In conversation with Becky and the Birds

Sometimes beauty is enhanced when it’s found in repellant places. Think of a metallic pink candy wrapper laying crumpled upon the concrete like a glorious jewel, dulled and its adhesive backside dirt-covered. Probably dropped from a child’s pocket, its ephemerality suddenly becomes treasurable, laying there like the most beautiful roadkill you’ll ever see (albeit inanimate). There’s something very deliberate about the contrast: sugary, sparkly, and feminine on the surface, but scuffed, dirty, and laying on a harsh and uninviting bed. It demands attention and makes it impossible to look away.
That same tension runs through the music of Becky and the Birds. Her glittering vocals, sweet, delicate and feminine, float over productions that are murky and rough-edged. Her voice is smooth like Mariah Careys, and crackles like that of James Blake, evoking both fragility and power. She’s romantic, in the way northern European artists like Erika de Casier are – cool-toned, off-kilter, oddly intimate. Through her gritty, sepia Instagram carroussels, we find out the singer has recently been reddit-baptised under r/sexymusicians. Though not untrue, it’s important she’s recognised for far more than merely being hot as this is too often the predicament female artists find themselves in, and her artist persona has been born out of exactly this frustration. A vocalist who got tired of toplining on the studio sofa, who taught herself to produce out of spite and survival, one for whom production is not just a tool but a core pillar of her expression, and ended up winning a Swedish Grammis award for it.
Thea, the singer, producer, artist behind BATB makes music about love, life, and especially the messier bits of it: trust, disillusionment, desperation, and loss. She builds a world where chopped vocals speed up like spiraling thoughts, and where heartbreak can sound heavenly, delicate and devastating all at once.

Hi Thea! Super nice to meet you. Where are you calling from?
Stockholm. In the studio! 

How did Becky and the Birds come to life?
Until I was doing the first EP that I ever produced, I had only been in pop sessions as a topliner. I was so tired of it, so tired of being in the room with men honestly, just being in the back on a couch, and just writing ‘cute’ lyrics. I wondered – what happens if I just try to produce myself? Because I really wasn’t impressed with what I heard from them. I just locked myself in for a couple of months, really. And because I wasn’t technically skilled, it meant that I had to find new ways, creatively and production-wise. That just forced my sound forward because it enabled me to find sounds and ways of doing things that couldn’t be taught. At that point, there was no real goal. It was just me experimenting. And then when that was done, I felt that I should release it. So all the songs from my first EP are the first songs that I ever produced, actually.

Impressive! Can you tell me about the origins of your artist name?
I wanted a name that wasn’t my own, where I could be completely free and creative. My own name was so attached to me personally and my story and everything. I wanted to be vulnerable creatively, too, I just wanted to hide behind something. For the first song I ever produced, I landed on this dating site. At the time, I was digging through the internet so deep. Every day and night, I was just on the internet trying to find weird stuff. It was this girl who had recorded a dating memo, a story of who she was, it was super weird. She was talking about how her name was Becky, and she only had two friends, and one of them was a bird. And all of her clothes were combustible? It was just very strange. But I gravitated towards it so much because it felt like that was about me. I sampled her for my song, but then I realised… It’s just actually me. I should just take this as a name.

I’m glad that you took the confidence of the mediocre white men that you were sitting with and started for yourself (even if it was just a sliver)! So Becky and the Birds came out of frustrations with a male-dominated industry. Has that dynamic shifted for you, if at all?
Well, I think it has definitely shifted. But I definitely still need to prove myself all the time. I feel like I always need to be 200%, while the men can be 50%, and it’s all fine and they’re doing great. Some things have changed, there’s definitely more room for women now than there has ever been, especially as a producer. But, that being said, it’s kind of all a facade. Because when it all comes down to it, He’s the master genius. Which is why I’ve been so scared of bringing people (men) into my project, too. Because I knew that the second I do, people will think that a man is the one who’s behind everything. That’s why I was so firm in producing my two first EPs by myself. Because I need to prove myself first, so that there’s no question after that.

Even to yourself.
First and foremost. Now that I’ve taken in people who I really trust and who I really believe in and love, most of them are men, I’ve realised that as soon as I mention them, everyone’s like, “oh! So now we understand”. So, it’s definitely a whole thing of who’s taking credit for what, and who is giving credit to whom and for what. And it seems to be very easy to give all the credit to the men, because we know exactly how to do that. But we don’t really know how to credit women for just being, for doing what they’re supposed to be doing. And not just for being sexy or for being yadda yadda. So, there’s still a long way to go, for sure. 

But, there has been a little bit of a recognition for you lately, because I believe you were nominated for some Swedish Grammis? Can you share a little bit about the experience, and how was the ceremony for you?
Yeah! I was nominated in four categories, which was crazy to me, because I didn’t even expect one, so it was a happy surprise. The only one that I really wanted to win was the producer prize. But I also realised, I’m up against Max Martin and stuff. They have a lot of great stuff, you know. So I didn’t want to get my hopes up, because I also felt that they’re amazing. But, in terms of groundbreaking and trying new things, I felt like I had a chance there, I could win this. I didn’t think I would, but when they said my name, oh my God – I was freaking out.

Wow, that must have felt like a full circle. Congratulations!
Thank you. Yeah, it really was, and I was really happy about that. It was weird because I could really tell how there’s more ego than I thought in the industry. Because I’ve always been doing my own thing and not really caring.. And I’m pretty much always happy. But I could tell that there was some, I don’t know… I’ve never been to an award show before. So, I’ve never really realised how much ego there is in the industry.

Did you feel the men were hurt that they didn’t win?
Yeah, I could tell that there were a few hurt ego’s in all categories. There’s just a lot of artists who have a lot of ego. That’s what I noticed.

But YOU won!
Exactly! So that’s great. I won. 

Your latest track ‘Should’ve Known Better (Choices)’ is a remix of ‘I Look at the Choices I Made,’ featuring your dad on the accordion, what inspired you to rework it into something fresh? And how was it to work on something with your dad?
What happened was that he was playing accordion on that song at one of my live shows in Stockholm. And it was this beautiful, touching moment because everything was improvised. I felt we should just release this as a remix. But then when the time came for me to record him, it kind of just turned into an accordion song, which could be cool, but it’s also a little strange, you know? It didn’t really hit the same way that I wanted it to… At that point we had already laid all the plans around the release and everything, so we had to continue with it. It was fun because me and a guy who I’m working a lot with, Nick Velez, (yes, a man) had already started working on my next album. And we’ve come pretty far in that. So this was a good chance for us to bridge the sounds between what’s coming next and the old sound too. The ‘remix’ turned out to be a whole new song really, incorporating some sounds from the old album, but then really striving forward towards what’s to come. 

It’s definitely fun, I like it a lot! Can you tell me about the video/visualiser too? It’s beautiful! How did the concept come to life, what does it signify that youre all alone on the mountain and at the same time being pulled in a lot of different directions / held back by others?
In “Should’ve Known Better (Choices),” we wanted to dial into the feeling of overthinking your decisions and not knowing if the choices you’ve taken were for the better or worse. We wanted to play with contrasts in slow and strong scenes that meet fast and delicate ones. We wanted the camera to move like a thought throughout – sometimes intimate, sometimes distant, kinda mirroring the disconnect we sometimes feel from ourselves. The MV is not really about finding answers – rather what it feels like to live inside the question. I was lucky enough to do this together with two of the most talented people I know from Ph-Any – Patricia Alliaga DeVall and Hedvig Moberg. And they just made the whole process so beautiful and serene. I’m really proud of that project. 

It turned out super nice! Your sound has a strong gospel and R&B influences and you’ve talked about your sound being a mix between Mariah Carey, James Blake. I definitely hear that. Are these also the artists that have shaped you the most, or do you have any other honourable mentions, either songs or artists?
I would say Mariah Carey and James Blake are definitely the top two ones,  but it’s very spread out. I have a lot of old folk inspirations and jazz inspirations. Ella Fitzgerald, who I grew up with thanks to my dad, but also Mozart, Bach. I really like everything that’s obscure, too. I really like grime music, because I like the way that the productions are always so in your face. I’m really into footwork at the moment too, and jungle. In general, I really like productions that are pretty hard. And then to soften everything out, I like to round my listening sessions with something really beautiful like a pure Mariah Carey track.

You mentioned diving deep into Bandcamp and club scenes for inspiration. Do you have any lesser-known artists that you’re currently listening to or would recommend to others?
I really like that they’re kind of getting bigger now, but like Channel Beads, I think is really good. And M.L. Buch is also amazing. The world is listening to alternative stuff more, everything ‘niche’ is kind of becoming bigger and bigger. And what used to be very low key just a year ago feels like it’s starting to be exposed.

At the moment, it’s almost more niche to hear someone actually listen to Mariah Carey.  Who the fuck listens to Mariah Carey actually (I do).
Exactly! A hundred percent, yeah.

So what inspires you outside of music? Are there any films or books or anything else that has a particular impact on your music or life?
It was a long time ago since I watched a movie. But one that I come back to all the time is After Sun. I really love that movie. A book that’s inspired me is A Summer’s Crossing by Truman Capote. 

What’s your favourite part about it?
It’s the language. It’s so poetic and beautiful. It’s a very short book, but it’s so enticing. He just pulls you in. I mean, he’s dead, but he pulls you in. Every word has this beautiful sparkling veil on it. I don’t know how he can make words sound so beautiful together. But it’s literally one of the most beautiful poetic pieces I’ve ever read.

That’s so nice. How do you think that you would describe your own music?
I would probably describe it as a bowl… You throw a little bit of harshness and grittiness and dirtiness. But then you mix it around so that it actually becomes kind of fluid. And it becomes kind of gooey and soft. It’s kind of what I feel like I’m making, but then sprinkled with beautiful pieces of… What do you call it? Strudels or something? Chocolate. But all of the other ingredients are still there.

And then between the dirt and goo there’s a sweet little chocolate chip on your tongue!
Yes! 

Looking back on your time working with Avicii, it seems that might have been worlds apart from your current sound. What was that experience like, and did anything you learned from him stick with you or influence your creative process today?
Well, I think really what it did mostly is just open up my brain to realise ‘Oh my god, everything is possible’. You can sit in your boy room or girl room or whatever in Sweden and build this empire. And I come from a pretty small town, I was 18 too, so it was the first time I was around oysters and champagne and parties and everything. To me, it just opened up my world.. not super creatively or musically, but just in terms of my drive. 

The world is now your oyster! The song To Trust You resonates with me heavily. I read it’s about how to trust yourself and your intuition without going insane? Have you found any answers to that?
Well, I actually heard someone say that intuition is just peaceful and quiet and feels kind of calm and just assuring. And then when it’s not your intuition, when it’s just your fears, it feels more dramatic and it feels more impulsive. which helped me in realising what in my life is just fear and what in my life is intuition. Because I’m a very intuition-driven person. But that can also be a little scary, because we’re also driven by fears and past experiences and stuff. I’m keeping that with me. 

It’s good to follow the peace instead of the anxiety.
Absolutely.

When She Holds Me has this sense of serene yearning. And when I first listened to it, I interpreted it as like a queer love song.
Which is what it is. Well, it is for me.

I later learned it’s about loss? I thought it was about your grandma passing away and completely listened to it differently. It can be both, I guess, if you think hard.
Ah, that’s from another song (Wondering)! When She Holds Me is definitely about queer love. But I like that, too, that it can be about loss. And it definitely has this yearning part of it, because queer love can be very yearning, it’s not as predictable as a heterosexual perspective… simply ‘Oh, me and this man are now in love!’

A less familiar narrative.
Yes – I wrote this one when I was in love with a friend actually. And that is so typical, you don’t know what it means.. And it’s so layered and it’s so… so… 

Complex? Because you can’t place it yet as ‘love’.
Exactly, yeah.

I guess love (especially queer love) can just take so many forms that it makes songs multi-interpretable! I’m really excited about your upcoming tour. Will you be making it to Amsterdam? And what are you most looking forward to about performing live again?
Yes, I will! On June 10th, I’ll be in DoKa. And I’m very, very excited about it. I’ll be producing on stage and kind of building whatever I’m doing in the studio, bringing that onto stage. Because I’ve never really been the kind of artist who’s on the stage just singing. I’ll never say never, but now I’m trying to take the creative part and also the very impulsive part of jamming and not knowing what will happen, which has been scary, for sure. But it’s been very fun. And I think that’s the way that I just like to keep it because it also keeps it interesting to me.

Nice. And do you want to share anything else that we haven’t talked about? Maybe your new album or is that all secrets still?
Not really – I’m really excited about the new album. I don’t know for sure when it will be coming out, but I think it will be even more boundary pushing and genre crossing in every way, just continuing down that rabbit hole. 

Excited to see where it takes you!