But the album also feels really current, too.
So I was really intentionally trying to make things move quickly to keep [peoples] attention.
I wanted it to feel like that.
Credit: Josh Brasted/WireImage
I used to do that stuff when I was younger, like on VHS.
Youd cut out the commercials and press record again.
It was such a mixture of different things.
Thats what I was trying to do musically with the album.
Like creating a time capsule of sorts?
With this record more than others I was trying to capture a particular moment in my life.
Theres no real answers on the record.
But Im really just thinking on this record.
You may find them at some point, but Im not really giving them.
Im just trying to going through these things.
I guess what I should say is raising questions but not asking them.
Ive been thinking a lot about that after the events in Orlando.
The timing is really crazy.
The last few days were fking insane.
I still cant quite even believe that it happened.
Im still in shock about it.
But its really weird.
That was a huge part of the treatment.
Obviously we didnt shoot any of that yesterday.
And then the night before [the shooting] happened, I got weirdly cyberattacked.
Or got a lot of Twitter abuse?
I usually get the abuse.
But there was this one guy being crazy.
It was deranged fan s. I didnt think Id ever have anything like that.
Then he hacked my Tumblr.
He managed to lock down and change all the passwords and verifications.
I had to change all my passwords to everything, bank accounts.
That was really on my mind.
And then I woke up to the news from Orlando.
It doesnt compareI would obviously take someone shutting down my Snapchat any day over what happened.
[But] I remember going to bed that night scared.
I hadnt had that feeling in a while.
I had it growing up a lot.
Being attacked for your gender, race, sexualityI live with those things daily.
But it was just that night before, just being scared.
It was a reminder that people are fing crazy, and you dont know what theyre going to do.
Right now is a very strange time in the world, especially in America.
Tell me about why you wanted to film Augustine at Stonewall.
Does the song have a particularly queer message to you?
Yeah, it does.
That song is a really strange journey.
The government was so scared that they put her in a mental institution.
Last yearyou tweeted about your discomfortwith people discussing it online.
Its funny, its more that no one would ever really ask.
When things would trickle out, people would be very confused.
And on the demo, it was me saying it.
I was like,That could sound really good with this monologue.
So she did the monologue, but its funny that people havent even noticed that.
All the stuff Im singing is an ode to a boy!
You were talking earlier about sometimes feeling like youre in danger because of who you are.
Or as one rooted in fear?
A bit of fear, but also trying to stand up within it.
Its finding strength in the realization of how dangerous it is out there.
I feel like there are people that are pretty oblivious to whats happening in the world.
I dont know if those people have any real strength in anything.
Like, I think about even yesterday, the idea of people posting selfies?
[Laughs] I dont even mean to bash those people.
And thats not to say that I wouldnt do score work and soundtracks or produce other people.
Thats not to say I dont want [the other projects] out.
Blood Orange is the only thing where its just me.
For me, I feel like I cant be noiseI always use the term noise.
Theres a lot of stuff in the world.
How do you feel about that separation?
Although she might be on one on this album!
[Laughs]
Really?
She sings on Better Than Me on the album.
That song is not really about that.
That song is about that dark moment when you look around.
you could visualize the person.
Its the moment when you slip into that doubt and that weird jealousy.
She sings on that song, but I dont know if she knows thats what its about.
Do you wish that you could bring more of Blood Orange into the pop work that you do?
I dont really think about it, because its all very enjoyable for me.
I really love making music with other people.
This might be awful, but I play soccer a lot.
[Laughs] My main position is midfield.
I love to set up the plays.
Thats the most enjoyable for me.
And then every now and then I enjoy running up and playing striker and shooting and playing up front.
Ill do that, and then come back and play midfield.
And thats what Blood Orange and making music with Sky and those people is.
Its still playing soccer, so I enjoy the whole experience the same.
What other songwriting are you doing at the moment?
Youre writing more with Carly,according to Instagram.
Do you still work with Solange at all?
Were really good friends, but shes been doing her album herself.
I think its album of the year.
Like, Im not even just saying that, because I didnt even work on it.
Its on another fking level.
I cant wait for people to hear that.
You work with a lot of female pop vocalists.
Pretty much all females.
Is there a particular reason for that?
I guess I just view women higher.
[Laughs] I dont know what it is.
I think women are so powerful.
I feel the same way.
Its very hard for me to relate to a guy singing a song.
[Laughs] It really is.
That kind of stuff I learned from Prince, honestly.
He would even do things like speed his voice up so it sounded more effeminate.
It just widens the scope.
It makes the song so much more than it is.
Do you think about that at all?
I think about it a lot.
Im still such a fan of music that I want people to enjoy it, you know?
I dont ever view my music as inclusive or exclusive of anything.
I truly believe everyone is allowed to enjoy and take as much as they want from things.
