Brian Chinn & tigerlily on Seattle vs NYC Music Scene, "22 Below" & Lessons Learned from 2020
2020 has been one crazy year. From the pandemic to losing many greats, it's been rough. But, we all made it through, which makes it even more important to focus not on the lemons, but the lemonade. So, we found it fitting to cap off our 2020 interview series with Rising Korean-American musicians Brian Chinn and tigerlily.
Both passionate advocates for greater representation of Asian-American artists within the music industry, they've been featured in KEXP, Lyrical Lemonade and EARMILK, as well as have opened for Social House and Macklemore. Both grew up in Seattle collaborating with local breakout acts including Raz Simone, Sango, and Travis Thompson before relocating to New York City.
Tap in below to learn more of their story, the differences between NYC and Seattle's music scene and lessons from 2020 they're carrying into the New Year 🎉
You’ve both had major success in your hometown, Seattle. Why did you decide to move to New York?
Brian Chinn: Seattle has such a strong arts and music community—one I’d never want to lose touch with. But I felt like more industry infrastructure was based outside the town. And I don’t mean like record labels and execs; I mean like publishing teams, sync specialists, and folks who fully specialize in songwriting.
tigerlily: I moved to New York for college and I intentionally picked a University there since I wanted to learn more about the music business. Having had been in a band in Seattle for years, I felt having an understanding of the music business was really what I needed to get my music heard beyond my hometown. So, when I got to New York, I spent a lot of time interning at music management companies and major labels so I could learn everything I could to help myself as an independent artist.
What do you love about Seattle the most?
Brian Chinn: The closeness of different creatives in music, photography, fashion, and whatever else. We get a lot of sh*t for our lil’ “Seattle freeze”—don’t get me started on that—but when the right people get connected, it just feels natural and welcome to hit each other up and collaborate on things that might not happen otherwise. I’ve seen big projects and brand partnerships come from the most casual of “what’s good” texts.
tigerlily: I love the musical history. So many artists I look up to grew up in and around Seattle from Jimi Hendrix to Kurt Cobain to Chris Cornell to Courtney Love. The music industry has changed a lot since Seattle’s heyday in the ‘90s and nowadays we’re seeing a lot more social media influencers dropping songs for the sake of fame, so when I’m feeling disillusioned, I go back to the artists I grew up admiring in Seattle, and they remind me who I want to be.
What similarities and differences have you noticed in the music scene of both cities?
Brian Chinn: Both cities have pretty die-hard live music scenes. Seattle’s is probably slept on, honestly. But what’s different is NYC’s added expectations. The assumptions and pressures of doing your thing in the city can work for or against you.
tigerlily: Seattle is a lot smaller and slept on for sure. I kind of like that though, because we all know each other. I was performing with Travis Thompson who just signed with Epic Records back when he was a spoken word poet. You grow up grinding with the same people and it creates a sense of community I missed in New York City.
How did you all start working together?
Brian Chinn: I think we were peripherally aware of each other, both being from Seattle and relocated to NYC. Tigerlily reached out and came to a show I was playing, and from there we talked about working on something. She came through my spot a few weeks later with most of her part already written, and the recording and finishing touches just came together real smooth.
tigerlily: I met Brian at one of Travis’ shows in New York City. He was on tour and Brian was playing guitar for someone that night and we connected because of the Seattle connection.
When did you know music was your calling?
Brian Chinn: The first time I hit a proper blues guitar solo with a backing band. It was just at some music camp, but finding that groove and pocket was an amazing feeling, and I’ve been chasing the dragon ever since.
tigerlily: I knew for as long as I can remember. I grew up surrounded by my parent’s and aunt’s and uncle’s friends who were all musicians in grunge and punk bands and so I always just thought being a musician was the coolest thing ever and there was never a time I really doubted that’s what I wanted to devote my life to.
In what ways do you feel being Korean-Americans shapes your sound?
Brian Chinn: I feel like my Korean side plays a part in my ear for melody. Culturally, Korea has a history of catchy, melodic music. Then my American side is all about rhythm and attitude.
tigerlily: I don’t think it shapes my sound, I think more so it shapes my identity and my mission in music. The music industry is pretty homogenous and there are a lot of unspoken stereotypes that underly success in popular music that I could go on about for hours. Being a woman and a minority, I want to fight for greater representation of Asian-Americans and womxn in the music industry both onstage and behind the scenes.
Speaking of influences, what was that one album from your youth that broadened your perspective on life?
Brian Chinn: Deltron 3030. Aside from the post-apocalyptic sci-fi themes kind of fucking me up (in a good way), I was really drawn to this level of storytelling and world building in music that I haven’t seen outside of like... Rush.
tigerlily: Radiohead’s “OK Computer.” I used the write the lyrics from ‘No Surprises’ on my arms in high school. I just loved the poetry in the lyricism and the juxtaposition of the familiar and unexpected in the composition; it’s one of the more perfect works of art.
So, you two just dropped a new single, “22 Below”. What type of vibes were you going for?
Brian Chinn: I’ve always said I try to make music that sounds best in the car. We made “22 Below” to be dynamic, so certain parts feel like cruising and hitting corners. But when the beat kicks in, I want it to make you question your limits on a straight-away.
tigerlily: We wanted to create a vibe that’s chill and smooth which captures the mood: people trying to come back around and being like “I’m good, I’m balling out of my own.” I think a lot of artists have that mindset when it comes to relationships; you’re so focused on your dreams you really don’t have time for people who don’t see your worth.
How did you come up with the title, “22 Below”?
Brian Chinn: Originally, it was just part of an adlib in a verse we cut from the final mix. Then it got carried over into other lyrics and eventually became the whole theme and title.
tigerlily: Yeah, “22 below” since the song is about being cold when someone tries to come back around when they see you killing it without them.
The year is almost up. How have you grown in your artistry and on a personal level this year?
Brian Chinn: I’ve grown in my ability to execute—which really means I’ve learned to move and work quickly, while trying my best to never lose perspective on the big picture. Whether it’s a project, my career, or personal thing, I’m looking for the smoothest solution that doesn’t feel like cutting corners.
tigerlily: So much. I mean I dropped my first singles as a solo artist only a couple months ago—it really went from 0 to 100, haha. In the New Year I’m looking forward to growing as a songwriter and artist, collaborating with dope artists who inspire me, and keeping a positive mindset because that’s the bedrock of everything.
What’s the #1 lesson you’ve learned?
Brian Chinn: Going off the “working quickly” idea, I think a big part of that comes from trusting yourself and knowing when to let your gut instincts take the wheel. So, I guess the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that you don’t necessarily have to be everything at the same time. There’s times when it’s an advantage. But more often, I feel like I hit breakthroughs when I’m intentional about when I’ll put my technical hat on and when I’m willing to turn my brain off.
tigerlily: Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and do it to please yourself and nobody else. Being an artist, you’re basically on display 24/7. You have to live a very public life and everybody is going to have opinions about your life and music: your manager, your fans, your family, your friends. If you try to live up to society’s standard of success and please them all, you’ll fail every time. Focus on the people who get what you’re doing and ignore the rest. At the end of the day, the only person who really cares if you’re successful is you. The people who care about you only care if you’re happy.
Anything else we should know?
Brian Chinn: I’m just looking forward to putting more out in the new year. Not just songs, but videos and visual pieces. I’ve been an artist and designer for almost as long as I’ve been a musician, but I’ve sort of separated that side from my music. You’ll see more of those worlds colliding in my next releases.
tigerlily: 2021 is going to pop off! Feel free to connect with me on Instagram @tigerlily_music, Tik Tok @xotigress, Twitter @music_tigerlily, or Spotify. I’ve built up Spotify playlists to showcase up and coming artist’s music, so artist’s feel free to send me your stuff here: toneden.io/tigerlily/post/submit-to-spotify-playlists
Thank you, Keish!
