Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Olivia King

As an aspiring singer-songwriter Olivia King had no idea how to get started in the industry, but she took her career into her own hands, dedicating endless hours developing her craft and getting her name out there. That hard work has led to over three million streams and placement on popular playlists on Spotify and Tidal, and even a campaign for Caleb McLaughlin from Stranger Things. Pop Culturalist caught up with Olivia to learn more about her, her career, and her latest single, “Take A Shot.”

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
Olivia: It all started in church when I was in third grade. I had this friend that sat next to me in church choir. She was like, “Liv, I hear your voice in my ear and I think you can sing.” I was like, “No, I’m good. I can sit here and sing along with the choir.” She was like, “I think you should try out for the solo.” I was like, “There’s no chance.” Then, when the choir director asked who wanted to sing the solo, she raised my hand for me and I ended up getting it. Ever since then, I’ve had a real love for performing. Thank God she did that.

That was where it all started as far as performing goes. In college, I started writing, and afterwards that’s when I started to take it seriously. I don’t drink. I don’t smoke. I don’t party. All I ever wanted to do was music. I didn’t fit in with the college crowd; I wanted to be in my dorm writing music, so that’s what I did. I hunkered down and got my degree but was still able to focus on my music and make that my full-time gig now.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Olivia: I haven’t been fortunate enough to have any sort of mentor. I’m so jealous of my brother who plays baseball—he actually plays for the Yankees now. I’ve always said to him, “You have such a direct path with baseball. You play Little League as a kid, you go to middle school ball, high school, college, and then you get drafted your junior or senior year. If you don’t get drafted, that’s it, but at least you have a path.” For me, there are so many different paths I can go down. I’ve never quite had a real mentor. I’ve learned a lot of my own and doing my own research. But as far as influences go musically, definitely people like Lauryn Hill, Michael Jackson, Musiq Soulchild, all those super soulful artists.

PC: You’ve taken your career into your own hands and made things happen for yourself. What’s one thing you know now that you wish you knew when you embarked on this journey?
Olivia: I would say that time really isn’t of the essence. I’ve always put so much pressure on myself. I was always like, “Oh no, you’re sixteen now. You’re eighteen now. You’re twenty now,” but it really doesn’t matter. It’s about connecting with the people that support you, your fans, and making sure that you create a relationship with them early on so that they can be with you throughout your whole musical journey. If you make those fans, they don’t care how old you are, they’re going to ride with you to the end.

PC: Tell us about “Take A Shot” and the inspiration behind the song.
Olivia: At the beginning of quarantine, I was definitely feeling ways that I hadn’t felt before. I was so anxious and sad. I’m sure a lot of people can relate. There were so many unknowns that it felt strange to me, and music was the only way I knew how to get all those feelings out. I really wanted my music this year to be very acoustic and soul driven. It’s a comforting sound to listen to during all the craziness going on. I started with the beat and produced it myself. I wanted a real acoustic vibe. I was sitting in my studio, and it sounds corny, but the words came out and it was a super fast writing session for me.

I immediately put a little teaser on TikTok and the response was unlike anything else I’ve had. Then, when I put another snippet on my Instagram, it was even more than that. I was getting DMs like, “Hey, thanks so much for talking about this because I didn’t know you dealt with that and I deal with that.” It’s nice to know that other people feel the way I do and understand everything that I was going through.

PC: Of all the singles that you’ve written, if you had to choose one that best encompasses who you are as an artist, which would it be and why?
Olivia: I would honestly have to say my upcoming single called “Old Soul.” It’s coming out on October 15th. This song is definitely about me as a person. It gets down to the nitty-gritty of my personality. Like I was saying earlier, I never wanted to go out to parties, drink, or smoke—none of that interested me. I was really working on my music. I’ve always felt like an outcast. I’m not saying that I don’t have friends, I just never got into that but I’m still around a lot of people who are into that. That song is truly about being an old soul and finding my way through life with different aspirations than the people around me.

PC: As we look ahead to the rest of 2020, what does the year hold for you?
Olivia: Besides “Old Soul,” I always do some sort of holiday/Christmas release. One, because I’m a huge Christmas fan. Second, I always give this tip to independent artists: Christmas music is cheating because it comes back around every year and you get those streams again. Those are my two releases to finish out this year. I might do another release around New Year’s Eve, and hopefully an EP next year.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Olivia: Maybe some real hip-hop tuff like DaBaby, very trendy rap like that. I actually have a public playlist on Spotify.

PC: First album you bought?
Olivia: Britney Spears’ …Baby One More Time.

PC: First concert you attended?
Olivia: The first big one I ever attended was actually with my mom. She took me to Chris Brown, which seems a little weird, but I was so obsessed with him back in middle school. After the concert, she was like, “I’ve never been to a better concert in my whole life.” He really put on a show.

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Olivia: I would say that it was probably Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. My mom introduced me to that whole album when I was in middle school. “Killing Me Softly” was the first song that I sang in front of a crowd for a talent show. She’s so talented.

To keep up with Olivia, follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify.