#interview: 001

BILLBOARD INTERVIEW - 09.20.2018 

Electro-pop singer Kitty Wilde sits down with our own very Jonathan Ringen before the San Francisco show where she will be closing out Stage One of the night to learn more about the tour and the rest of the Way Out artists.

Interviewer: You just put out a new album, “Missing Home”. We can make our assumptions on what it all means, but why don’t you tell us about it?

Alex: “Ha - yeah sure. Honestly, ‘Missing Home’ is exactly as it says. I’ve been away from home for such a long time that I’ve grown to miss it.” He pauses stifling a laugh, “You have to know, I lived in a fairly small town. Everyone knows everyone, and I have a love-hate for that. When I was younger, I hated it. I could never get away with anything. Now though, I come home and it’s refreshing. They all know me and of course, there’s people who still think I’m some amazing guy, but most of them just go ‘oh your home? Cool.’ Like, I went home for Christmas, which I rarely do now, but being back there was eye opening. For years I dreamt of leaving it. Most of my music was talking about seeing the world and going places and getting out there. This one though, is the opposite.” He laughs shaking his head, “I miss it sometimes. Small town drama is so much easier to deal with than the paparazzi going crazy and stories the tabloids make.” He sighs, shaking his head again, “I guess the best way to explain this album is it’s an inside look at me. It’s me looking back, being back there, and saying ‘I miss it’, ‘I miss you’, ‘I’m sorry’… I think it’s the most personal album I’ve ever done.”

Interviewer: “‘I’m sorry?’” What do you mean by that?

Alex: He pauses for a long moment, “Everyone thinks I’m this heartthrob, a sweetheart. I guess the best way to explain this is that I hurt someone when my fame started to pick up. S-They know who they are, and I hope they listen to it. I’ve never been good with talking about important subjects, but I always convoy what I feel through song. Which isn’t romantic, it’s actually horrible for relationships - of any kind.”

Interviewer: Very true, hopefully they listen to it. You said that it was a very personal album, do you think fans will like seeing this side of you? What do you think people in your personal life will think?

Alex: Chuckles lightly, “I can’t be sure they will. I mean, not everyone loved the last three albums I’ve done. But I think this will give my fans a little more insight into my life. All these songs were written by me, some are older like ‘Family Dinner’, some are newer. They get to see deeper within how I feel, not all is very pretty. One of the singles, ‘When We Were Free’, it’s pretty much an picture of my teen years. High School isn’t great for anyone, but I have some pretty great memories during those years, and it’s one of the more upbeat songs on the album.”

Interviewer: Speaking of ‘When We Were Free’, the video for it was just put up today. How do you feel about it and the reaction it’s getting?

Alex: “It’s great, honestly, I was really worried about it. It’s shot in my home town, I asked mainly local people to be in it. We made it look like how it would’ve when we were younger, we didn’t have the same things teens do now. So for people to be having the positive reaction that they are is great, it makes what I do so much easier.”

Interviewer: Really? I wouldn’t have known that, I bet that makes it a more special for you doesn’t it?

Alex: “Yeah, it does. I mean that’s my home, the album is one thing, you can listen to how I feel. But that video, I took you around, allowed you see my home, my room, the places that are the most meaningful to me. It was quite scary when they told me they were putting it up, I was freaking out if people will like it. It’s more than just allowing people to hear how I feel, I’m showing a part of my history with that video.”

Interviewer: So another one of the singles is ‘Wish I Could’, what does that one mean? Where did you get the muse for it?

Alex: Laughs lightly, “you know that person who I needed to say I’m sorry to? It was about them, I got the muse for it from them. ‘Wish I Could’ was about things I regret, things I wish I could change. ‘Wish I Could’ is saying I did stupid stuff, that I see what I did wasn’t good. That if it was possible, I’d change it.”

“How do you think you got your title for the show, and do you agree with it?” 

I think that because I’m always sick, and I always think it’s really serious, even if it’s not, and yes, I am willing to admit that not all of my head aches are brain tumors, people tend to consider me a hypochondriac. I don’t know that it’s accurate, or that I agree with it. I mean, I get how people can get that point, and think that about me, but I just think that there’s something going on inside my body that no one is able to see. 

“It must have been a while since you’ve shared a room with your siblings, how do you feel about doing that again now?”

I don’t know that I ever have shared a room with my sisters. I mean, we probably shared a nursery as babies to make things easier, but other than that, never. I think it will be a challenge, though. I mean, we all have pretty different, but distinct personalities. It will be interesting, that’s for sure. 

“What have you been doing for the past year? College? Work? Sitting home and watching MTV?”

I was in Rhode Island, I finished college, and was working as a substitute teacher there until I got my degree. I should probably be looking for a job right now, but instead, I’m here. I’m considering this to be my last real adventure before becoming a real adult, so you all better prepare yourself, honestly.

“What are you hoping to gain from this experience, if anything?”

I’d like to maybe reconnect a bit with my sisters, meet some new people, you know, that usual lame stuff that people say when asked something like this. I think mostly, though, like I said before, this is going to be my last hoorah as a kid, I think, so I’m looking to go a little wild, and just really enjoy myself, and push my limits. 

“Lastly, give us a random fact about yourself. Anything our viewers might not know about you. Go!”