Words By: Taylor West
With the recent release of multi-platinum artist, Lauv's newest album, “All 4 Nothing,” we discussed everything that went into the journey of making this album. With track titles like Kids Are Born Stars and First Grade, we truly take a deep dive into the mind of Lauv as he navigates the process of confronting yourself and healing your inner child. His North American tour with Hayley Kiyoko begins August 12th and will definitely not be a show you want to miss.
The vulnerability on this album truly shines through and as explained by Ari, “When I was starting the album, I remember feeling very anxious. I didn’t trust myself,” this project was a huge tool when rediscovering his confidence and putting faith into his work. While staying true to the classic sound he has created for himself, this new album not only challenges his creative process, but also Lauv as a person. Mental health has always been an important topic to Ari especially relating to his music and he isn’t afraid to be honest and vulnerable when it comes to his own music. “There’s such a stigma when it comes to seeing someone like a psychiatrist, when I finally became open to that and saw how that started to help me, I was really driven to want to talk about it.” The shared human experience of dealing with your own mental health truly goes hand in hand with the shared experience of music and simply just needing an outlet to express your emotions. The way Lauv creates seems to bridge the seemingly distant gap between artist and fan. “Prozac gang,” Ari adds after talking about how seeking help shouldn’t be such a stigmatized and hush-hush thing.
With a huge theme of this album being about healing your inner child, even physically visiting his younger self in the Kids Are Born Stars music video, when asked what words of advice he would give to his college aged self Ari says, “part of life in your early 20’s is about losing yourself and letting yourself get lost, and then coming back. So I would say, you’re doing great, sweetie.” Truly the only way to get out of the mess of becoming your own person is through it and following your gut really is the best advice. If everybody in their 20’s had all the answers, we would never have the art and music that we have today. While Lauv obviously writes very personal music to himself, he also creates work that embodies others' experiences and can fit along with other stories. In pop culture today, television can make a huge impact on what music people are streaming. Take Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill for example. When asked if he could have his music in any piece of media today Ari says, “Euphoria would be the obvious answer. Nathan Fielder’s ‘The Rehearsal’ would be so sick, I would pick Summer Nights for that.” So clearly if there is one thing that Lauv has, it’s range.
Listening to an album top to bottom is always an experience in itself, when asked what the perfect setting to listen to “All 4 Nothing” Ari says, “a perfect combo of beach, forest, pasture, and mountains all in one.” If you know of such a magical place, definitely put streaming Lauv’s latest album at the top of your to-do list while you’re there. Regardless of where you go physically or mentally when you listen to this album, it does put you in an entirely new environment that is completely unique to these songs. Lauv’s career has seen so much success and growth over the years, if the music has taught him one thing after all of this it’s “not to get lost in the sauce, because I’ve gotten lost in the idea of my music.” Staying genuine to yourself
certainly isn’t an easy task and Ari continues to pull it off while connecting and inspiring the many fans who have found a home in his work.
Lauv
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Taylor West
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