This interview took place prior to the release of “I’m Sorry I Killed Your Plant.”
Mustard had the pleasure of speaking with Los Angeles’s Skofee. Together we discussed growing up on bluegrass and folk, musical theatre, their EP “Polished”, their latest release “I’m Sorry I Killed Your Plant”, and so much more!
1. Mustard is thankful to have you join them at Music Shelf. How are you doing today?
Hellooo I’m doing well thank you! Thanks for having me:)
2. You were raised around bluegrass and folk. What memories do you have with this music? How did it influence you?
I have really beautiful memories of going to a bluegrass festival in Winfield, Kansas with my parents. I think hearing this kind of music live was one of my first introductions to music in general so it was magical to me.
3. Is there a song or album that had a significant impact on you? Could you share more?
There are so many! I’ll go with “Here Comes The Sun” by The Beatles because I have early memories of singing that with my dad.
4. You have performed in choirs and musical theatre. Would you say this experience has helped you as an artist? Do you have a favorite musical theatre play?
It’s been awhile but I have! Honestly I do think doing musicals and being in choirs as a musical outlet growing up has influenced my music because I add layers and layers of harmonies to most of my songs. Kind of makes me feel like I’m singing in a choir again and I love that feeling.
Wicked remains a favorite of mine.
5. What is your creative process?
I think it’s important to live your life and let those experiences guide your creative attractions and pulls. I prefer to have intense periods of writing and intentional periods of living my life. It doesn’t always work out exactly one or the other, but I feel like the songs are better when I give myself that space.
6. Who (or what) influences you?
So many different things inspire me creatively. Other artists’ music, poetry, friends of mine, visuals and other mediums of art etc. I was inspired by a piece of fabric the other day. I try not to question it and just lean into feeling inspired by anything that gets stuck in my head. If I want a new perspective sometimes I think about how specific artists I love would interpret that same thing that inspired me.
7. In 2020 you released your EP “Polished.” Could you share what it was like to polish and put this EP together?
Releasing ‘Polished’ was me finding my sound and proving that I could make a cohesive collection of music. I’m excited to build on that with my second EP because I think I’ve gained confidence and understanding of myself as an artist, but those songs on ‘Polished’ remain really important to me.
8. Mustard wonders who is your favorite Spider-Man.
I think it has to be Tobey Maguire because that Spider-Man was one of the first PG-13 movies I was allowed to watch and I remember feeling really badass for that.
9. You get the opportunity to sell a product on QVC. Which product would you sell and why?
I LOVE this question. Probably tupperware because I think creating a tupperware tower and demoing how well it works would be hilarious.
10. Mustard has observed that humans are sometimes shy. This sometimes involves them hiding their love/crush for someone. Where do you hide your love?
I have a hard time hiding my love to be honest, I wish I was more mysterious but I think I’m pretty obvious.
11. What can fans expect from your upcoming single “I’m Sorry I Killed Your Plant?”
This song is a bit different from others on my next EP, but I think it sonically ties all of the songs together. It’s very honest and very sad (spoiler alert). I’m really proud of how the lyrics ended up after lots of edits—Sam Vendig co-wrote and produced the song and we worked really hard on getting it right. Sometimes it’s hard to say exactly what you mean and I think I was able to in this one.
12. What is next for Skofee?
I have a show in LA next week, January 25, at Break Room 86 and am looking forward to the release of my second EP and hopefully many more shows this year.
13. Where can readers listen to your music?
My music should be on your preferred streaming platform, and my next EP ‘Joyland’ will be available March 3rd.
Music Shelf With Mustard 