Exclusive Interview: Alix Page Evolves With ‘Girlfriend’

The last time we officially heard from Alix Page, she was exploring all sides of a relationship. Be it the good, the bad, or the ugly, trust Alix Page to cover it on her 2023 EP Goose. Through five songs, she mused about the simple pleasures of a life lived with love, then mixed in the complexities of life in your twenties. Goose works through the question posed in Alix’s debut Old News: How does a person make the most of their coming-of-age? She allowed fans to think this over, and now she’s back.

Whether you’ve come to your own conclusions about growing up or not, Alix Page is ready to move on to the next phase of her life, and her music. With a time capsule left in her wake, she can remember exactly how it felt being eighteen, nineteen, and now twenty-two. As for age twenty-two, she’s starting off with a catchy alternative indie tune about love. Her joy in ‘Girlfriend’ is contagious, as she admits that she has learned to embrace the passage of time. No longer a looming threat, she is excited to see what the future will bring.

And we can’t wait to experience the future with Alix. As we prepare for this exciting new phase of Alix Page, we chatted with her all about what brings her joy, including her music.

For the full experience, stream ‘Girlfriend’ here while you read!

‘Girlfriend’

Welcome to the Honey Pop! As an introduction to the ‘Girlfriend’ era for our readers who may not be familiar with your music, can you give us your best pickup line?
Oh god I’m so lame … “We should get coffee sometime”

As a teaser for your next phase of music, is there anyone you’ve been listening to recently who has influenced your songwriting?
I would say top of the list is Slow Pulp, Ratboys, Regina Spektor, and Alex G. I’ve been really inspired by bands and pretty minimal, live-leaning arrangements.

Your song ‘Girlfriend’ is about your excitement to be with this person and all the things you would do for them. What’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever done, or that someone has done for you?
Awwwwww. I made my boyfriend a CD of voice memos of my songs that are about him for our anniversary last week; that’s probably up there. So lovey dovey and disgusting of me. I really do think romance is in the little things! Little surprises here and there go a long way. Almost every night my boyfriend and I take turns surprising the other with one treat of choice to share from the liquor across the street. It’s pretty much always a Twix or a Poppi or Oreos. He’s also sold merch for me on my last two tours for free, so there’s that too.

‘Girlfriend’ is the first song you’ve released in over a year. How is releasing music now different from your first release, which was right before the first COVID lockdown?
In a weird way I feel like I’m in the same headspace I was when I released ‘Stripes’ in 2020; I’m really just having fun, working with friends, and releasing songs that I love without any huge expectations. I’m back to doing things fully independently so I feel really uninhibited and motivated right now. Obviously my audience has grown and I’m four years older but yeah – trying to get back to the roots of why I started releasing music in the first place and just having fun with it : )

Songwriting

A lot of Goose is riddled with uncertainty and is written almost as a question. You seem a lot more confident in ‘Girlfriend.’ Because of that, was writing ‘Girlfriend’ at all different from the writing process for Goose?
I was definitely in a more confident place in my life working on ‘Girlfriend’ and the other new songs. Before I started writing them I hadn’t written anything in months; the release of Goose and the preparation for my headline tour last year was really stressful and took a bit of a toll on my mental health and ability to produce new material from a healthy place. After tour ended, I was the most inspired I had been in a loooong time. Playing all of the Goose songs live was super refreshing, I had a crush I was really giddy about, and I was listening to a TON of new music (mostly recommendations from said crush) that was getting me outside my comfort zone and inspiring me and pushing my writing in a new direction.

Other than that, the writing process of the actual songs was more or less the same! Some were collaborative, some I started by myself and finished in the studio, and some I brought in completed in full by myself. That combination of solo vs. collaborative is a really nice balance for me.

What we and your biggest fans love about your songs is how confessional and vulnerable it is. Have you ever written a song that you deem too personal to release?
I don’t think that’s happened yet. I definitely get specific in my songs but I try to steer away from writing anything that feels like I’m oversharing or airing out someone else’s personal business; if it’s more about me and my feelings, I’m kind of an open book! Usually, if I choose not to release a song it’s just because it wasn’t the strongest out of the bunch or I feel like I’ve grown out of it.

There’s one song on the upcoming EP called ‘Bb’ (B flat) that I wrote in 2020 and could have put on Goose or Old News but chose not to because it felt almost too personal and I wanted to have one song that was just my secret forever. For whatever reason, now feels like the right time to share it and it weirdly fits in better with these new songs than the other ones I wrote in 2020. That kind of thing makes songwriting feel like time travel, it’s so crazy.

In that way, your songs are kind of like diary entries. You’ve also spoken about the importance of journaling in your life. How does your journaling process differ from songwriting?
My journaling is super scattered and messy. 99% of the time it’s bullet points or play-by-plays of my very normal, very boring days; it’s almost never fully developed thoughts or even full sentences. That’s why I love journaling though! It’s so valuable to write for the sake of writing and scribble random things down without worrying that it’s going to make sense or make for a good song. A lot of people say writing a bad song gets you one step closer to writing your best song; that’s how I feel about journaling.

’25’ might be your most popular song, and you released it when you were 19 years old. Fast forward three years, where do you see yourself at age 25? Has it changed at all from when you wrote the song?
I honestly have no idea; everything feels so unpredictable and blurry right now. In a perfect world, I’ll have played in some new places and gotten to travel and tour a ton (I reeeeally want to go to Japan; obviously it’d be insane to play there at some point but I would love to go just for fun too. And I reeeeally want to go back to Europe, or more specifically headline in Ireland and Copenhagen). A dog and a place with a backyard would be nice.

I don’t really remember what I thought twenty-five would look like when I was eighteen writing about it. Until recently and especially at the time, it felt kind of foreboding, like it was creeping up on me or something. I definitely don’t think I thought I’d be touring this much before I made it to twenty-five; I didn’t really know it was possible this early on in my career. That’s definitely been the biggest surprise and biggest gift so far.

A Day In The Life Of Alix Page

On social media, you often post weekly recaps and newsletters. Can you give us a fun behind-the-scenes story from this week in your life?
On Sunday afternoon I was in a movie theater seeing Fly Me To The Moon with my dad; I was supposed to leave Orange County to go back up to LA that evening, but mid-movie I checked my phone (sorry) and my friend Erin had texted me asking if I wanted to go to Disneyland for free a couple hours from then. After the movie was done I raced home, changed my shoes, met her at the park, and we ended up staying till 11:30. Got a corn dog, and got to ride Rise of the Resistance, it was so much fun and so spontaneous. Literally that morning Erin had sent me an LA Times article with the headline “In defense of Disney adults” and my response was “they did this for us,” so … I was really excited.

You posted on TikTok about your excitement when your songs are used in edits. As fellow edit enjoyers, we have to ask, do you ever find yourself relating one of your songs to a show/movie while you’re watching it?
Hmmmm. I think I do this in the reverse order. When I’m watching a movie I don’t think about my songs relating to it but when I write a song (or after I record it) I definitely think about which/what kind of movies I picture the song living in world-wise. I actually have a list of “Girlfriend movies” in my notes app right now. That’s why edits are so fun: Will anyone ever put a Taylor Swift song in a Star Wars movie? Probably not, but I can watch my saved Rogue One x ‘epiphany’ edit all day long and that’s all that matters to
me.

Touring

You’re about to set off on tour with Sarah Kinsley! Of course, you’ve done a headline tour and opened for some pretty exciting names. How have you evolved as a performer throughout these tours?
I’m so excited. I’ve been a fan of Sarah since finding her song ‘Karma’ in 2021; it feels really surreal that I get to tour with her!

I’ve definitely gotten more confident as a performer, but I feel like the biggest lessons and areas of growth have been more related to general life things. After 7-ish tours now I definitely have my packing list down to a science; I used to pack SO many cute things for off days thinking I’d want to take pictures and stuff, but now I know myself well enough to pretty much only pack jeans, t-shirts, and hoodies. Even what I wear when I’m performing has changed a bit. I went to a performing arts high school where every show required full hair and makeup and more “costume-y” outfits, so on my first few tours I think I tried to dress up more because that’s what I thought you had to do. Now I know there are no rules (duh) and I feel way more at ease and confident in basics. I think I also pay more attention to my health when I’m touring now; doing vocal warm-ups before shows, drinking SO much water, staying away from energy drinks, trying to stay off my phone, etc etc etc.

Have you found a favorite part of touring that you’re looking forward to this time around?
When I say I love every single thing about touring I really mean it. I LOVE a Marriott complimentary breakfast. I love sleeping on long drives. I love gas stations. I love reconnecting with old songs and testing out new ones. Even when mishaps happen, I’ve left every tour with so many stories and so many fond memories with my team and my band. The best part is definitely meeting new fans and getting to reunite with ones who have been here for a while. Every show is exciting because each city is so different and you never know who you’re going to meet afterwards and what kind of conversations you’ll have.

Also, random, but I’m so excited to play in Texas for the first time! I was supposed to on my very first tour in 2022 but the shows got canceled and no tour I’ve done since has stopped there. Really hope to make another trip to Buc-ee’s.

When you’re on tour, you play for crowds of people who see themselves in your lyrics. How do you find yourself connecting to that many people who relate to you?
It’s a crazy feeling; it makes me feel really small. I remember playing ‘Stripes’ at one of my first shows in the UK, getting emotional and seeing this one girl singing along SO intently; when I locked eyes with her she kept singing and kind of smiled and nodded a little bit and it felt so reassuring. I had this moment of “Oh shit, everyone in this room gets it – we’ve all been through this thing that’s sad and difficult and kind of embarrassing, and here we all are, singing about it together in Bristol.” It’s really really hard to describe but it definitely feels like something spiritual.

Thank you so much for chatting with us! Can we get a final tease of what’s to come for the anxiously-waiting fans?
Hehehe. Expect some more love songs with a few heartbreakers thrown in the mix, some fun merch, and definitely more shows.

Thank you so much for having me : )

Count us in! And we hope you will be along for the ride. Let us know what you’re most excited for in the comments or at @thehoneypop on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

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