Interview with corook

0 (1m 26s): Hello! It is Adam. Welcome back to bringing it backwards. A podcast where both legendary and rising artists tell their own personal stories of how they achieved stardom. On this episode, we had a chance to hang out with corook over zoom video. corook was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and she talks about how she got into music, got a guitar in sixth grade, but didn't start pursuing how to play it until eighth. She got guitar hero also in sixth grade, and that kind of took over and her dad's like, if you spend as much time learning guitars to do on the game, you might get pretty good at it. So, so she took his advice and started to learn guitar via YouTube. 0 (2m 6s): She ended up getting into an arts high school that was over two hours from her house. Went there for four years. Graduated, attended Berkeley school of music graduated from there was in a band for awhile that kind of dissolved. And for a couple of years, didn't really know what they wanted to pursue creatively or musically corook then wrote the song feat stuff, which she ended up working with with someone she went to high school with, and it kind of clicked for her. That was what she needed to be doing. That's what a crux project would be. And from there moved to Nashville, started working on songs. She told us about a Vajra moment. 0 (2m 47s): She had on Tik TOK, the tour she's currently on with K Flay, all about our new EAP and the brand new song called IDK. God, you can watch our interview with crook on our Facebook page and YouTube channel app, bringing it backwards. It would be so awesome if you subscribe to our channel like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Tik TOK. Add bringing back pod. And if you're listening to this on Spotify or apple music, it'd be amazing if it falls there and hook us up with a five-star review, 2 (3m 18s): We'd appreciate your support. If you follow and subscribe to our podcasts, wherever you listen to podcasts, 0 (3m 24s): We're bringing it backwards with Karuk. I appreciate you being here. Thank you so much. 3 (3m 28s): Thank you so much for having me. Of 0 (3m 30s): Course. I'm Adam, by the way, and this podcast about you, your journey in music, and obviously talk about the song that came out today as well. 3 (3m 39s): Awesome. 0 (3m 40s): Sweet. So first off, talk to me about where were you born and raised? 3 (3m 45s): I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. So I'm a big Steelers fan. I'm not a big hockey. I am. I love, I love football. I honestly didn't realize I loved football until like I was hanging out with my girlfriend's dad. Who's a big Steelers fan and he put on a game and I was like suddenly yelling at the TV. But yeah, I, I was raised like, you know, 20, 30 minutes outside the city in like the south Hills area. 0 (4m 17s): Okay. Very cool. And how did you get into music? 3 (4m 22s): You know, I was, I don't really know. It was just something I was extremely drawn to. Like there's no one in my family that is even kind of musically inclined. I just like always wanted to do it. Like I remember in second grade they were like, what do you want to be when you grow up? And they asked me to draw it. And then I drew myself on stage playing guitar and singing, even though I'd never done it, it wasn't until like middle school that I like had a guitar. And I was like, okay. I like actually kind of want to do this. And I started just looking up videos on YouTube of how to play certain songs. So I taught myself guitar on YouTube and then I was in middle school writing songs. 3 (5m 5s): And then I actually went to a performing arts high school. And that was, yeah, I got kind of serious about music then 0 (5m 14s): Going back a second here, w with the guitar, you do, you, you obviously, you drew yourself singing on a stage playing guitar, and then you get a guitar in middle of school. What, like, did somebody, did you get it from your parents? Like how did you get the guitar? Hey, everyone. We wanted to tell you about another music podcast that we've been loving, the broken record podcasts from Pushkin industries, music industry icon, Rick Rubin, along with producer, Justin Richmond and authors, Malcolm Gladwell, and Bruce Headlands. Sit down with the artists. You'd love for unparalleled creative insight into your favorite music. You'll hear revealing interviews with some of the most legendary figures in music like Neil young, Andre, 3000 Alicia keys and Bruce Springsteen. 0 (5m 58s): And you'll learn about up and coming stars like Michelle Zonar, who talks about her big plans for her dreaming indie pop band, Japanese breakfast. This April, they're celebrating the red hot chili peppers, new album with John for Shantay Anthony Kiedis flee and Chad Smith, all in conversation with Rick Rubin. They share stories and songs from the new album, and also never before heard insights about their decades, long dynamic and chemistry, listen to broken record wherever you get podcasts. 3 (6m 29s): So I got a guitar for Christmas from my parents. It was an election. 0 (6m 33s): Did you ask for the guitar where you like it's time, it's time to try to learn? 3 (6m 37s): I think I got it in like, like sixth grade and I also got guitar hero at the same year. And so I spent all of my time playing guitar hero and never playing my actual guitar. And then my dad came in the living room once, whenever I was playing it. And he was like, you're getting pretty good at guitar hero. Like if you spent like, even half the time, you know, playing your actual guitar, you might actually be good at guitar. And I was like, yeah, you're probably right. Like I should play guitar. And it was probably like eighth grade whenever I really picked up the guitar and started playing it and writing. 0 (7m 10s): So kind of sat for a bit of time then. Okay. 3 (7m 15s): Yeah. My second grade dreams sat for awhile. 0 (7m 18s): Well, what kind of, what kind of guitar did you get? I'm just curious. 3 (7m 21s): It was, it looks like a Strat, it was a black looking shot, but it was like a Walmart guitar. You know what I mean? 0 (7m 27s): Okay. Yeah. It wasn't like a Squire, like, like the go-to 3 (7m 34s): A Walmart brand, like came in a box with like a tiny amp and a guitar and a guitar for like a hundred bucks. 0 (7m 41s): Did he still have it? 3 (7m 42s): I don't think so. I think it's gone. My family's moved around a lot, so we've had to get rid of a lot of stuff. 0 (7m 49s): Okay. So you ended up really taking it seriously in eighth grade, you said? 3 (7m 54s): Yeah, eighth grade. I was like writing songs all the time, staying up super late. And my dad was like, well, you should, you know, you should pursue this. Let's find a school for you to go to. And I auditioned for this performing arts school that was like two and a half hours away from my house. 0 (8m 13s): Wow. 3 (8m 15s): And I got in and I just was like, okay, well, this is what I'm gonna do. And I would wake up at like 5:00 AM every day to ride the bus to school. And then I would get home at like six or seven. And I would like do my homework on the bus or like play guitar on the bus and then I'd come home and stay up and play guitar and write songs. So it was like, I was just obsessed. I was just truly obsessed with making music. 0 (8m 40s): Wow. That's amazing that you have such a supportive household. Your dad's like, yeah, we should put you in a performing arts school. Yeah. It's two hours plus away. 3 (8m 49s): Yeah. Opportunities. Yeah. Opportunity is my father's love language. So he, like, he pushed me maybe a little too hard in some things, but like he pushed me a lot to do the things that was good at. 0 (9m 3s): That's incredible though. Yeah. When it comes to the bus, where was it? Like the city bus you had to take like public straight up transportation. And they had a bus that went there. 3 (9m 13s): Right. It was a charter school. And so they had school buses, but they would only come so close to, like, my mom would have to wake up with me and drive me 30 minutes to even get to the bus stop. And then I would be on the bus for another like hour and a half to two hours. So it was like, wow, what was it? Commitment. My family 0 (9m 32s): Committed 3 (9m 32s): To making me good at music. 0 (9m 35s): That's amazing. And do you do that through all of high school? All four years of their 3 (9m 39s): All four years of high school. Wow. And then I graduated and I got a scholarship to go to Berkeley in Boston And went there for four years. I studied songwriting and contemporary writing and production, which is like basically just, you know, writing for big band writing for strings writing for commercials. It was just like a ton of writing I just wrote and wrote and wrote. 0 (10m 7s): So when it came well, real quick on the, on the high school that you went to, you said you had to audition to get into the school. What was the audition process like to get into that high school? 3 (10m 16s): I'm pretty sure. I just, like, there was like three teachers in there that I ended up studying with for four years and they were just, they let me play a song. I think I just played one of my original songs. And then I think they may be asked me to try to read some music, which I could not do and still cannot do to be honest. But yeah, they just like asked me to sing a song for them. And I I'm pretty sure I sang like some kind of really sad song that I wrote. I think it was called gone. And I don't remember how it goes, but I know like my whole high school knew that song. 0 (10m 54s): Wow. Well, that's incredible. So the, it must've been a hit if the school knew it. 3 (10m 59s): Yeah, I guess so. I don't know. It, honestly, that era of my writing really reminds me of like John Mayer. Like I loved John Mayer at the time, like this kind of like jazz pop thing. It was popular in my high school. And so like, it was kind of all I knew. 0 (11m 15s): And it was he kind of an inspiration to go to Berkeley or was that just the, 3 (11m 18s): I didn't even know the Berkeley. And then when I got there, everyone was like, everyone has really mixed feelings about John Merritt, Berkeley. So I knew he went there when I got there, but yeah, w I guess it wasn't really a deciding factor. It was just kinda like the school to go to for, you know, contemporary music 0 (11m 39s): And with that too. Did you audition to get into Berkeley? 3 (11m 42s): Yes. I don't remember what city I auditioned in, but I auditioned and I just, I just, it was like very similar to my high school. I played a song that I wrote, and then they asked me to set, read music, which I was a little bit better at, but I was not fluent. 0 (11m 58s): All right. Well, when you're writing songs in high school, I mean, you started writing songs in eighth grade, but when you get into this school, are you studying songwriting at the high school or was it just kind of a mix of everything? 3 (12m 10s): It was, it wasn't, there wasn't really song writing classes. It was more like I spent like over half the day doing music. So I was in like a jazz class. I had a choir class, if not two, I had a voice lesson. And then I had like theory classes and music, history classes. And then I, I honestly, I kinda just did songwriting whenever I could. Like, I just kind of did that by myself. They didn't have classes on that. I hope they do now. I would, I would love to go back and find out, but yeah, 0 (12m 46s): With the songs that you're writing, when you're in school, were you sharing those with people? I mean, obviously the school knew the one that gone song, but like everything else from that, were you sharing them? Were you putting them up online? Like how are people hearing the music? 3 (12m 59s): This is like a huge secret that I haven't told many people. I like recorded a whole album and put it out when I was in high school. I have since taken it off the internet because it is extremely embarrassing for me to listen to. 0 (13m 13s): Okay. 3 (13m 14s): But it exists. 0 (13m 16s): Wow. 3 (13m 17s): It was called L O V E like, like literally L dot O dot V dot E. That 0 (13m 24s): Was an acronym or just love with 3 (13m 26s): No, it was just, I had a song that I spelled out the word love. And so, 0 (13m 31s): Yeah. There's the title track you got? That's cool though. Where are you doing? Like any sort of, you know, YouTube stuff, because I mean, your, your tick-tock in your, your online presence is hilarious. And I was just tinkering around your website, which is also like one of the coolest websites I've ever seen. And I was playing your cheeseball Pac-Man game and all the little things that you have on your website. 3 (13m 57s): Oh my God, you did a deep dive. 0 (13m 59s): It was so just going to the website, I was like, whoa, I remember these Mac computers that were totally clear, like monitors and the fact that you created your whole website on it. It was brilliant. And I mean, just like I'm 50 grand in debt or something like click here for feedback. I was done. Like, 3 (14m 23s): It's all about the details. 0 (14m 25s): Hey, everyone. We wanted to tell you about another music podcast that we've been loving, the broken record podcast from Pushkin industries, music industry icon, Rick Rubin, along with producer, Justin Richmond and authors, Malcolm Gladwell, and Bruce Headlands. Sit down with the artists. You'd love for unparalleled creative insight into your favorite music. You'll hear revealing interviews with some of the most legendary figures in music like Neil young, Andre, 3000 Alicia keys and Bruce Springsteen. And you'll learn about up and coming stars like Michelle Zonar, who talks about her big plans for her dreaming indie pop band, Japanese breakfast. This April, they're celebrating the red hot chili peppers, new album with John for Shantay Anthony Kiedis flee and Chad Smith, all in conversation with Rick Rubin. 0 (15m 13s): They share stories and songs from the new album, and also never before heard insights about their decades, long dynamic and chemistry. Listen to broken record wherever you get podcasts. Really? For sure. 3 (15m 27s): Oh yeah. Wait, what was the initial question? Oh, 0 (15m 31s): I don't know if I had one, I think, oh, you do. Are you doing online stuff when you were? 3 (15m 35s): Well, I, I was, so I had a friend, his name was Chris. He was like doing really amazing YouTube videos at the time he was a songwriter and he just saw me play once. And he was like, let's make videos for you. And it was, it was so nice. We started making some videos and it was like long form YouTube videos, like covers and stuff. But I didn't feel like I actually knew what I wanted to do creatively, like visually until this project until Karuk like, I think that everything before this, I've kind of been like, well, I know the formula of songwriting and I know the formula of like what a video should look like, but I don't think it was until this project that I feel like I'm visually and musically, like inserting my own personality and my own experience into my project. 0 (16m 30s): Okay. And you're doing a great job. I mean, the video where, so actually I'm curious, because this kind of leads me to the next question with, with this current project, like after you had graduated at Berkeley, did you, were you still pursuing just songwriting? Like w like, what was the next step there from, from Showing up at Berkeley? 3 (16m 51s): When I was in Berkeley, I was in a band called Luxe, L U H X period. It was, it was like this alternative, like pop band. And I made it with my friends and it was a blast and it wasn't until I graduated and was like a year out of college where I was like, I, I kinda think there's something else for me. And so I made the decision to leave that group. And I spent like the next two years, probably like just kind of wandering around music, being like, I want to do it so bad. And I just don't know how to pursue it. You know, I think I was working at CVS. 3 (17m 31s): I was a cashier. I was a supervisor. And then I became a babysitter. Although I like spending like weekends or anytime I like felt inspired to do music, but it, it has very much music, very much requires a lot of passion from me and a lot of, and I just didn't have it for the first couple of years out of college. It just felt like it's, it's really scary to get two art degrees and then graduate knowing that your art degrees can't get you your dream career, you know, like the knowledge that you gained from it, the creativity, the skills, the production, you know, all of that is super valuable, but nobody exactly teaches you. 3 (18m 17s): Like, you have to know yourself and like, know what you want out of your career to get it, you know? 0 (18m 26s): Right. It's an interesting path. Yeah. It's subjective, right? 3 (18m 30s): Yeah, exactly. We're given these tools and, but it requires a lot more just like self-knowing than most other careers 0 (18m 41s): Was there, like something that clicked when within, after those two year period that you were like, okay, I'm ready to be creative again. 3 (18m 49s): Yeah. So I'd, I'd written a few songs and some of them felt really good and some of them felt okay. And then I went home to Pittsburgh and one of my good friends from high school is named Steven. He goes by the name names now, and a, B E S 0 (19m 7s): Do you know him? 3 (19m 9s): He's super talented. He's like one of my best friends, but I went home and he was there and we were like, let's make some music. And I had this song called feed stuff. I had like, half of it done. And yeah, that's a good title. I'd like half of it done. And I was like, yo, like, I just, I don't really know how to finish this. Can we try to do this? It was also my first time, like, I felt like truly co-writing truly collaborating on something on an idea. And we had just a blast writing it. It came out like nothing I'd ever written before. Like, like there was a lot of humor in it. There was a lot of like, kind of add attention. 3 (19m 52s): Like, wait, what is she talking about? Rolling on sentences. And it felt like I'd found my lyrical voice For the first time. And that was like, whenever it clicked. And I was like, okay, I have a project here. Like I, like, I might not have all the songs for it, but I have, I have the idea and the creative vision for it now. 0 (20m 12s): And from there, did you just start putting up online or like what this kind of the next thing that I 3 (20m 18s): Can tell you the next 0 (20m 19s): Level? 3 (20m 19s): Yeah. I continued writing. I moved to Nashville. 0 (20m 25s): Are you still living in Nashville? Oh, wow. 3 (20m 28s): I live in east Nashville tacos. If anybody knows what MAs tacos is, that's a 0 (20m 34s): Good spot. 3 (20m 38s): But yeah, I moved to Nashville. I continued writing. I started producing, I started producing the tracks because I was like, honestly, my friend Steven, super talented and super busy. And I was like, I can't, I can't continue to ask him to do this work for free as well as a couple of, other of my friends that are really talented producers. I was like, I just, I need to spend some time like figuring out what they do, how they do it and, and make it my own. And so I spent like a year in Nashville, just kind of working behind the scenes on this project. 3 (21m 21s): And then I decided to release feed stuff, like specifically that song. And that was kind of when everything unfolded. Like it's not even like that song did crazy. Well, it didn't get playlisted at all. I don't even, it maybe hit a thousand listens on Spotify, but the right people heard it and believed in me. And yeah, 0 (21m 46s): That's amazing. I love the videos that you're doing. There's so the one I'd watch before I go with you, you, you like say something like you didn't, people didn't know that you could sing and then you're like producing yourself on like your little keyboard and then you're holding like a thing of Cheez-Its or something like that. 3 (22m 4s): Well, I love that one. That was what, honestly, that was whenever I was like, so I spent like the last couple of months before this tour that I'm on, I spent the last few months, like trying to figure out what the hell I'm gonna do on tech talk, because it is such an important tool for us now. And also really can be really hard to figure out your voice, you know? And I had like made this video of me, you know, imitating this little girl puking, you know, like how you have the video playing and you're like also imaging. 0 (22m 39s): Oh, sure, sure. 3 (22m 41s): So I, I posted one of those and it went like viral, like 1.6 million views or some shit. And I'm like, oh my God, all these people know me now as the puke girl, like, what am I going to do? And that was what I had the idea. I was like, I'm going to make a song saying, Hey, I know I'm the cute girl, but also I make music. And I think you would like it, you know? And that, that also, like that kind of opened up what I now do on Tik TOK, which is like, kind of making my own little music videos. 0 (23m 8s): Yeah. And they're so creative. And they're so funny like that. Yeah. Just like the whole, that whole video. Like every, every piece of it is it's, it's, Tech-Talk like, like perfectly done. I think like I'm not very good at it whatsoever, but I've seen the ones that are really good and just like how quick it is and you're moving and you're, you know, you're turning and the cuts and just like the creativity of it. Like I was laughing so hard. And then I went to your website. I'm like, okay. She is so funny. Hey, everyone, we wanted to tell you about another music podcast. We've been loving the broken record podcasts from Pushkin industries, music industry icon, Rick Rubin, along with producer, Justin Richmond and authors, Malcolm Gladwell, and Bruce Headlands. 0 (23m 57s): Sit down with the artists. You'd love for unparalleled creative insight into your favorite music. You'll hear revealing interviews with some of the most legendary figures in music like Neil young, Andre, 3000 Alicia keys and Bruce Springsteen. And you'll learn about up and coming stars like Michelle Zonar, who talks about her big plans for her dreaming indie pop band, Japanese breakfast. This April, they're celebrating the red hot chili peppers, new album with John for Shantay Anthony Kiedis flee and Chad Smith, all in conversation with Rick Rubin. They share stories and songs from the new album, and also never before heard insights about their decades, long dynamic and chemistry. 0 (24m 38s): Listen to broken record wherever you get podcasts. Yeah. And I know you're on tour now. Don't you play tonight? 3 (24m 45s): Yeah. I'm in Portland, Oregon. 0 (24m 46s): We're here in Portland, Oregon. You're opening up for K Flay. 3 (24m 49s): Yeah. 0 (24m 50s): Wow. This is this your first tour you've ever done or detour with that other band you were in. 3 (24m 55s): We maybe did a little tour, but it definitely was not to this caliber. And yeah, this, this has been my first time on tourists as Karuk it's my first time playing shows as Karuk. Wow. A lot of firsts it's and it's a big tour. It's a long, we have earned our stripes during those tour. It is easy 0 (25m 18s): And you're playing a big audiences. I mean, cable. I placed the big, big crowds. 3 (25m 22s): Yeah. You know, it's funny. I have, I really like to curate everything I do. And I curated this set and I wrote a song for the opening of my show. And there was a line in it where I say, I'm just really grateful that you all showed up because a lot of people didn't get here early enough. And I'm like, I wrote that. And then I started playing the shows and these, these shows are fricking packed. Like there is no shortage of people there. So it's like, Like, I, I don't, I almost feel bad singing it, you know? Cause I'm like, well, no, I just feel ungrateful because this room is freaking packed. But at the same time, like I think that people end up feeling kind of special for hearing it, you know? 3 (26m 7s): Yeah. 0 (26m 7s): Yeah. And they probably get where you're going with it obviously. Right. I mean, if you looked at a lineup, when you're going for K Flay, then people usually go, oh, I want shoe might be going on around nine. So we get there at eight 50 or that's just the nature of most people when it comes to shows. So that's cool that there's that many people, you know, even people there that early. And it's your, I would imagine like kind of explain, explain your show to me. Cause is it quirky and funny? And are you doing these things in between songs? Like, I mean just off your internet personality. 3 (26m 40s): Yeah. My, I showed my girlfriend the set. She was the first person to see this, that outside of the band. And the first thing she said to me, she was like, I, she was like, I was speaking to a friend earlier and they asked me what your set would be like. And I said, eventually it would probably be half music and half comedy. And she said, but you're already doing it. It is already half music and half comedy. Like I have this little like vocal transformer thing where I can sound like a guy and it's cool. And so it kind of looks like a stand-up comedic like thing, But yeah, it's, it's really, really fun. 3 (27m 21s): And I it's a lot of like connecting with the people that are in the audience, you know, talking, listening to them, saying things back, you know, I like to leave a lot of space and obviously play a lot of songs too, but 0 (27m 39s): Cool. Very cool. And will tell me about the new song you have coming out. IDK. God, 3 (27m 45s): I hate God 0 (27m 47s): Or it's out. What am I saying? It's out today. Like this second. Yeah, 3 (27m 56s): Yeah. That song. It's not that I, this is kind of funny. It's not that I didn't like this on before tour. I loved the song before tour, but it took on just like an entirely new personality and energy playing a live. The way that people respond to this song kind of shocked me because it's like a slower song. It's like a, you know, it's like when you really have to listen to, and it just surprised me that people were listening so intently and giggling at the lines and crying by the end of it. And I was initially supposed to release a different song today. And I was like, I think this one needs to come out. 3 (28m 36s): I think that with everything that's, you know, the pandemic slowly, slowly coming to an end and all of the stuff with Ukraine going on right now, I think that the song is kind of living its own life. And I felt the need to release it now, rather than later, you know, 0 (28m 58s): Is it pretty cool being able to kind of just workshop or not workshop, I guess that's not the right word, but like play songs like IDK Dodd before they're out and kind of seeing the crowd's reaction to it. 3 (29m 11s): And 0 (29m 12s): You're kind of playing to, I mean, how, how, how much of your set isn't released yet? I guess would be my question. Is that, was that the only one? 3 (29m 22s): No. Yeah, I guess, I guess that's the only one on the, that isn't out yet. You know, I still, I play snakes. I don't know if you've heard that song on my team work, but that's, that's like the one that everybody's asking me to release on the internet right now. And then I play that opening act song, which I actually never intend on that. I kind of want to keep it like a secret for anybody that comes to my show. 0 (29m 46s): That's cool. 3 (29m 47s): But yeah, it's been really, it's been really cool specifically. I don't know. God has just been shocking and really special every night. 0 (29m 59s): That is amazing. That is amazing. I can't wait to see you. And I would imagine your set has got to be not only great, but you know, very entertaining. I would 3 (30m 10s): See it. You got to come 0 (30m 12s): Say no, I know. I know. Do you play Nashville? Didn't you and I missed it. I know I did see that 3 (30m 19s): I lived there, so 0 (30m 21s): I know you. Yeah, next time you play here, I'm going for sure. And, and congratulations on the tour and then you have another big tour coming up as well, right in the summer. 3 (30m 30s): Yeah. I'm going on a few dates with JP Sachs, truly legendary in the Berkeley songwriting world. So another full circle moment for me. 0 (30m 42s): Very cool. Well, thank you so much for doing this book. I really, really, really appreciate it. And especially since you have a show tonight, thank you for taking time to chat with me 3 (30m 52s): First. Thank you for having me. 0 (30m 53s): Yeah, I have one more question. I want to know if you have any advice for aspiring artists, 3 (31m 0s): Start to journal, start to do things that make you a little uncomfortable, because like you can take every song writing class in the world and still not be unique. I think that what makes every artist unique is themselves. It's not their song writing. It's not the craft. It's not their lyrics. It's like them inserting themselves into music. So just find yourself