Madelline is a New York-based music artist, producer, video director, and actress. Known for her genre-bending sound, she released her first EP, “Noise Complaint,” in 2021. After living in Montreal for nine years, she returned to New York as her online presence began to soar gaining millions of views! We discussed her artistic journey and TikTok’s impact on the music industry.
BY ROCHELLE ALLEN
Credits Creative Director: Rochelle Allen Photography: Rochelle Allen Stylist: Rochelle Allen Hair: Amélie McKenna Makeup: Amélie McKenna Set Design: Rochelle Allen
Our story starts by trespassing in an abandoned junkyard off a Montreal highway and ends on a Bushwick rooftop overlooking the New York skyline. During a frigid fall evening in Montreal, we packed our car full of photoshoot props as we questioned our audacity in pursuing an illegal venture on private property.
With the sun setting, we leapt over fences into the junkyard, determined to make it work. Despite being so freezing that we could see our breath in the air, Madelline braved the conditions like a pro.
The adventure didn’t end there, with Madelline rushing off to work looking like a killer clown doll, we had to delay the rest of the interview. A year later, after both our lives had taken significant turns we finally reunited on her Brooklyn rooftop and continued our conversation amidst the buzz of New York City!
Madelline is wearing a pink and white Japanese kawaii aesthetic style dress with goth knee-high platforms. The concept was inspired by the song Kill u in My Dreams off her 2021 EP “Noise Complaint.”
Rochelle: Just to preface, Madelline and I have been close friends for a couple of years now, and she has become one of my best friends! It's interesting because when we met in August 2020, we were both looking for creative friends at that point in our lives.
Madelline: We were both manifesting it 100%!
R: It's nice that we found each other because we worked on many creative projects together. The first time we hung out, we did a shoot at my house, and I feel like that's been the foundation of our friendship, which is amazing!
M: Yes! I love creating together; it formed such a deep bond between us. Rochelle has been a lifeline in so many ways for these shoots that I've done, helping style me, doing my makeup, and bouncing creative ideas off each other. You’re also an incredible person and support system.
R: Aw, I feel the same way. You helped me see that I could monetize my creative skills and make them a career, so I thank you for that.
R: Tell me a little about your childhood?
M: Yeah, so I was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut. I have one brother, and I grew up middle-class in Monroe. It’s a tiny, woodsy town. What people do for fun is like smoking weed in the woods. It's a very typical suburban American town with lots of strip malls.
R: When you describe the town, it sounds like one of those coming-of-age American teen movies.
M: Yeah, I feel that. Growing up, I spent a lot of time outside. I’m a child of divorce, which affected me in many ways. So I grew up doing theatre and choir, I was also in a marching band in high school.
R: After high school, you moved to New York, right?
M: Yeah, I graduated and chose to go to Pace University for acting for film and television because they had an excellent program. At the time, I thought I was going to be an actor. Theatre was my life growing up. I was obsessed with performing on stage. However, I ended up dropping out of Pace after one year. I was miserable. The program was cliquey, and I felt like the black sheep.
R: When did you decide to move to Montreal, and how were your first few years living there?
M: My brother was living in Montreal, we're half Canadian, so I moved up to Montreal, So I was like a 19-year-old, you know, totally thrown into it! Living there was exciting, I was having fun and even had a few crushes on some Quebecois boys. But it was harder to get a job because I didn't speak French then, so my first job in Montreal was at a call center.
R: How did you figure out that you wanted to be a music artist?
M: I love writing and singing songs so much. It came to me so effortlessly. In Montreal, I got obsessed with making my artist project and haven’t been able to stop since.
R: What song did you feel was your first introduction as an artist to the public that you're proud of?
M: When I got my flow and released "On A Different Wave" and then "I Don't Wanna Be Your Fucking Friend," That phase I was grinding hard!
R: How did you feel when "I Don't Wanna Be Your Fucking Friend" was your first 1 million streams on Spotify?
M: It felt satisfying, but numbers are fleeting. Of course, I still have that hunger inside me to get more and more.
R: During COVID, you were working on your first EP. What's this process, and what was the inspiration for this EP?
M: It's called "Noise Complaint" because I got literal noise complaints. I was recording a good amount of the songs in my home studio in Montreal, with very thin walls. I pissed many people off and got multiple noise complaints to the point where my landlord said I would get evicted if I got another noise complaint.
R: What would you say is your favourite song from that EP?
M: My favourite song is "I Don't Wanna Be Your Fucking Friend," and "Opinions" is really good too. Honestly, I like all the songs, they're all different. The "Daffodils" music video is also my favourite.
M: Rochelle also shot the cover art for "I Don't Wanna Be Your Fucking Friend." You worked on a lot of these projects with me!
R: Yeah, this was the era of us collaborating all the time! I would say one of Madelline’s biggest skills within her artistry is her visuals; they are always top-tier! She directed many of her music videos/short films.
R: As an avid Spotify user, knowing my photography was viewed by over 1 million people on the world's biggest music platform was cool.
M: When we collaborate, it's always fun, like it's always fun.
R: What inspired you to move back to New York?
M: All the opportunities came from the US. I was always travelling mainly to LA, and I had gone to Atlanta to work on music. There's no music scene in Montreal that can create a long, sustainable career. It was a bit closed off where many Quebecois artists would get support, but it was way more challenging as an Anglo artist. I just knew in my bones that I needed to move back to the US.
R: How do you feel about the internet and specifically TikTok changing the music industry?
M: Yeah. Oh my gosh. TikTok has transformed the music industry into a very different place, It changed my career! Especially throughout the last ten years, it's full of opportunity, making it possible to collaborate with people worldwide.
M: The positive aspect is that it allows more artists the chance to promote themselves without needing a label to blow up and being able to create a living out of something that's entirely on their terms! But it also means artists have to be their own marketing team, which can be stressful. Everything has a yin and a yang!
R: I agree, especially for independent artists! I feel like it changed the game so much within the last 15 years, so many big mainstream artists blew up through the internet and went straight to pop stardom! I feel like it came at the right time, it was so needed. The record companies had a lot of power and now it shifted into the artist's hands, which is nice.
R: It’s wild to think about reaching millions of people through a single post.
M: It is, the highs are incredible when something goes viral, but it can also be disappointing when content doesn’t perform as well. It’s a lottery sometimes.
R: How has that been navigating as an independent artist?
M: The most challenging part about being an independent artist is the budget. Creating art costs money, so it can be challenging when you can’t do something due to financial constraints. Sometimes you have to be scrappy! Being signed has upsides, like funding, but also downsides, like losing creative control and many other things you must think about.
R: How would you describe your music?
M: I'm super versatile. I like to try out and play around with whatever inspires me, but the overarching theme is pop. I call it alternative pop.
R: What would you say your creative process is?
M: This is something I want to refine. I've been experimenting with the idea of creativity being something that runs through me, and I'm almost like a vehicle to let that information out as opposed to it being an ego experience. I'm reading a book called "The Artist's Way," it’s impactful and helps me stay in a creative mindset.
R: I know about this book! I heard it's incredible.
R: Who would be a dream collaboration for you?
M: I would love to write with Tove Lo. It would be meaningful to me, she's a pop girly like me and I think she would be really fun to write with.
M: The other person is Mike Dean. I love his production. He is so creative with synthesizers; whenever I hear a song that I love, Mike Dean has produced it. Also, Jack Antonoff! He produced so many- Hits and fantastic records. I think a good producer knows how to highlight an artist's individuality.
R: What would you change about the music industry?
M: I wish tastemakers would take more risks on new artists because I think that would help to nurture and develop artists who show a lot of promise. It would pay off, and we would get more interesting artists. Also, Live Nation’s overcharging for tickets and taking a percentage of merch sales is ridiculous.
R: What advice would you give to someone starting as an independent artist?
M: Don't be afraid to be yourself and experiment. Collaborate with others, learn from them, and don't be discouraged by setbacks. Stay persistent and remember why you started making music in the first place. Keep the joy and passion alive!
R: What message do you want to give your supporters?
M: You just have to do it!! Finishing something is important, don't get too obsessed with the perfectionism of it. Listen to your inner guidance, if you feel that something isn’t right trust yourself.
M: Stick with the people who lift you up, and fucking believe in yourself! Don’t wait for validation from others, things take time but don’t abandon your dreams and goals. I want you to hang tight on the things you love, you are worthy of happiness and success.
R: That's really good advice. It could be used for anything in life!
R: What's next for you?
M: What's next for me is dropping more singles, creating a body of work like an album, and then going on tour. I want to keep making art, keep growing, keep advancing, and learn more about myself spiritually, emotionally, and artistically.
R: Nice! I'm so excited to see you grow as an artist and all the new projects you're working on.
R: Where can people find you on socials?
M: You can find me @i.am.madelline on all the platforms!
R: I appreciate you sitting down with me babes!
M: Thank you for having me! I appreciate you, too. I'm excited to be a part of this. Barcode is very special to me considering it's my best friend's magazine and brand. Love you!
R: Love you!
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