Q&A: Valencia Grace Brings Dark Pop Drama to Lollapalooza
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY KIMBERLY KAPELA☆
Brandy Fik
BUILDING A HOME FOR POP’S OUTSIDERS — For Valencia Grace, the stage has always been a space to transform. Returning to Lollapalooza on Friday, July 26, the songstress delivered a pop performance seeped in theatrical ritual. Blending infectious pop melodies with dark, dramatic aesthetics, Grace invited festivalgoers into a world where vulnerability, identity and self-expression coexist without apology.
Her set also offered fans a glimpse into what's next. Grace surprised the crowd with the live debut of an unreleased track, “BDSM,” while also performing her latest single, “Guillotine.”
Throughout her performance, Grace cultivated an atmosphere where fans could see themselves reflected back. Her theatrical presentation wasn't designed to shock — it was an extension of a larger mission to celebrate the beauty found outside the mainstream.
“I felt like I was a bit of a loser, so a place where all the freaks can come out and feel their most authentic selves and express their gender and sexuality however they want,” Grace says to Luna. “It's a complete judgment-free zone. My music is very queer. My goal is always to just make a space where people can be weird and bizarre, but it's normal to us.”
As Grace continues expanding her catalog with fearless releases like “Guillotine” and teases a new era with “BDSM,” her vision extends beyond genre.
Following her electrifying return to the Lollapalooza stage, Luna caught up with Grace for an exclusive conversation about the meaning behind creating safe spaces for her audience, the excitement of bringing her dark theatrical pop to one of the world's biggest festivals and the creative evolution fueling her next chapter. Grace reflects on fostering a community where authenticity is celebrated, shares what the Lollapalooza experience meant to her and offers a glimpse into the fearless new music on the horizon.
Brandy Fik
LUNA: Thank you for sitting down and talking to Luna. Our readers would love to get to know you and your music more. For any readers who aren’t familiar yet, what kind of atmosphere or emotional space do you aim to create for your listeners?
VALENCIA: I felt like I was a bit of a loser, so a place where all the freaks can come out and feel their most authentic selves and express their gender and sexuality however they want. It’s a complete judgment-free zone. My music is very queer. My goal is always to just make a space where people can be weird and bizarre, but it's normal to us.
LUNA: You just released your newest single “Guillotine.” Can you talk about the inspiration behind the single and what themes or emotions you explore?
VALENCIA: This song was actually very difficult to write because it was confronting a relationship with someone who is very important to my life, and realizing that that relationship was a little bit gaslighty and manipulative, but you love the person so much, you don't want to leave. You’re like, kill me, literally kill me right now, because I would rather die than have to tell you that I can't do this anymore.
LUNA: Lolla has such a unique energy — both on stage and throughout the grounds. What’s the atmosphere like for you, and how does it compare to other shows and festivals you’ve played?
VALENCIA: Lolla is spectacular. It’s so iconic, and also being able to luckily play the BMI stage feels very iconic as well. The crowd was really amazing and interactive. They were singing my songs. I actually performed at Lolla two years ago, but this performance felt very special because I had people singing my songs back to me for the first time, and I could point the microphone to them. This one was a very important show and I will definitely remember this forever.
LUNA: You’ve been back on some major stages recently — how do you personally prepare for a big performance? Do you have any pre-show rituals or regimens that help you get into the right mindset before hitting the stage?
VALENCIA: That’s tricky. I used to be a lot more nervous, in all honesty before I started taking anxiety medication, and I started taking Lexapro, and that has allowed me to stop being nervous and to actually be in the moment more. My pre-show ritual now is to be calm and collected. I'm so much more relaxed now that I can be more present in my performance and enjoy the crowd. I just say “fuck it, let's go,” and I love it. You go on stage, and then I immediately relax. That’s the ritual. I don't overthink it.
LUNA: What’s your favorite song to play live?
VALENCIA: I liked playing “BDSM” and I just debuted it for the first time ever and the audience was singing it. I have no idea how but it felt amazing.
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?
VALENCIA: I love championing the people who don't belong and the people and the women who feel like they've been put down. I write a lot about my relationship with men and how that's affected me, and I feel like I try to empower queer people and women in my music. I love the type of fans and the demographic of people that gets drawn in by this music. It's giving very queer bisexual girlfriends with their boyfriends. It's so amazing for the girls and the gays. Everything is for the girls. The women, their makeup always looks amazing. They show up. Their hair looks amazing. Their vibes are so fucking sweet and kind. They show me up, and it's fantastic.
LUNA: What is fueling your fire right now that’s pushing you into this new era of your career?
VALENCIA: I have lost a couple people in my life recently, in the business world, and also personally, and that really kickstarted a lot of me wanting to redefine who I was and figure out who I was and find that pep in my step again. I found that being theatrical was who I was meant to be. This new wave of music and being theatrical has inspired me a lot. I didn't realize that I could be so out of the box, and I didn't realize I could make the noises that I could.
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?
VALENCIA: I'm feeling like I need to clean my teeth. I'm feeling really happy. I'm feeling grateful and excited because I'm going to play another show tonight. That will be my first time playing two shows in one day. I've got a tour coming up, a very big one. It’s slowly getting bigger and bigger — the tours and the capacity — and it's all very exciting. I'm about to go and fly to Dallas to perform and support Melanie Martinez for her show. Bless her for fitting me in. I get 20 minutes, and I'm going to fucking give it all I can.
Brandy Fik
