Krissy Krissy, a 23-year-old out musician has a candid, open attitude about herself and her experiences that compliments and gives depth to her very personal songs. She grew up in Brooklyn, New York, as well as in the church.
“The only concerts I went to were church concerts. I was singing the solos at 12 or 13.” She adds that, otherwise, “The only shows were fights or gunshots. We lived there because it was affordable. Once we got home from school that was it—we weren’t going anywhere.”
Her father, having passed away less than two years ago, when she was halfway through creating her first EP, had the deepest impact on her music and inspired her song, “Above All.”
“I feel like he’s there every time I play ‘Above All,’” says Krissy Krissy. “It keeps him alive in my heart.”
It’s evident that your lyrics come from an authentic place. Are there specific moments when you know an experience will become a song?
There’s so much shit happening around me. There’s a lot of drama within everyone else’s families and my friends. I listen to them, I write it down in a book, go back and review and think of what could happen. It can be anything from me being thirsty to me hearing a melody. One thing I really like to do is bother the hell out of my mom. I’ll sing everything she’s doing, so even in my stupidity there’s something that sticks out.
For the videos “Suspicious” and “Maybe I,” is there a reason you showcase yourself in a heterosexual relationship?
Of course, by my exterior everybody can tell. How I carry myself—you can definitely tell. Being gay is another part of me, just as much as my ethnicity is a part of me. I wanted to showcase my acting ability and the fact that I’m able to step out of my box and still be who I am. It’s not to hide the gay part at all. “Dream” was my introduction to the world, and I was in cargo shorts and a flannel shirt. I mean, any girl in a flannel shirt—ding ding ding ding! Also, the guy in the video for “Suspicious” is gay. Everything will come in its due time.
If you could have written any one song, which would it be?
Fucking “Rolling in the Deep” are you kidding me? Or that Beatles song “I Saw Her Standing There.”
When you sit down to write, what kind of environment do you create for yourself?
I love to be in a place where nobody can interrupt me, where I can crank up the music as loud as I can. A place where no one can make fun of me. When I’m in my studio and I’m there to create, plug in my mic and guitar and make mistakes. Where everything around me is music. Where I’m the only one with a key. When it’s time for work, you have to go to work to work.
Have you ever had a strange experience at a show?
I was doing a show in Minneapolis, and after the show two chicks came up to me. We were just conversing, but they kept bringing me over to a corner, and then they started pushing me into a bathroom. I was like, “What’s in the bathroom besides toilets? I can’t, I’m sorry, I’ve got to head home.”
When you perform, are you thinking about your fans?
I have to find out if I’m bringing them in, what type of crowd am I playing to. It all depends on if I’m engaging. I try to see if they’re shocked by my appearance while I’m singing pop rock Melissa Etheridge type stuff. I play for anybody, sexual orientation, gender, race. I look to my left, see pupils and the whites of everybody’s eyes and think, “I got ’em. I gotta keep ’em.”
