Q&A: Tiffany Stringer Unveils ‘The Lone Starlet’
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY FAITH LUEVANOS ☆
Photo by Ragan Henderson
FROM TEXAS PRIMADONNA TO LA STARLET—Tiffany Stringer returns with her sophomore EP, The Lone Starlet. This EP marks a major milestone for Stringer, who recently signed with Atlantic Records, proving that this is simply just the beginning for her.
Alongside releasing her most vulnerable body of work to date, Stringer also unveiled a music video for every track on the EP, each one acting as a page in the larger story of The Lone Starlet. To celebrate the release, she hosted special screenings for fans and friends, creating an intimate space not only to experience the film but to connect with her directly. The result was a one-of-a-kind event that brought artist and audience even closer together.
Luna had the opportunity to attend a screening at the Los Feliz Theatre, and the overwhelming sense of love in the room was impossible to ignore. Every video felt cinematic and distinct in its own way, while still flowing together seamlessly like a scrapbook stitched together with memories of love, grief and self-discovery all woven into one magical EP.
We sat down with Stringer to talk more about The Lone Starlet, the lessons she’s taken from this transformative chapter, her future goals and more. Read the full interview below.
Photo by Ragan Henderson
LUNA: First of all, congratulations on the release of the EP! From a listener’s perspective, this feels like a major milestone, and I’m sure it does for you as well. How does it feel to finally have a project this major out in the world now?
STRINGER: I really appreciate this question. For you to even recognize it as that means a lot that you see it that way, and it does really feel like a big milestone for me. This EP represents a lot of “new” for me; it’s my first time releasing with a major label, shoutout Atlantic, and there were so many things with that that were new. It’s funny, it’s all happening so fast that I don’t even have a moment to really process how big of a milestone it has been, but I was literally just talking to someone about needing to journal more and write all of these amazing things that have happened. The fact that the EP is out now, like, when did that happen?
I’m really grateful, and I’m also really grateful that it’s out in the world, because I feel like it becomes no longer yours when you release it to the world, and it becomes a life of its own. There’s almost like this detachment, like it’s my baby going off to college, so I can just see where it goes in the world, and it’s no longer mine to control.
LUNA: Have you seen any interpretations of the EP that you weren’t expecting to see?
STRINGER: It’s still in the gestation period, where people are still taking it in, and a lot of people saw the tracklist before it came out and were claiming songs, but it’s very interesting right now to see what songs are resonating with people, especially because they’re all quite different, so I’m seeing a lot more stories of what people are resonating with, which is always my favorite thing.
LUNA: What came first? The Hollywood glamour vibe or the songs?
STRINGER: The songs came first, actually. We just put out the music video for “Casualty,” and it’s funny because I wrote that song back in 2023, and it was in the same realm as when I was writing The Texas Primadonna, but to me, it didn’t fit in that world. I loved the song, so it was always in the back of my mind, so I just kept writing songs, always knowing I wanted to make projects moving forward, but not really knowing what story I was going to tell.
I was in a very big transition period of my life. I was coming out of a relationship, and friendship changes were happening, just so much change happening, and I was like, “How does it all fit together?” I watched Singin’ in the Rain in the summer of 2024, and I had never seen it, and there was a dynamic in that movie where they go on and off the set, and to me, that was like a light bulb moment because I was like, “Oh, they’re still the same character, but in this moment they’re performing and existing and dealing with very different things on and off the set.” I wanted to release “Casualty” and “Bullet,” and I wanted all of these things that felt a little polarizing to each other, and that was the glue for me, where I realized all of these songs could come out, all of these truths could coexist.
LUNA: Once you were able to find that common thread between the songs and establish the visual identity for the EP, were there any specific items or key scenes that happen in the music videos where you were like, “This has to be in it”?
STRINGER: For me, it was that final moment in “Bullet.” That really was the pinnacle for me, because “Bullet” is still the persona of “I don’t care,” and what I’ve realized through releasing this EP is that the coping mechanism I fall into is like, “I’m a bad bitch, and let’s skip the grieving, let’s just be good,” and I’ve learned that about myself, and I find that the more I do that, I’m just suppressing emotions that will then later come up, because they have to come up, and I wanted that specifically to be in the video for “Bullet.” I think all of the songs play into “Bullet” with the visual narrative of it all. We put so much into that video, and I’m so grateful for how it turned out because it’s the nucleus of the whole EP.
LUNA: I noticed you had a choreography credit for “Bullet” as well. What was that experience like?
STRINGER: Yes, I made the line dance for it. I think I had already decided that I was going to do it. The beginning of my line dance choreography experience was when I did “Texas Primadonna,” and I made a dance that I would do on stage. It’s not really a line dance, but I was really stubborn about it, and just like “Yeah, I’m going to do the dance!”
LUNA: Was there a song on the EP that felt the most challenging to complete?
STRINGER: The one that stands out to me is “The Encore,” which is the final song, and it wasn’t the last song we wrote; it was right in the middle, but it’s actually about a friendship breakup. A lot of the songs are trickled with friendship breakup emotion, that’s where all the sadness comes from, but I felt this way, and it was so hard to pinpoint words for that emotion I was feeling. With a friendship breakup, those don’t usually happen very clean-cut, and that was really confusing for me. I didn’t know whether I was sad or mad, and I go back and forth between all of those things. This was a very vulnerable state for me, so it was very hard to get into that place to be willing to write that, and I remember when I wrote it, it’s a sad song, I’m literally begging for someone to love me, but I was giggling, I was like, “We’re doing it!” I really needed that song, and it was the longest to get to, but once we got it, it was really fast writing it, and I knew I was free, free from these emotions. I’m very grateful for this song.
LUNA: Leading up to the release of the EP, you got to premiere the songs and music videos in LA, NYC and Dallas. How did it feel to be able to celebrate the release of the project with such devoted fans and friends?
STRINGER: It’s cool because I’ve only done one headline show in my life, so it’s not often that I’ve had any type of event that is a hub for the people who are really invested in the project. I’ve opened for people and had that connection, but for a project specifically my own, that’s pretty rare for me, and I hope it continues. It was such a special thing, especially since everything is really digital now. I think I’m actually facing the comedown of that post-release week, because it was really so special to just sit there and talk with people face to face, and I’m realizing how important that is for me. Especially with something that’s so vulnerable for me, to get to share that with people was really special, and I do not take that for granted, especially now after experiencing it; nothing compares to that.
LUNA: Were there any questions during the Q&A portion that stood out the most to you?
STRINGER: Something that was really cool to me was that a lot of people were curious about the same things. Everyone’s questions were so intentional and so thoughtful, and it was clear to me that they were invested in the narrative and storyline and the process of it. From wanting to know how I found the outfits to the specifics on the lyrics, the delight of it was that the questions were so intentional.
LUNA: As you get to bask in this era now that the EP is out, do you have any goals or hobbies outside of music that you feel you can finally get to now?
STRINGER: I love this question. The answer is probably no, and that’s the realization I’m having right now, that I need hobbies. I’m such an obsessive person, a project truly becomes my whole life in a way that is probably a little unhealthy, and I literally experience a grief of like, “Well, what do I do now?” So, I’m currently watching Off Campus, going on a lot of walks, and getting back into the health thing. Also, I moved into my apartment almost a year ago, so now I get to do interior design and piece it together. Oh, and I got a sourdough starter.
LUNA: Are there any final messages you’d like to share with our readers and your fans?
STRINGER: If you’re reading this, I just want to say thank you, because it feels like you’re investing. I made this project because I needed to make this project, and anybody who’s willing to take the time to discover more about it or wants to read more about it, I’m really grateful for, and that’s the type of person I want to surround myself with, the people who dive deep in that way. I want to say hi and thank you, and I hope you find a piece of yourself in this art I’ve made as a reflection of myself. [signaling heart with hands]
