Q&A: Queen Quail on Grief, Growth and the Making of Narcissus
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
Photos By Celeste Call
WHEN MILWAUKEE-RAISED, BERLIN-BASED SONGWRITER KIRSTEN EDWARDS first began writing as Queen Quail, it was less about ambition and more about survival. The project emerged during the throes of the pandemic, a time when disconnection and longing weighed heavy, and music became the only way to ground herself. What started as a container for grief, emptiness, and self-questioning has since blossomed into a fully realized artistic voice—one that is intimate yet expansive, unafraid of both fragility and experimentation.
With influences spanning from Phoebe Bridgers and Adrianne Lenker to Bon Iver and Alex G, Queen Quail’s sound sits at the intersection of indie-folk vulnerability and boundary-pushing textures. It’s a sonic reflection of Edwards’ own duality: rooted in the quiet familiarity of her Midwestern upbringing while open to the radical freedom and exploration that Berlin offers. This push and pull—between home and elsewhere, grief and joy, isolation and connection—shapes the core of her debut EP Narcissus, arriving November 18.
The project, produced by David Thornton, mixed by Michael Kümper, and mastered by Huntley Miller (Bon Iver, Sylvan Esso), is an unflinching exploration of resilience, loss, and self-discovery. Its lead single “Last Night,” out September 26, captures the surreal experience of learning about her grandfather’s passing as a child, pairing tender lyricism with the heaviness of embodiment and mortality. It’s the kind of song that feels both personal and universal, a reminder of how music can make space for the emotions we don’t always know how to name.
With Narcissus, Queen Quail cements herself as an artist to watch, one whose music holds space for vulnerability, transformation, and the quiet beauty of becoming. Read below to learn more about the making of the project and more.
LUNA: Queen Quail began during the pandemic and a time of inner turmoil. What pushed you to start writing and creating under this project, and what did it give you during that time?
QUEEN QUAIL: I was feeling really disconnected from home (Milwaukee), and really missing my roots and family. I started creating as Queen Quail because I needed some sort of container for these intense feelings of being so far away from loved ones and a sense of groundedness. QQ really gave me that at the time, and also a way to find my community here in Berlin.
LUNA: Your debut EP Narcissus tells a story of resilience, self-discovery, and overcoming. Can you share how the title reflects the themes of the project?
QUEEN QUAIL: The story of Narcissus has always fascinated me, this idea of being trapped by your own reflection. The title represents that moment of being consumed by self-questioning, and the EP explores how I moved beyond it. It’s less about vanity and more about what happens when you confront yourself honestly and then grow from it.
LUNA: The first single “Last Night” feels both tender and heavy, as it grapples with embodiment, dreams, and loss. What was the emotional process of writing this song like?
QUEEN QUAIL: It was sweet and surreal. I was grappling with this idea that we don’t get to choose the moments that end up shaping us and standing out over time. The song came from a memory of being 11, half-asleep, and hearing my mom get the call that her father had passed. It was my first experience of losing someone I loved.
LUNA: Folk influences like Phoebe Bridgers and Adrianne Lenker echo in your music, but there are also experimental textures reminiscent of Bon Iver and Alex G. How do you approach blending intimacy with experimentation?
QUEEN QUAIL: I think intimacy and experimentation really go hand in hand. When I’m in a kind of flow state while writing (not overthinking, just letting things come up) it feels very intimate, and that’s also when experimentation happens naturally. Then when I bring a song into the studio, it opens up even more space to play.
LUNA: How did working with David Thornton, Michael Kümper, and Huntley Miller shape the sound and vision of Narcissus?
QUEEN QUAIL: David really helped me find and hone my voice. I’m naturally a pretty quiet person, so having his support in learning to hear myself and speak up was huge. Michael took our vision seriously and mixed the songs in a way that really honored that. And having Huntley master it gave the project this final layer of connection to home, which felt really grounding.
LUNA: You’ve described Queen Quail as about “feeling, facing emptiness, and longing for connection.” How do you translate such vulnerable concepts into something that feels sharable and resonant?
QUEEN QUAIL: I think those feelings are really relatable, but they often carry a layer of secondary shame. Writing gives me a way to move through that, and to share something vulnerable in a form that feels safe, and hopefully resonates with others who’ve felt the same.
LUNA: You’ve played with artists like Dan English of Porches, who encouraged you to tour as a guitarist. How did that experience impact your confidence or perspective as an artist?
QUEEN QUAIL: That was such a special moment! I was just starting to play shows and didn’t really have the context to understand if I was a fool for getting up on stage. It's good to be able to validate yourself, of course, but that comment has really stuck with me over the years.
LUNA: Living between Milwaukee and Berlin must create contrasting influences. How do your roots and your current surroundings show up in your songwriting?
QUEEN QUAIL: For me, Milwaukee is a place of rootedness and Berlin is a place of exploration and experimentation. No matter how much techno I listen to over here, I’ll always love the music I grew up on and the sweet quirks that make home home. I love that this input from home is sort of baked into you, but there’s always space for more input as you go out into the world and explore. The songs really reflect that sonically but also as a means of processing all of this input from different phases of life.
LUNA: What role does live performance play for you?
QUEEN QUAIL: Playing live is the best. It’s a way to connect with people. I love inviting people into my world, creating some space for them to feel through things, all while vibing up on stage with the band. I want people to feel!
LUNA: Looking ahead, what do you hope listeners carry with them after hearing Narcissus?
QUEEN QUAIL: I hope people connect with the songs and leave the EP feeling refreshed, finding whatever they need from it.
