Q&A: “Same Font, Different Man,” Imogen Valentine is onto the Pattern
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY KIMBERLY KAPELA ☆
Steven Salgado
MEN MAY COME IN DIFFERENT FACES, NAMES AND PERSONALITIES — but sometimes the font remains the same. For London-born, NYC-based dream pop artist and songwriter Imogen Valentine, there is something to be said about finding humor in the patterns we inevitably encounter in love, heartbreak and relationships. Valentine caught onto the pattern alongside her girls, swapping stories and realizing that, despite how different their relationships seemed, the men they had dated shared some strikingly familiar traits. What started as a conversation between friends became the inspiration for “Same Font Different Man,” Valentine’s playful and tongue-in-cheek take on the dating patterns women know all too well.
Accompanied by a music video starring Valentine, “Same Font Different Man” follows her Little Miss Optimist EP and offers another glimpse into the world she has been building through her songwriting. The track was born from a conversation Valentine had with friends about the similarities they had noticed in the behavior of men they had dated. While each relationship was different, certain patterns seemed to keep resurfacing.
“I was having a conversation with a few friends about some of the similarities we’d noticed in the behavior of guys we’d dated,” Valentine reveals. “Even though each situation was uniquely different in so many ways, there were these common denominators and patterns that kept coming up. That’s where the concept was born. Even though the song is very real to me, I still wanted it to be tongue in cheek and fun, without veering into ‘all men are horrible’ territory because that’s not how I feel.”
Following the release, the songstress is gearing up for the Little Miss Optimist Deluxe EP, arriving later this year. The deluxe edition organically expands the world Valentine created with its predecessor, delving further into femininity, womanhood and the experience of becoming more connected to one’s own identity.
“The deluxe definitely dives more into different aspects of girlhood and womanhood, and feeling more embodied in that,” Valentine says to Luna.
For Valentine, creating that space is just as important as the songs themselves.
“I feel like it's become really important to me in my music and in my songwriting to have spaces where women can celebrate being women unapologetically,” Valentine says. “I feel like there's strength in vulnerability and in being fragile. I hope that they feel seen and comfortable if they want to be a little petty or feel angry about something when they listen to a song… I just hope that women feel seen and safe and celebrate being a woman because being a woman is awesome.”
Through the upcoming deluxe edition, Valentine is continuing to explore what optimism can look like when it exists alongside the full spectrum of womanhood. It can mean finding humor after heartbreak, celebrating friendship and community, or allowing yourself to take up space as you are.
Steven Salgado
LUNA: Thank you for talking to Luna. Our readers would love to get to know you and your music more. For any readers who aren’t familiar with you yet, what inspires your artistic style and sound?
IMOGEN: I've always been really inspired by Lana Del Rey. I say she's my north star artist. I feel like I talk about her too much, but I love her. She was really one of the reasons why I wanted to become a songwriter in the first place when I discovered her music. I'm also half Puerto Rican, so I grew up immersed in in that sonic palette as well, so I feel like maybe not currently in the music I put out, but I feel at home that was definitely something that really influenced me as well, and is something I'm hoping to delve into more in my future projects as well.
LUNA: Your newest single “Same Font Different Man” was inspired by conversations with friends about recurring patterns in your dating experiences. What were some of the common “denominators” that ultimately sparked the song?
IMOGEN: It was funny. I was coming back from a wine night and was thinking about everything that had been said throughout the night. Every relationship is really individual and specific, but I feel like there were a lot of commonalities in dating experiences — and it wasn't all necessarily the same — but it rhymed. I feel like we'd all had an experience, maybe being love bombed or not treated the best in X, Y and Z situations. Just to give an offhanded example of just some of the stories that I think we exchanged and came up with were just similar patterns. It's all the same thought, just different people. The topic of the night at that point was men, but I also feel like it goes both ways too.
LUNA: The accompanying music video features you at the center of the story. What did you want the visual world of “Same Font Different Man” to communicate?
IMOGEN: It was really fun to film. I worked with this director and photographer. His name's Stephen Salgado, and we've worked together a few times now, so I feel like there's that intrinsic trust between us. I know the song is very glitchy and leans more hyperpop and more modern than some of my other songs, maybe other than “Encrypted,” which was on my last EP. I think a lot of my sound and visuals have this slightly retro tinge to them. I knew I wanted to try something new and experiment, but also tie it back to that nostalgic tinge. I loved going on Pinterest. I was on Pinterest and I saw this photo of this woman in the 1950s with a typewriter, and a light bulb went off in my head, where I was like, I feel like this is a fun play on the font theme of the title, and ties it back to maybe something a little more retro and nostalgic.
LUNA: You’re preparing to release the Little Miss Optimist Deluxe EP later this year. What can listeners expect from the deluxe edition, and how does it add to the story of the original EP?
IMOGEN: The deluxe definitely dives more into different aspects of girlhood and womanhood, and feeling more embodied in that. One of the songs I think is an extension of that feminine power is “Lady Karma.” I really loved building out that world. For that music video, I felt like there was more to excavate there and it definitely touches on that aspect of womanhood, and then the other song is called “For The Girls,” and it's really a love letter to my girlfriends and to the girlhood.
LUNA: Has working on the deluxe EP changed the way you think about the songs from Little Miss Optimist now that you’ve had more time with them?
IMOGEN: I feel like so much of the year has just been go go go that I haven't really had time to sit with that. Yes, in a lot of ways. I wrote a lot of the project when I was in Berlin studying abroad, and that was three years ago. I think I've just grown up a lot more, and maybe have a little bit more of a nuanced perspective. I see things in a little bit less of a black-or-white way, which comes with age and a few more lived experiences.
LUNA: When you first released Little Miss Optimist, did you already have an idea of where the project could eventually go, or did the deluxe EP develop more organically?
IMOGEN: It was definitely organic. I initially thought that after I put out the EP, that I wanted to move on to a project that had some Spanglish on it, which is my next goal to dive into. I feel like a lot of what I was writing and what was coming out was veering more towards themes of womanhood, girlhood, femininity and exploring divine femininity and what that means. There was still more to do in the world of Optimist to build out and that didn't really make sense to then just jump where I didn't want to lump it into another project in another world. I like for each project to have a thesis.
LUNA: Do you have a personal favorite song on Little Miss Optimist — one that feels closest to your heart or most revealing of who Imogen Valentine is right now?
IMOGEN: It’s unreleased and on the Deluxe called “For The Girls.” I wrote it for my best friend. I think when you go through a breakup, it's obviously really heartbreaking and painful, but I think one of the most beautiful parts — at least that I've gotten to experience in that — is just seeing how my girlfriends have rallied around me and supported me. Whether one of my friends sent me flowers, the other one came over and cooked me dinner, I think seeing your friends put the pieces back of things they never broke is just a really beautiful thing to experience. I really just wrote it to celebrate them because I think often platonic love gets overlooked and overshadowed in mainstream media, and I think it's equally important.
LUNA: How do you hope listeners — especially your femme audience — can connect with or find power in this new era of music from you? What emotions or messages do you want to leave with them?
IMOGEN: I love that question. I feel like it's become really important to me in my music and in my songwriting to have spaces where women can celebrate being women unapologetically. I feel like there's strength in vulnerability and in being fragile. I hope that they feel seen and comfortable if they want to be a little petty or feel angry about something when they listen to a song. I think “Athena” is a little more existential too of what it means to be a woman in society. I just hope that women feel seen and safe and celebrate being a woman because being a woman is awesome.
LUNA: What is fueling your fire right now that’s pushing you into this new era of your career?
IMOGEN: It's the year of the horse. It's been a year of a lot of changes and transitions for me, and I feel really passionately about this project and about this music, and so I feel like that's been motivating me. I think also just seeing other female artists on a bigger level, like Olivia Rodrigo putting on an all-female festival, which is absolutely incredible, and seeing spaces like that be carved out where we can really just celebrate women in music. I feel like it is really exciting and motivating to see.
LUNA: How are you feeling in this current era of your career and what does the rest of the year look like that you would like to share with Luna?
IMOGEN: I'm feeling a little tired, but mainly really excited. I've spent the whole year either putting out music or being in the studio working on music and the visuals, so I'm just really excited to share it and hopefully have it be received well. “Same Font Different Man” just came out, and then the Deluxe comes out next month, and then we have a remix that is coming out, hopefully to conclude the year in the Little Miss Optimist era. Then next year, I have two singles that I'm hoping to put out and start a new era. I'm just really excited about what I've been creating and to share this new era of music.
