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AP&R: Victoria Anthony on singing with P!nk and more

Victoria Anthony got her start opening for P!nk. Now the singer-songwriter is channeling Avril Lavigne and Paramore for her latest single “Stupid Kid.” Continue reading…

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Welcome to AP&R, where we highlight rising artists who will soon become your new favorite.

Victoria Anthony needs to be next up on your radar. The Vancouver-born artist has been singing since she was only 2 years old and learned how to play guitar and piano at 12, which is also when the precocious musician started songwriting. That same year, she tweeted at P!nk and asked to join her onstage in Vancouver. Her dreams came true when she performed alongside the “Raise Your Glass” singer in front of more than 15,000 people. Anthony then released her first song at 13 and has been making music ever since. 

Her latest single, “Stupid Kid,” will appeal to fans of Olivia Rodrigo and Maggie Lindemann looking for pop-punk-inspired songs they’ll want to jam to in their car this summer. With lyrics such as “I get why people get high ‘cause God I don’t want to get old,” it’s the type of alternative reflection on adolescence that was so popular in the early aughts. Expect plenty of TikToks to this sure-to-be trending sound. 

“I feel like I’ve been growing into the kind of artist I’ve always wanted to be,” Anthony tells Alternative Press about her “new sound.” 

“I’m finally writing the real, raw stuff that doesn’t always come out easily,” she reveals, adding that “Stupid Kid” took “multiple sessions to get right.” “Sonically, ‘Stupid Kid’ was influenced by the emotional pop punkness of Avril Lavigne and Paramore,” Anthony says. 

Read more: AP&R: How Unturned created an album that pays homage to pop punk’s VFW hall days

“I wrote ‘Stupid Kid’ about this feeling I got in the car ride home from the music video shoot for my song ‘How Cute,’” Anthony says. “I was feeling really sad in my personal life, but I had tons going on music-wise.” After a busy day on set, she got emotional on the car ride home with her mom. “I started crying about halfway through the hour-long drive. It was a mix of emotions, good and bad. I was coming down from such a high, being ‘on’ all day.” 

She credits her family’s support with helping her through finding fame. “I remember being so grateful for my family and support system, realizing that without them, I wouldn’t be able to handle these extreme emotional highs and lows,” Anthony says. “It made me think, ‘I get why people get high,’ the opening line of the song. The ups and downs of performing, being in this industry and just simply growing up can feel unmanageable. The need for a sense of control is piercing.”

At only 16, her creativity is seemingly unstoppable, and she’s already co-directing her music videos. “I co-direct videos because I have a vision that I can help bring to life,” Anthony says, describing the “pink Solo cup” idea she had for the “Stupid Kid” music video. “I wanted them scattered on the floor and couch where I was singing all alone. This painted an isolating picture, which both implies the presence then disappearance of people around me.”

“We also have the performing scene,” she says, which she was inspired to add after touring with Hey Violet. “I got to live the concept of the song, performing then crashing over and over again. It was incredible but taxing.”

Anthony describes “flashing lights, high-energy movements and loud music, but no audience and no band to get back to that isolated feeling, right on the bridge between alone and not. That’s what this video is about, and I’m so glad I got to co-direct it and make that come across.” Luckily, she’s found healthy ways to cope, including her personal favorite, binge-watching The Vampire Diaries.

After opening for Hey Violet on their West Coast tour, she calls them “the coolest band with the coolest people” and raves, “Every show was high energy, and getting to perform then watch them each night was the dream.” She describes being an opening act as “such a unique experience because audiences don’t know your music since they aren’t there to see you,” which gave her the freedom to test out new songs, including “Stupid Kid.” 

The Canadian singer-songwriter has amassed more than 45,000 fans on TikTok, where she shares snippets from her singles and throwbacks — including that P!nk performance. She cites Taylor Swift and fellow Canadian Alanis Morissette as her major influences because she loves “their vulnerable style of writing, laying it all out on the page.” As she grows as a songwriter, she’s working to emulate their exposed musings. 

Fans can prepare for her upcoming music, which she says includes “upbeat bops and emotional hard-hitters.” Get ready for the pop-punk-inspired anthems you’ve been craving.

FOR FANS OF: Avril Lavigne, Alanis Morissette, Olivia Rodrigo

SONG RECOMMENDATION: “Stupid Kid” 

Source: altpress.com

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