I love the little trivia pieces incorporated in your music video for "Game Over"! What made you decide to do that?
Liv: When my team and I started conceptualizing how we wanted all of the pieces of this release to look and feel, we made sure everything came back to the song, which has a ton of nostalgic video game sounds embedded in it. We bounced some crazy ideas around and settled on a 90s throwback Pop-Up Video style. We shot the video on an iPhone in two different arcades in Nashville on a single day and the editor laid over all of the little fun facts. We started with a pool of about 200 tidbits of information, everything from facts about me to facts about the song to facts about arcade game history, and then we narrowed it down to the ones you see on screen. From the pixels in the single cover to the style and look of the video, nostalgia is the thing that ties the whole release together and I could not be happier with how everything turned out!
Before pursuing music you trained as an Olympic figure skater. What made you decide to switch over?
Liv: Figure skating was a big part of my life from the age of 3 to 14 and it taught me so much — not only as an athlete and performer but in life, like hard work, discipline, and perseverance. At the time, I was skating 6 days a week, had 3 or more coaches, ballet lessons, etc., and it just got to be too much with school and I started to fall out of love with it. I like to say that I traded my Olympic gold medal dreams for Grammy award winning dreams. Music has always been in my family and found me when I least expected it to and I’ve been chasing that dream ever since!
You're a big fan of video games. What's your favorite?
Liv: I’ve loved playing video games ever since I was a kid and grew up playing all of the classic Nintendo 64 games, like Super Mario, Mario Party, Banjo Kazooie, etc. From home consoles to handheld consoles, I’ve pretty much owned them all ever since! I bring my Nintendo Switch with me everywhere I go and love playing “cozy games” after a long, busy day. These games are more chill, low-stress, and involve more exploration-type missions, like Stardew Valley, Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Spiritfarer, and Animal Crossing. Instead of grabbing my phone and scrolling through social media at night, I prefer to play video games and really feel like I’m being transported into another world - it’s a great stress-reliever!
What inspired you to create a podcast? How do you balance your podcast and music careers?
Liv: I spend a lot of time on the road and have always found podcasts to be a great way to both pass the time and learn new things. I always loved school and loved learning and I genuinely miss that in my life since I graduated from college. As a self-proclaimed research nerd, I somewhat selfishly have wanted to start a podcast for a long time to give me an excuse to keep learning but I kept telling myself I would do it when things slowed down and when the time felt right. Well, I’m busier than I’ve ever been but I finally asked myself, “If somebody’s going to do it, why not me? And if I am really going to do it, why not now?” If the past few years have shown us anything, it’s the value of community and connecting with people, and my podcast, “She’s on the List” is one more way for me to connect. Chances are, if I’m interested in a topic, someone else out there is too.
How has a prolific TikTok page helped your music career?
Liv: TikTok has helped my music career tremendously! I started focusing on my TikTok page at the very beginning of the pandemic and launched several original series on the platform, such as my “Tiny Mic”/One Word Song Challenge, Karaoke, Pick-a-Name, and Finish the Lyrics. It’s been amazing seeing these videos reach millions of views and connect with a whole new, loyal audience that looks forward to seeing my content and hearing my music on a daily basis. Who knew that a tiny little microphone could open so many doors for me and even land me in an article by New York Magazine’s The Strategist?! It’s amazing how many doors TikTok has opened for me and I’m so grateful!
How has the Nashville music scene shaped your career as a musician?
Liv: The thing I love the most about the Nashville music scene is how collaborative it is. Despite its long-running stronghold as the country music capital of the world, we’ve got so many genres thriving here. Pop, EDM, Rock, Hip Hop, you can find it all in Nashville! I work with people across a bunch of genres, so I find that the musical influences here are abundant and I love that. While as an artist I’m pop, as a songwriter, I still love writing for multiple genres and I’m as comfortable in Country writing as I am in Pop writing. Nashville is a town of storytellers and at the end of the day, that’s what music is. It’s a story and our goal is to make a listener feel something and to move them in some way. Having so many different influences and inspirations here has made me a stronger storyteller, writer, and artist.
Interviewed By Hannah Conkin
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