Interview: Nashville Singer-Songwriter Maddy Hicks Discusses Her New EP "Nightlife"
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“I wanted to take this EP to new places and solidify more of a pop sound for myself. That being said, I also appreciate genres outside of pop, and I tried to explore some indie and rock sounds at various points on the EP as well.”
We're blown away by your new EP "Nightlife"; tell us about your creative process for its development and how you connected with the producers you worked with.
I wanted this EP to be about the darker parts of the twentysomething experience. It’s easy to get lost in your own insecurities while you’re figuring yourself out, and relationships at this age feel more intense than ever before.
I wrote most of the songs on this EP in the summer and fall of 2020 while the pandemic was still in full force and the world was in quarantine. Obviously I had a lot of time on my hands, so I poured myself into my writing.
I’m lucky that I got to connect with some really phenomenal producers for this project. I worked with Benjamin Dufresne on my song “Guitar Solos.” Ben also produced all of the songs on my previous album, “The Bliss You Missed”. Having worked with him before, I knew he would be a great fit for “Guitar Solos” because he has a real talent for arranging live instruments, and I wanted this song to have a live feel since it’s essentially about going to a concert.
For my songs “You Don’t Get To” and “Wake Up and Call the Uber,” I worked with Jeff Toth. I wrote “Wake Up and Call the Uber” in the fall of 2019 as part of a class assignment, and Jeff also happened to be in that class. So we’ve been friends for a minute, and I’ve always admired how he produces his own music. I reached out about these songs and he did a great job of bringing them to life by combining synth and acoustic vibes.
Lastly, I worked with omgprkr on “Used to Be” and “Backseat.” I had heard some of the songs he’d produced for other local artists and I knew he could translate my music into the pop sound I was imagining.
“Backseat” was the first single I released after the album and I wanted it to sound like a solid combination of acoustic and pop to transition into the new sound of this EP.
omgprkr did a great job with that single, and he helped make “Used to Be” into a huge pop banger, which was exactly where I wanted to take my music.
How would you compare this new EP to "The Bliss You Missed", from a thematic and production perspective?
“The Bliss You Missed” had a really emotive singer songwriter sound to it. Many of the themes felt very young and wistful. I took a slightly different thematic approach with this new EP, and the themes are naturally more mature since I’m older than I was when I wrote my last album.
Some of the songs on “Nightlife” are very honest, while others have a false sense of hope. Insecurities can make you tell yourself all sorts of things, and I wanted to highlight that in “Nightlife”.
Sonically, I wanted to take this EP to new places and solidify more of a pop sound for myself. That being said, I also appreciate genres outside of pop, and I tried to explore some indie and rock sounds at various points on the EP as well.
Tell us about your move from Upstate New York to Nashville and how it has impacted you in terms of the topics you write about.
I moved from a small town called Charlton in Upstate New York to Nashville in 2018 to study songwriting at Belmont University. I’ve been here for three years now and while I do miss home sometimes, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
As a city, Nashville is endlessly inspiring and overflowing with opportunities. Since moving here, I’ve been writing more about my own artistry. I feel much more independent and empowered in this space, so I write from a more centered perspective. While I’m in Nashville, I feel like I can hear my own voice as a writer more clearly.
Can we expect any music videos from the songs on the EP?
When I released “Backseat,” I also released a lyric video along with it. I’m really happy with how it came out! It was animated by Noah Mesh, a friend from back in New York. He created some really powerful visuals to go along with the track.
With the "Nightlife" EP now released, what are some of your goals musically for the rest of the year?
I have a lot more music that I’ve been hustling to record, and I’m excited to release that later this summer. Hopefully, I’ll also be playing some live shows in the coming months. It would be insanely fun to start performing these songs around Nashville.
Another goal of mine is to get some merch up and running soon, so stay tuned for that down the road!
Stream and Share “Nightlife” on: Apple Music | Spotify