster ever, and I was terrified when I realized I couldn’t sit next to him. He told me to sing my favorite song if I was feeling scared and that it would help me feel better. So in the middle of Space Mountain, in the dark, I was just belting out “Bohemian Rhapsody” haha.
GLITTER: Who are some of your favorite musicians that have influenced you?
LULU: When I was younger I went through a huge Queen phase obviously, followed by a huge No Doubt phase. But honestly, I feel like my musical taste is all over the map, and in a way, I’ve really been influenced by every artist I’ve ever listened to in one way or another. Right now though, I love Carly Rae Jepsen, Kim Petras, Phoebe Bridgers, The 1975, Charli XCX, Lana Del Rey, etc, etc.
GLITTER: What is your favorite part of the songwriting process?
LULU: My favorite part of the songwriting process is just like really getting on a roll and letting the song pour out of you; like when you’re so inspired that you don’t even feel like you have to try, the song is just writing itself; it’s like the lyrics are puzzle pieces and I’m just putting them together.
GLITTER: Using songwriting as a means of self-expression is very powerful, what is it like listening to your songs once you finish writing them?
LULU: It’s actually weird, when I listen to my songs after I’ve written them I almost feel like I didn’t write them. Sometimes when I’m writing like I said, it feels like the song is writing itself, and so I’m surprised to hear myself singing certain things. I’m like “Girl, where did that come from?” and then I get jealous of myself when I have writer’s block too.
GLITTER: What did it mean to you when Rolling Stone called you “…a rising pop star hailing from the school of Carly Rae Jepsen?”
LULU: To be mentioned in the same sentence as Carly Rae Jepsen is an honor in and of itself. I love her so much, to be compared to her is a dream, and to be recognized at all by Rolling Stone felt really encouraging and validating for me, so that was dope.
GLITTER: What can you tell us about your new single “Strangers.”
LULU: I wrote “Strangers” from a very reactionary place. My feelings were super hurt, I was absolutely running myself into the ground trying to make this dude like me, becoming so anxious and insecure. I’m neither of those things in actuality so eventually, I just had to be like, “this isn’t working for me.” The guy was like, “Well, we can still be friends!” and I said, “I don’t wanna be friends, ok bye now :)”
GLITTER: Do you have a favorite lyric from the song?
LULU: I think my favorite lyric is probably “I don’t wanna know what you’ve been doing or who you’ve been doing it to” because I like to be cheeky. In fact, that’s the first line that I wrote of the 2nd verse and ended up building the whole verse around it.
GLITTER: What advice do you have for anyone currently dealing with a toxic relationship?
LULU: Get! The! Heck! Outta! There!!!!! It’s literally never worth it to put yourself in a miserable situation. Love is supposed to make you feel confident and comfortable, and if it’s making you feel anything less than CHERISHED, you have to ask yourself why that is. And then whether or not it’s something that can be salvaged. If not, don’t run your wheels into the ground. It’s exhausting and we don’t need that in our lives right now, we’re too cute for that.
GLITTER: Why is it important for you to be vulnerable with your music?
LULU: I think that there’s such a stigma around vulnerability, and seeing emotional sensitivity as weakness, when really that’s not the case. To be vulnerable is to be strong. Vulnerability is honesty, and I think that if you can be honest with yourself, you can encourage other people to be honest with you too and to be honest with themselves.
GLITTER: What made you fall in love with what you call ‘sensitive pop’?
LULU: I love sensitive pop because I’m very emotional but I’m also very energetic, so to be able to listen to music that tugs on my heartstrings but still lets me punch dance out my angst is a beautiful thing.
GLITTER: What is your go-to sensitive pop song?
LULU: My go-to sensitive pop song has definitely gotta be a Carly Rae bop, maybe “Your Type?” or “Tonight I’m Getting Over You?” “Party for One?!” It’s honestly impossible to choose. Her entire catalogue fits the bill, honestly.
GLITTER: Music can be cleansing in so many ways, what do you hope your fans gain while listening to it?
LULU: I just hope that if there are people listening to my music who need an emotional outlet, I’m able to provide any kind of catharsis for them. Listening to music during times of emotional turmoil has literally saved my life, it can be so empowering, or it can help aid in a good cry, which we all need sometimes. So I hope people are able to dance and cry to my music should they need to.
GLITTER: Do you have a certain message you hope fans get from you or your music?
LULU: Honesty is the most important thing; being honest with yourself about how you feel, being honest about acknowledging your own toxic behaviors or shortcomings, being honest about what you like about yourself, etc. To be emotionally transparent with yourself is a gift.
GLITTER: What was the moment you finished your self-titled debut EP like for you?
LULU: It was really exciting—a huge relief to have finally finished everything but also really nerve-racking to have my first, full body of work ready for consumption. Ultimately it was great though. I was ready for people to hear what I’d been working on and also I was ready for the attention.
GLITTER: Do you have a favorite song or one that means something particularly important to you from that debut EP?
LULU: My favorite song off of my EP is probably “Until I Do.” Sonically, it’s just such a good vibe, so dreamy and dramatic. I love it.
GLITTER: What did being on ‘Spotify’s Pop Rising, Fresh Finds’ and ‘Fresh Finds: Pop’ playlists for “How To Be Alone,” mean to you?
LULU: It was really wonderful to get that kind of recognition for “How To Be Alone.” That was my second release ever and I was feeling a little discouraged following my first release. I was underprepared and didn’t feel like my debut necessarily got the love that it deserved, so to have that for HTBA felt really reassuring. I don’t wanna tell anyone what to do, but I think that every single song I release should be put on these playlists every time ok thanks in advance 😉
GLITTER: Do you have a dream performance? Whether it be a certain award show or a certain venue?
LULU: I’d love to play an outdoor music festival at some point. Coachella, I’m ready when you’re ready.
GLITTER: Is there something particular that motivates you?
LULU: There are a lot of things that motivate me but mostly I just genuinely like the music that I make. The more music I make that I like, the more good music I have to listen to personally. It’s exciting to see how I can top myself, surprise myself, evolve. On a more shallow note, I’ll admit that I am motivated by the people who lacked confidence in my abilities. Watch THIS, suckers!
GLITTER: How do you prepare yourself for the release of new music?
LULU: I honestly don’t think about it too much, which I maybe probably should. I guess I just put positive vibes into the universe surrounding the song and hope that people like it and that I still like it and that we can all party about it together.
GLITTER: What can you tease about what’s next for you?
LULU: I’m just working on a ton of new music. I was a little slow to the draw at the beginning of quarantine, totally unmotivated, but now I’m flexing those writing muscles again. It feels good and it’s exciting. You all should be excited about it, too.
GLITTER: What is your dream music collaboration?
LULU: I would love to collab with Charli XCX. I feel like she and I could get in the studio and literally bang out hit after hit and y’know what? I bet we’d have fun doing it, too.
GLITTER: If there was a song to describe your life right now, what would it be?
LULU: “Maybe Everybody’s Changing” by Keane. I feel very much like life is changing all the time and I’m so resistant to change. I like to be comfortable which is maybe a toxic trait haha. I’m feeling so weird about everything and everyone changing all the time and nostalgic for how things used to be, which isn’t that different, I was just blissfully ignorant. Also maybe “On the Road Again” by Willie Nelson ’cause I wanna be out there in the world with my friends again, and not held hostage by COVID.
GLITTER: What have your days in quarantine been like?
LULU: They’re changing all the time. In the beginning, I was so certain I’d write a million bangers but instead, I started painting, specifically painting frogs, and I painted like actually maybe 1 frog a day for a month and a half.
GLITTER: What is your favorite place you’ve gotten to visit?
LULU: I’m so lucky that I’ve been able to travel, it’s so hard to choose a favorite place, but last summer I went to Positano on the Amalfi Coast. I was eating pasta and drinking limoncellos every day. It was heaven.
GLITTER: If you could snap your fingers and be anywhere in the world, where would that be, and who would you be with?
LULU: I feel like maybe I’d be in London with Harry Styles because why NOT.
GLITTER: Any favorite beauty products?
LULU: I wear so much makeup, and I love that for me, so it’s so hard to choose, but I feel like right now my favorite eyeshadow palette is the Lime Crime Venus 3. It has the perfect, shimmery pink and I wear it literally every day.
GLITTER: What’s your favorite item in your closet right now?
LULU: I just bought this pink puffball dress by Selkie and I’m obsessed with it. I have no real occasion to ever wear it which means that every single day is an occasion to wear it, which I do, and I look great.
GLITTER: Favorite scent?
LULU: I love the smell of Glossier’s perfume but also I love the smell of my grandma’s fried chicken, so…
GLITTER: What’s your favorite flower?
LULU: I like Morning Glories! But also here’s the thing—roses? Not at all overrated. They smell amazing.
GLITTER: Are you passionate about any particular causes?
LULU: I think in this day and age it’s impossible not to be passionate about social or environmental causes. As a feminist, I believe firmly in women’s rights, gender equality, power over our own bodies, etc. As an ally who recognizes that much of the music, TV, fashion, and humor that I love comes directly from the LGBTQ community, I’m passionate about LGBTQ rights. Because I am a human being, I obviously care about the Black Lives Matter movement, defund the police literally right now. As a person who lives on earth, I care about environmental issues, saving our planet, not burning alive because of climate change, etc. Like I said, with so much going on, it’s hard not to be passionate, we could talk about this all day.
GLITTER: Do you use your voice for change? If so, how?
LULU: I think the best way to use your voice for change is to just literally have conversations with people, open up perspectives, educate people when and where you can, and be open to being educated yourself. I’m lucky that I have the platform that I do, as small as she is, to be able to share my voice and speak up for the things that I believe in.
GLITTER: Glitter has a Celebrity #SelfLoveCampaign. What does self-love mean to you?
LULU: Self-love to me is forgiveness. I feel like it’s so easy, especially during this age of social media, to look at yourself and your life then minimize your accomplishments by comparing yourself to others, and that just isn’t fair. One person’s success does not negate the existence of your own, and you have to be forgiving and gentle with yourself and know that as long as you’re doing the best that you can then that’s amazing and worth celebrating.
GLITTER: What social media accounts should fans follow you on to keep up with your music?
LULU: I keep up with Instagram the most! Follow me hehe @lulusimonofficial
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