Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with LVVRS

During a transformative period in his life, LVVRS front man River Gibson decided to take a break from music. While he knew deep down that it was what he loved and wanted to do, everything around him told him otherwise. That hiatus would prove instrumental in shaping the artist and man we see today. Pop Culturalist caught up with River to chat about the band’s new single, “Iconic,” and why it was necessary for him to take a step back to move forward.

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
River: Growing up, I really wasn’t into music at all. When I was around eleven, I was at a buddy’s house and we were watching VH1’s Top 20 Countdown. I’m not even sure if it’s still on, but Green Day had a video for “Boulevard Of Broken Dreams.” That song pretty much made me want to take guitar lessons. I begged my parents. That song is why I’m doing what I am today. It was my dream to one day be like Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day. I’m still chasing that today.

PC: That might actually answer the next question! Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
River: Definitely Green Day! They’re still probably one of the best live bands I’ve ever seen. They definitely inspire me, as far as performing goes. As far as being a front man, Billie’s energy has always captured me. Foo Fighters and Coldplay were two other bands that I grew up on. I like a lot of their stuff. Those were definitely acts that shaped me.

PC: There was a brief point in your life when you walked away from music. How challenging was that decision? How has that changed your perspective moving forward?
River: You did your homework. Yeah, I did American Idol. Then I performed under a solo moniker for a bit. I lost some of my drive. It was around the time that I would be entering college. My buddies were going off to school and it was a disillusioned feeling.

It was always a confusing thing for me because I knew what I loved to do and what I wanted to do. But my peers, my friends didn’t necessarily share that mindset. I felt like maybe I was wrong, maybe I should do what everyone else was doing and take a break from music. I struggled with it. I definitely did. It was difficult. Eventually, I made my way back to music. I did a lot of personal growing in that time and had a lot of personal challenges. I needed that to put into the music that I’m doing now. Walking away from it all is why I’m here today. It taught me so much about myself. It allowed me to see that this is exactly what I want to do and home in on that vision.

PC: What’s one thing you know now that you wish you knew when you started your career?
River: A lot. [laughs] One of the biggest lessons that I’ve learned is that you can’t wait on other people to do things for you. I suffered with that when I was a little younger. I was always waiting for people to take my hand and help push things along, but that never really happened. So I realized that the only person that’s going to do anything for you is yourself. You have to do it for yourself first. I wish I learned that sooner.

PC: Tell us the LVVRS backstory.
River: I was in Paris at the time and there was this band that was real hot. I liked the misspelling of their name. It was also the time when Anderson .Paak was getting big, and his name is spelled funky. I thought it was trendy at the time. I went off of that, and at the time, I was writing a lot of songs about love and heartbreak. So I wanted to do something with the word lovers.

The band started as a three-piece. I wanted to start it with guys who had the same passion and mindset that I have. That’s really important when you’re independent artists. I wanted to surround myself with honest guys. We wanted to create music that people could latch onto immediately—music that’s appealing to everybody. That’s really the whole concept of the band. We want to make music that’s universal.

PC: Tell us about your new single, “Iconic.” What was the inspiration behind the song?
River: I wrote it a while back, before I started the band. It’s a party song. You can delve pretty deep into the lyrics and find that it probably means something that you’re not thinking about on the surface. It was always a fun song. I had that little guitar riff forever. One night, I wrote the whole song. Last year, we finished it off in the studio. It’s one of the songs that came together really fast, within a few hours. That’s usually how the best songs are written.

We’ve been playing it live for a long time. It’s always a crowd favorite, so we’re really excited to put it out! It’s a stepping-stone for us because a lot of the songs that are coming out next will be more in this vein. It’s a little edgier and a more refined sound as far as blending ‘70s elements with modern music.

PC: The music industry has shifted into a singles market. How has that changed your approach to the music you all release? How much does the success of the previous singles impact future releases?
River: I don’t mind it. Every time we release a single, we’ll release a music video too. We can give each song the attention that it deserves. There are some bands that still drop whole albums, but most people aren’t going to go and listen to the whole thing. They’re only going to listen to one or two songs.

It’s definitely affected the band. We’ve never gone into the studio and thought, “We’re going to write an EP.” We just let whatever happens, happen. I think our fans like it this way too.

PC: As we look ahead to the rest of 2020—assuming the COVID-19 situation gets under control—what does the year hold for the band?
River: We have six or seven songs ready to go. I think they’re even better than “Iconic.” That’s where we are right now. We want to shoot more music videos and hopefully get on the road. COVID-19 has really impacted those plans a bit.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
River: Honestly, I listen to everything. Maybe Florida Georgia Line?

PC: First album you bought?
River: Green Day’s American Idiot

PC: First concert you attended?
River: Alan Jackson and Martina McBride

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
River: There are a couple of answers for this. I really liked the 1975’s i like it when you sleep. When they dropped that, I was hot into songwriting. I wasn’t hearing a lot of mainstream acts doing this new rock style that LVVRS was doing. It was really cool to hear some of the stuff going on in my head on the radio. I also love Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour. It gave me a new perspective on songwriting.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
River: Wembley Stadium

PC: A must-have on the road?
River: Coffee. You’d be surprised to know how many of these venues don’t have coffeemakers. We actually recently got this thing where it’s this camping rig where you grind your own beans. It makes a single cup of coffee. That’s our new thing. When we play in a new town, we get some local coffee beans. It’s a fun activity.

To keep up with LVVRS, follow them on Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify.