Showstopper, Grace Ives
Photographed by Ji Yeo
Photography: Ji Yeo
Wardrobe: Melissa Sue Gomez
Makeup: Sarah Karges
Hair: Yuki Yamasaki
Production: Hannah Black
Interview: Isis Nicole
Originally published in IN Digital Cover, SS 2020
Grace Ives, 25, is as cool as a cucumber. On an early February morning, at a cafe in Brooklyn, I can see her wide-eyes flash with easy nature when she offers me a small iced coffee. This all just before we pile into a Lyft for a smooth and rainy ride upstate as a six-person-crew.
Born and raised in New York, the Queens-based musician stirs a creative lo-fi pot with mini jumpy records as she “finally got it f-figured out” on—my personal favorite—“Mirror” from Ives’ album 2nd (2019). By the time Ives entered college, she began writing songs to perform in front of her close friends. “That’s kind of how I started taking myself seriously as an artist,” Ives says when reflecting on a nudge that helped make way for all big good things to come.
Later over email, one month before the global COVID-19 pandemic began, she opens up about feeling grounded when she does kundalini yoga videos on YouTube. “And when I make something that I am proud of.”
For the release of this digital cover story, Ives shares her thoughts on self-determination, fear and confidence, because that’s what’s she aiming for. “Freedom, confidence, success, love and health.”
Isis Nicole: Somehow I misread an interview and thought your dream job was originally Buzzfeed. What inspired you to make music?
Grace Ives: I’ve actually never dreamed of having any job [laughs]. After college, I was doing the odd job life of walking dogs and whatnot until I kind of came to a point where I was like, ‘Okay, should I use my degree and work at a website, or should I just make music?’ For a second, I wanted to try to make jingles, or music for commercials. I would watch T.V. with the sound off and try to score the show on my keyboard, but I would always just end up writing pop music. I figured I should stick to that and not try to force anything else.
IN: Sounds like this naturally came together after taking a little time to ask yourself questions as well as putting things into practice. What has your journey and experience as a musician been like to date?
GI: I’ve always played lots of instruments. I definitely haven’t been writing songs for as long as I’ve been playing instruments, though. As soon as I got to college, I started writing my own songs, and would play them for about two people. I had a good friend, Jonathan, who I would text all these crazy indie rock songs that I made, and he was way too nice about it. I think one day he just responded, “Hey, are you okay?” [laughs]. Eventually I was nudged by a good friend to start posting my music on Bandcamp. That’s kind of how I started taking myself seriously as an artist. Since then, the journey’s just been about finding and maintaining confidence, which is like so easy and chill, right?
IN: Tell me about it. Since living in Brooklyn, I can’t unsee the barometer of my confidence now. I got some work to do and I’m grateful for it. So with this, I’ve been thinking about visibility. What does it mean to be visible to you?
GI: I think when I was in high school and college, Instagram, Tumblr, and all the ways of posting felt kind of new. I was really obsessed with ‘public vulnerability’ so I would post constantly, and share everything. I think during that time I kind of exhausted that muscle, and when I entered the world after school I went back into my shell, and stopped sharing myself with the everyone.
I mean, I play shows, so that’s making myself pretty seen. I love playing shows and bringing life and energy to my music on stage, but I do struggle every time with intense anxiety and fear of humiliation. It’s definitely hard to switch back and forth between the cozy and private environment that songwriting takes place in for me, and the performance and promotional side of it all. It’s something I have to work on all the time.
IN: What would you say is the ultimate challenge you face as an artist?
GI: For me one of the biggest challenge is knowing when a song is done. I always make, around, five versions of my songs and sit on them until I can decide which [selection] I want to be the one that everyone listens to. I have to trust myself a little bit more, I can put way too much pressure on myself to give a song idea the best possible sound and structure.
IN: What have you learned to never repeat?
GI: I have no clue. I do the same thing over and over. I know to not repeat yourself when you make a joke that you think no one heard. It doesn’t feel good. And don’t say yes to something that makes you feel bad twice. I do that. [laughs]
IN: When do you feel most powerful?
GI: When someone kisses my ass.
IN: When do you feel most crazy?
GI: When the birth control kicks in.
IN: What has been your favorite accomplishment or favorite job?
GI: One of my favorite accomplishments is a show I played in D.C. when I was feeling so sick. Nausea, sinus funk, and migraine. It was a mess. It was a really small show and everyone was there to see the headliner, but I chugged an Emergen-C and went out and did a really good job. I was basically … delirious, but it was a really cool performance. I was leaning on random shit, dripping sweat, doing little dances and making psycho eye contact. The audience literally did not care that I was performing, with the exception of a couple parents of the teens that made up the audience.
It was a really good show, and only a few people realized it but it felt amazing. I also ended up meeting a cool skateboard man named Abe Dubin AKA Orange Man after my set. He and his wife stopped me and said they loved the show. Abe ended up using a bunch of my songs in his videos, which are fab. It was a good night but it was also an awful night. I’m very proud.
IN: Do you have mentors to help navigate your journey as an artist?
GI: I definitely have a long list of amazing creative people I could reach out to, but I don’t often ask for help. I like to bounce ideas off of close friends who are allowed to hurt my feelings. My manager is also really helpful. She’s really good at convincing me that I’m the shit. Or really that we’re both the shit.
IN: What is the most amazing thing that can happen to you in the year 2020?
GI: So many good things are going to happen this year. The most amazing thing that could possibly happen would be to put out a sick album that everyone is obsessed with. But that is a given. I’d love to perform on T.V.? The possibilities are wide open, I’m just aiming for freedom, confidence, success, love and health.
IN: What do you want fans to take away from your music?
GI: A song can be anything. And I want everyone who listens to my music to feel cool for knowing about it.
IN: What do you want the future of your career to look like?
GI: Big.
Isis Nicole, Yuki Yamasaki, Melissa Sue Gomez, Grace Ives, Sarah Karges, Amanda Milanes, and Ji Yeo