Q&A: Evann McIntosh Reintroduces Themselves with “Blue Movie Magic”
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY JOY VILLANUEVA ☆
Evann McIntosh is one of the most promising new voices in the R&B and indie-pop scene, steadily carving out space with their genre-defying sound and catchy songwriting. At just 21 years old, McIntosh has already built a dedicated fanbase through standout tracks like “What Dreams Are Made Of” and their 2019 debut project MOJO. After a brief hiatus from releasing music, they’re back with “Blue Movie Magic,” a sleek, cinematic track that marks the beginning of a more mature and intentional era for the artist.
Read below for Luna’s interview with McIntosh on the making of “Blue Movie Magic,” their growth since 2021, and what this next chapter means for their artistry.
LUNA: “Blue Movie Magic” is your first release since 2021 and it feels like the start of a new era. Can you walk me through the cinematic world you’re creating with this track and how it reflects where you are now, both artistically and personally?
MCINTOSH: When I wrote “Blue Movie Magic,” I was working in a movie theater. I got really into film and watched a lot of movies, so I think that’s what inspired that theme. With this new era, I really wanted to make music that just felt more elevated and grown from the previous music I was writing. I wanted to be more thoughtful with this process.
LUNA: The song has these jazz, R&B, and indie elements woven together so seamlessly. What was it like working with your producers to bring this sound to life?
MCINTOSH: Abe Rounds, who I was working with on this track, is just really incredible and accomplished, and he has access to all these other amazing musicians, like Jake Sherman who played keys on “Blue Movie Magic.” I brought him this song, along with some other ones, and he just went crazy. It was important to me to try to include as many people as possible. I wanted people in the room and there to be live musicians doing their thing, cause that’s who’s gonna do it best, with whatever sound I’m trying to make. It was a pleasure to work with him and I’m super proud of this song.
LUNA: You've always been open in your music about themes like gender identity, self-expression, and growth. How do those themes evolve or deepen in this new chapter of your sound and storytelling?
MCINTOSH: Because I’ve grown and evolved, those things have naturally grown and evolved with me. I didn’t think too much about it when I was writing these songs, and if those themes show up in my writing, it’ll be natural, and I think that’s how I would want it to be.
LUNA: Your songwriting balances introspection with unpredictability so well. Do you feel like your writing process has changed since your earlier projects, especially after the time away from releasing music?
MCINTOSH: With this era, I wanted to be more thoughtful about what I was creating. I wanted time to grow and become a person. A lot of my older work, I made when I was 16 or 17 years old. It’s all great, and I’m proud of it, but I wanted to step away from making music, so that I could kind of build my life as I’m coming into adulthood. I wanted to take time to be a sponge and absorb everything that I could, so that whatever I created next would be a little richer and show some development.
LUNA: Since your last release in 2021, you’ve been on and off social media—sometimes quiet, sometimes popping back in with something unexpected. Has taking that space impacted your creativity or the way you connect with your audience?
MCINTOSH: Creativity is something so personal. There’s a lot of vulnerability that goes into creating things, and I needed to tap into myself and be off my phone too, and be present with myself. I did it so I could make better things.
That was kind of what my process was all about. I just wanted to do a better job and learn more about myself and about what I do.
I’m on tour right now and I’m back in the room with people that listen to my music. It’s so funny because I haven’t been around for a minute, so there might not be a ton of people there to see me, because I’m an opener on this tour, but there’s always about five people right at the front, super into it and screaming every word. People are still all about it, which is super cool.
LUNA: “What Dreams Are Made Of” was the first song of yours that got me hooked—it really captured something special. Looking back, what do you remember about writing that track, and how do you feel about it now compared to where you’re at musically?
MCINTOSH: I remember not thinking about it. These days, I think so much about everything that I make because I feel like I know that the goal is for people to hear it—and I don’t really want that to be the goal. Not that I don’t want people to hear it, but when I’m writing, I don’t want to think about that, just because it makes for better music.
But for “What Dreams Are Made Of,” I was just thinking, Oh, this sounds cool. Wouldn’t it be cool if I did this? It was all just based off of how cool I thought it was.
I want to get back to a place of maybe not thinking so much about it the way that I wrote that song, but having a more informed way of not thinking so much about it.
I still feel really strongly about that song. I had a minute where I didn’t wanna play that song. Because I was an angsty teen and that was the song and I heard it all day everyday. But a lot of people still listen to that song and put it on their playlists. It created its own audience that all resonated with one thing that I just happened to make, and if something positive can reach that many people, that’s really cool.
LUNA: You found a lot of early success during the quarantine era—when MOJO dropped in 2019, the momentum carried into a very surreal time for everyone. What was it like experiencing that rise in visibility while the world was standing still?
MCINTOSH: Some people will come up and talk to me after my shows, because I’m working my merch table, and they’ll talk to me about MOJO—it’s so cool to be in the same room with people that were going through the same things that I was going through.
Quarantine happened during some of my most formative years, and it was also my audience’s formative years. I managed to create a community of people like me too, in those uncertain, weird times, and that was something positive for some people to be a part of.
LUNA: You’re currently on tour with John Splithoff—how has it felt bringing “Blue Movie Magic” to the stage? Are there any moments during your set that feel especially electric or personal for you?
MCINTOSH: It’s been super cool to bring it to the stage because the live element is what I had in mind while making a lot of the things I was making. I perform a lot of new material just to see how it feels, see what people resonate with. A lot of my focus when I’m on stage is just wanting it to sound as good as it can.
A really cool part of the set is when I perform "Do U Mind?,” which is off of MOJO. We do a stripped version of it, and I feel like the whole room comes together for a second. It’s really cool.
LUNA: Is there anything else you’d like to share with Luna, whether it be words for fans or words about your new era?
MCINTOSH: Stream “Blue Movie Magic.”
