Two Canadian artists found success in LA and continue to impress with the quality of music they release. Both have already garnered attention from various publications including, Lyrical lemonade, Papermag, Dusty Organ, and the symbolique. Both BXB and Emilee make music that fuels the angsty teenager in us all, and I may or may not sing both of these songs into my moustache brush while standing on my bed performing to my plants.
When it comes to artistry, few up-and-comers are doing it like BXB LOVE, the music project by Canadian-born, LA-based Natasha Pheko. We had the chance of playing a few of her tracks back when she went by 'Phe,' but this new direction in her music allows for ultimate expression and creativity. Every single since 'Matrix' seems to be giving us a different side to the multifaceted artist, sometimes giving yourself a superhero-esque name or an alter ego allows you to be all the things you thought you weren't. The guitar-driven, funk, pop-rock song that is Venus in Gemini, yes, that is the only way to describe the song, truly is a carefully crafted gem that keeps giving as the song progresses. BXB's vocal performance is full of bravado, style, and vulnerability as she sings about the early days of her relationship with her partner.
"The song explores the early days of my relationship with Jaime, at a time when I was in no way interested in exploring a serious relationship, but found myself falling for this really amazing human."
Whenever I hear this track, I picture BXB on a stage with a three-piece suit on her Janelle Monáe and singing into a vintage microphone. The lyrics throughout are honest and relatable; like when she says, "...Instead my spending all my days inside/ and deleting all the numbers from the other guys/ I've been f***ing with/ for your love/ am I coming round to your love/ I can't work it out." The instrumentation lays the perfect foundation, with an infectious baseline, electric guitar riffs that steal the show; the song indeed covers all the bases of a catchy tune in 2021. We had the opportunity to ask Natasha some questions about life and how the song came to be:
D: "What activities make you feel like you are living life to the fullest?"
N: "Creating and committing to my spiritual practices, which are really just practices in tapping into and attuning to the life that exists within and all around me, has been one of the most powerful and meaningful ways for me to consistently remember and feel my aliveness. Its really easy to get swept up in the hamster wheel and habitual nature of modern life. but in slowing down and setting aside time to tune in to my body, mind, and spirit, I am constantly reminding myself that I am here to LIVE while I'm alive not to simply survive."
D: "Take us thru the building blocks of how the song came to be? Who in fact is the person with their Venus in Gemini?"
N: "VENUS IN GEMINI was created remotely via zoom with my partner, Jaime Estalella, during the height of quarantine in 2020. I was back home with my family in Canada, and Jaime was at our apartment in LA, but we didn't want the distance or the pandemic to get in the way of the creative roll we had been on! so we got set up in order to be able to continue working remotely. I sent him a bunch of references of sounds I was interested in exploring, with a big emphasis on Fleetwood Mac, and from there, VENUS IN GEMINI was born.
ahaha my venus is in gemini ;) and the song explores the early days of my relationship with Jaime, at a time when I was in no way interested in exploring a serious relationship, but found myself falling for this really amazing human."
D: "Paint me a word picture of what the best day looks like?"
N: "I am learning to live from a space where every day is the perfect day, no matter what it serves. its all just an opportunity to experience everything that comes with being a human being on planet earth, an opportunity to expand your perspective. when I am stressed, I turn to my stress as a teacher and try to be present in the sensation of that experience. to learn what I can from the discomfort, and to face it, rather than to run away from it or try to make it go away without allowing it to tell me what it is there to tell me. so the perfect day would be one where I move in a state of flow. where I move through each experience without resistance or judgment, where I can simply be present in every emotion, sensation, and moment without wishing it away or rushing into the next thing. easier said than done! but it's a practice that I am pouring myself into."
D: "Is it more important to help yourself, your family, society, or the world?"
N: "I am of the belief that by helping yourself -- from a place of unconditional love, growth, and abundance -- that you are then also helping your family, society, and the world. if you don't or can't fully show up for yourself, see, hear, and serve yourself and your true needs -- not the shallow needs that we often find ourselves being distracted by but the root that we mistakenly believe those shallow needs will fulfill -- then you can't fully show up for anyone or anything else. it has been through the commitment to my personal and spiritual journey that I have been able to pour myself into my art, work, family, and community in the most meaningful and impactful way. its all connected."
D: "If you had to choose one artist to listen to for the rest of your life, who would it be and why?"
N: "ouu this is a hard one. can I say myself? ahaha! I am really only at the birth of my journey as an artist and I am super excited to see where I go and what I create next. it would be a shame not to be able to listen to those creations."
I tell people all the time to send me their music via chillroseradio@gmail.com, and sometimes people do, and then you get featured as song of the month for October because your music is that good. Emilee sent us a single called 'White Mazda Truck,' and I immediately fell in love. It's everything I love about Justin Vernon's vocals for Bon Iver tracks, and the production gradually swells and takes on a life of its own by the end of the song. She promised me that I would love her latest single, 'Benchwarmer,' and it was worth the wait. A piece that drives itself from start to finish allowing the guitar to take the wheel. I feel like I have the word "ANGSTY" stamped on my forehead while listening to this track; Emilee sings about never falling in love again cause of what happens in the end.
"Look at me/ I'm the benchwarmer with grass between her cleats/ a bit to clean/ Sitting on the sidelines like a freak/ I fell in love/ you drafted up your favourite kind of scheme/ I fell in love/ now what the hell did you just do to me?"
The overarching theme of being a benchwarmer, or the person who no one is actively interested in, puts a fresh spin on the classic Taylor Swift song 'You belong with me.' Emilee isn't shy about being honest and vulnerable in her music; Love and the lack thereof is a topic that will never become a stale topic. Emilee pokes fun at herself on Tik Tok with videos asking, "why do you write songs about your exes, just get over it," and she responds that T Swift says it's okay. Also, what is it about screaming the hook at the top of your lungs while bopping around the kitchen? It makes me think of Julia Wolf's single 'Falling in love' where she says, "F**K falling in love/ I'm way past it/ it doesn't even matter/ for somebody like me." Something about that is cathartic, okay, just me? Fair enough, we had the opportunity to ask Emilee a few questions about life; here's what she had to say:
D: "What do you think some of the differences are for you between making music in Vancouver vs LA? Also, what influenced the move to LA"
E: "I moved to LA to live with my team of producers that I was working with at the time! I moved in with 4 boys into a 2 bedroom apartment haha. It was the best! I moved because LA is one of the best places to be if you’re in the music industry - there’s a lot of opportunity and like-minded people here. I think the main difference would just be the overall energy. A lot of people come to LA with big dreams and the hustle is contagious and inspiring."
D: "If you had to choose one artist to listen to for the rest of your life, who would it be and why?"
E: "Bon Iver!! Always been my favourite and never gets old. Their music just doesn’t feel like anything else. It really is an out-of-body experience every time I listen. And this music has been there with me for some of my darkest days and that means so much to me."
D: "What ingredients go into making the best sandwich?"
E: "Oooooo there are so many good sandwiches out there. I love a classic sandwich with turkey, ham, bacon, lettuce, a bunch of cheese, mustard (lots and lots) and a spicy mayo or something. No tomato, because ew. But I also LOVE the pizza sub at Subway. I get Italian and herbs toasted bread, the regular pizza toppings, lettuce, mustard, and pickles. I know it kinda sounds gross, but it’s so good haha."
D: "What are some things you have had to unlearn?"
E: "I’ve had to unlearn how to love someone. The first person I ever loved. And that was really hard on me. After a different relationship ended, I had to unlearn that being treated like a burden was okay. That’s never okay. That person broke me down to the point where I didn’t know who I was anymore and I felt really worthless after that. It took me a long time to unlearn the habits of that relationship and person and move forward knowing that I was worthy of love and worthy of someone that actually wanted to know me and love me."
D: "Tell me 5 things you are grateful for?"
E:
My family
My friends
Being able to make music every day
Flaming Hot Lime Cheetos
Taco Bell :)
Love can be served in many different forms and these are just two of them. Be sure to stream the music Venus in Gemini and Bechwarmer on our Chill Rose Radio Essentials playlist follow them both on socials to keep up to date with when the next hit single drops. If you made it this far I appreciate you and I love you.
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