Take notice of Kate Stephenson. Once a Chapman student, she recently moved back to her hometown of Chicago, IL to pursue her dreams full-time. With her honest, true-to-life lyrics, it’s easy to feel like her songs are talking directly to you. Stephenson largely attributes her success to her TikTok page, a behind-the-scenes look into the world of the inspiring young artist. In addition to her talent, her videos reveal the kind and motivated person The Collective got to interview.
Photo by Caroline Zeeman @carolinereynoldsphoto
Q: Tell me about your most recent release, “Exless.”
A: I wrote it after just scrolling through breakup songs and I couldn’t relate to them because, well, I’m exless! It was really a spur of the moment. I just sat down and recorded it while writing it. That night I uploaded it to TikTok and it was my best performing TikTok at that time. People really liked it, people wanted it. I usually produce all my own music but I couldn’t do it because it’s more of a pop-y sound, so it’s actually the first song I recorded in a studio. I uploaded it again, and it blew up! It was my first song to really hit it big. It’s been crazy.
Q: Is TikTok a big part of your music right now?
A: Yeah! It’s really the main way that I promote my music. Just because I’m so small and growing. There's really no other social media platform that will give your music to people who’ve already proven that they like your style of music, and the things your music’s about. And people get to know you as an artist, too. I really think it’s a great platform for artists and it really has helped me exponentially.
Q: What other sources of inspiration do you pull from?
A: I write from life. In terms of lyrics, I’m more influenced just by what I think and experience and all that jazz. Musically, I’m in a Phoebe Bridgers kick right now. I always am. One Direction has just come back into my life. Maggie Rogers is a huge influence, and Bruno Major. There are tons of artists that I compare my sound to, but I’m a “write-from-life-er.”
Q: What was it like working in a studio for the first time?
A: It was different than I thought it was going to be. I don’t think I really had any expectations, but it was a lot of work. Really long days. But it was also really, really cool because I am young and starting a job that I love and really care about. It was an eye-opening experience. I got to drive to the city, go to the studio, and work for twelve hours doing what I want to be doing. It’s really cool to get to step into the world that I’m trying to be a part of. I felt very adult.
Q: What’s the experience of producing in your bedroom after working in the studio?
A: I really like producing my own music. I like the ideas that I have, it’s just that my execution isn't always perfect. Everything I released before “Exless” was just my little bedroom production. Coming back into it, after having my best-performing songs be produced by somebody else, there’s definitely a pressure there. How much of that success is because it sounds more professional, and how much of that is because of the concept of the song, or the melody? There’s a pressure there of what I need to focus on, and how do I one-up myself without focusing too much on one-upping myself. I still want to make genuine music, still make it for me and not about the streams. I think that’s the big difference.
Q: Have there been any challenges along the way?
A: Yeah, there have been a few. It’s hard to keep up posting on TikTok all the time. And now that I’ve worked in the studio once, do I continue to produce my own music? Do I have less quality, but it’s back to me? Financially, that’s a roadblock. It was very hard for me to get to record “Exless” in the studio. Also, there’s a lot of stress with people now knowing who I am. Labels are reaching out and stuff like that. It’s really exciting, but it’s also really scary and stressful. This all happened so suddenly. I think those are the biggest roadblocks: going basically overnight from unknown to a little more known. That adds a lot more stress. It was freaky, but hey, now it’s summer.
Q: You recently left college. Has that influenced your work?
A: It has 100%. I really loved Chapman, and it was really hard to make the decision to leave. I was studying film, and I knew that studying film was a backup-- you know, an excellent backup plan to music-- but I knew going into college that I didn’t want to go to college. It was more of a social thing. My parents wanted me to try it, to experience being on my own and in a different place, and I’ve always wanted to go to California. Since leaving college, I have had so much more time to develop my work and I couldn’t have done that if I were in school. I've had so much more time to make music and study, get better at guitar, get better at piano, and get better at production. I’m no longer producing work while in the back of my head thinking “I have a music theory test tomorrow! What am I doing!?” It’s been really good in that way, but it’s also inspired a lot of new songs. A lot of my songs are now like, “I dropped out of college and now I’m sad and miss my friends.” So the experience has definitely inspired the content of my music, and also the amount I’ve been able to
Q: What do you want people to get out of your music?
A: I want people to know that they’re not alone. When people relate to my music, I feel like I’m helping them know that they’re not alone, but they’re also helping me know that I’m not alone. My goal with my music is to be as genuine as I can and be as vulnerable as I can. I hope that people will be able to think, “Oh, she’s singing about my life right now.” I have a whole playlist of songs where I’m like, “They’re singing about me, and I feel seen.” So that’s my goal.
Q: Last question. What can we expect to see from you next?
I have an EP coming out, but I’ve yet to pick a release date. I’ll be dropping two more singles, then that EP by the end of 2021. Then I’ll probably be dropping an album by the end of 2022! So I’m really divin’ in now. I’ve gotta replace the school year with something!
Kate’s music can be found on Spotify and Apple Music. Follow her on Instagram and TikTok to get sneak peaks of what’s next for her. And if you’re in the Chicago area, be on the lookout for her upcoming live sets!