Cehryl (Aug. 2019)

In many ways, you can equate the passage of years to a poorly built rollercoaster. The ups and wons upon which each new age treads is not only unpredictable but also mesmerizing in its new wonders. At her current moment, Cehryl is experiencing the midpoint between a drop and a climb. This is a turning moment bookended my project understanding of both ends.

The project’s title, ‘Slow Motion’, reveals much of the moment Cehryl exists within. A balance between the euphoric freedoms of artistry and the constraining hopelessness of frustrating realities. She exists in a slow-motion as she goes from stage to stage, not able to speed up the process in which she grows into someone knew and with better understandings of self and the world around.

But that’s ok. While in the past slow motion would’ve been a fearful speed to be within, it is now hopeful and human. Cehryl can exist within her own truths and find her own answers at the pace in which she finds the best fit. There is no rush, there is a calmness at the current speed. For Cehryl, motion slow is better than none at all, while also a pace more so self-assuring than ever before.

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Our first question as always, how’s your day going and how have you been lately?

My day has been productive, therefore good, but as of lately I have been very stressed and anxious actually. But everything is going to be okay.

Looking back, what is your favorite childhood memory and why do you think it sticks out above the rest in your mind?

I loved walking around the city where I grew up, Hong Kong, alone after school after I had just figured out how to take public transport.

Do you think it is memory and experience that you most pull from when crafting your work or is there also the addition of philosophical and larger scale ideologies?

Definitely memory mostly… like all other humans, have my philosophies on love and life and growing up and i’m sure my songs reek of all that as well.

What art did you also pull from you were in the midst of your new project? Whether that be music, film, visual art, dance?

For my latest album “Slow Motion” I was very inspired by the films of Wong Kar Wai and Sofia Coppola. I think their films stretch out candid mundane moments and make them feel surreal and nostalgic and reflective.

For you, what was the initial spark that pushed you towards creating this project? What compelled you to start the journey as a whole?

After releasing three EPs, I naturally wanted to make an album, but I didn’t really think about it until a year after the last EP. I realized I had a collection of songs that were all quite autobiographical and cohesive sonically, so I put them together and wrapped it up like an album.

One of your great components is your ability to work on so many aspects of your art individually. Do you find having a hands on to all approach truly allows your vision to shine and is it something you’d recommend to other artists?

I think I enjoy doing that because I am a control freak. I also just like trying to do everything even if I know someone else can do it better… I think there is a lot to learn by trying to be responsible for everything. I would love to work more with other artists though and see how I can grow by exploring other directions.

If you could have any musician from history come into your artistic space and be a collaborative mind, who would you want it to be and why do you feel their presence would be valuable?

Thom Yorke because he’s a wild card in a good way, and I want to be more experimental with my process. I’d like him to throw up on my musical tendencies.

Looking forward, what is the key resonating message you desire for this project to imprint? If there was to be a core principle it stood for above all?

Hmm. I don’t have a message with the album - I just want people to listen to it and feel whatever they feel and think of whichever moments or people in their lives come to mind.

What concert in your life made the biggest impact upon you as an artist and why was it a key component to your growth?

I don’t go to shows often actually… one time I saw Frank Ocean in 2017 and it made a big impact because I couldn’t believe he was real. One time I saw Nick Hakim play in New York and he seemed so free and so lost in the song.

If you were to title the chapter of your life you are currently living in, what would you call it?

Shit Happens You’re In Your 20’s

And if you could predict the next chapter, what would you hope for it to be and what are you excited for it to hold?

I hope I get to stay in America for a few more years for the sake of my career. I hope to go on tour and release a bunch of music and make better music and work with more artists and producers. I hope all of my friends’ hard work pays off too

Do you have anyone to shoutout or anything to just say on a free moment here? The floor is yours.

Shoutout to my friends in LA especially, Zack, Alex, Brian, Parker, Marshall, Taylor, Anna, Eric, Dylan, Paulaine, Maddie, Siber, Kyle and Ariya. I miss them all and hope to see them as soon as possible.