POUTYFACE @ The Rave / Eagles Club – Milwaukee, WI
February 26, 2022
Interview and Photos by Emily Sisson
Concert Close Ups had the distinct pleasure of interviewing young female artist hailing from San Diego, Olivia Knight (better known as Poutyface), during her opening performance for Yungblud at The Rave / Eagles Ballroom Saturday night. Poutyface gained significant notoriety through the songwriting, short-form video app Voisey in addition to the release of her debut single ‘DEATHWISH’ in April 2020.
EMILY: Who is Poutyface? Is she a persona?
OLIVIA: That’s a large question. I don’t think Poutyface knows who Poutyface is. Not in a way that it’s a persona or it’s constructed, but I think it’s an exaggeration of a specific part of myself. It does evolve and I think, as I continue to write music and continue to write different types of things, it takes on different forms of my personality. But I think right now it’s an exaggeration of… maybe the more extroverted, thrash version of myself. So I think Poutyface right now is more of a persona I guess. But it’s kinda fun to give something your all and not hold back. I think that’s what it is right now. Not having any reservations with myself and with what I’m making.
EMILY: What are you like behind the scenes when you’re not Poutyface? What’s Olivia like?
OLIVIA: I’m pretty introspective. I definitely think quite a lot. I like to listen. In a group of people I’m probably going to be the person who is not talking a whole lot. I’m just observing and listing to people and that’s probably where I feel the most comfortable. Which is maybe why this project is so far removed from that. Because it’s something that I don’t get to enact on my daily basis in my personal life. Yeah, behind the
scenes there’s definitely layers and different aspects to me for sure.
EMILY: Who are some of the people you listened to while writing this last project “Boys Will Be Boys”?
OLIVIA: I definitely was in a super punk faze. There’s a ton of females that are in my close sphere and I love listening to my peers around me. Sizzy Rocket… she’s really really great. A friend of mine Phem. A friend of mine Tilly. Just a lot of people in my close circle. I live in Los Angeles and the scene I’m in right now is a lot of that. Very interesting girls but masculine… a very interesting blend of the two. I was surrounded a lot by that when I was writing that song. I think that gave me a reason to write that song.
EMILY: Some of your songs really make me want to bang my head and give a middle finger to the EX. Have you ever been screwed over by an ex or friend that inspired you to write like that?
OLIVIA: I have been more screwed over by friends than I have by people I’ve been in relationships with. I think most of the time it’s in my best interest not to stir the pot when things happen and I’m very willing to walk away and part ways with people. So that definitely remains inside of me and will probably fuels the type of music that I write.
EMILY: Do you want to talk a little about your song “Never Fucking Know”? Is it a true story?
OLIVIA: Every detail is 100% true. The way the that song came out was actually really interesting. I was writing with a friend of mine Will J. I love writing with him because he’s an incredible songwriter, but one who I can just tell him a story and tell him what’s happening and he’s just taking notes and writing exact things that I say as we go… and I lot of that. How the songs feels is conversational and came out conversational because that’s how we wrote it. It’s exactly how I told that story to him and it’s exactly how I would tell that story to you or anyone. That’s just it in it’s own form.
EMILY: You created a lot of songs in 2021. Was it all written in 2021 or were you just finally able to record it in 2021?
OLIVIA: Yeah 2021. I wrote quite a lot just because of covid and I’m very grateful for that actually. That I didn’t have to get out and start playing shows immediately. I had a lot of time to discover what kind of music I wanted to make and experiment with a lot of different stuff. I think we wrote upwards of 100 songs last year so I definitely have a lot of music I’m sitting on that we’re getting ready to put out.
EMILY: Whats your favorite lyric you’ve ever written?
Olivia: Oh God. Um, this is from a song that I wrote very recently and isn’t out yet does that count? Ok. I just enjoy it, it’s very visceral. It’s “Life fucks you like a porno. So just depth throat, use your teeth though.”
EMILY: What’s been the hardest thing you’ve had to overcome in the last couple years?
OLIVIA: Good question. Learning to like myself probably. I moved to Los Angeles February 2020 like right when the pandemic hit. That was the first time living alone and what I didn’t realize when I was living alone for the first time, especially during a pandemic, is you have a lot of time to think and be alone with yourself. We’re not always going to like ourselves or love ourselves all the time, but just having that be the guiding force for ourselves all the time. Just having that be in anything that I do I think is what keeps me grounded in what I do now.
EMILY: Whats your favorite meme?
OLIVIA: If you haven’t heard about Bingus, you need to look up Bingus. Bingus is my favorite meme.
EMILY: As an artist, how do you know if one has truly made it?
OLIVIA: I don’t know if there’s a point of making it. Because everything successful comes and then it also goes at some point. I don’t know. That’s a great question. I wish I could say, oh its when your playing arenas or you have a #1 record. I think you feel like you’ve made it when you have a core group of people who you know are impacting you positively.
EMILY: So essentially, you’ve already made it then?
OLIVIA: I think so. Yeah, I think so.
EMILY: Who would you love to collaborate with in the next year and the next 10 years?
OLIVIA: In the next year I would love to collaborate with Ashnikko and I would love to collaborate with Dominic Fike. In next ten years, I would love to collaborate with Yungblud. Obviously, he’s the shit. I’d also love to collaborate with this band called Mannequin Pussy.
EMILY: Have you ever experienced anyone overtime who has had a god complex, and if so, who?
Olivia: Oh dude, I’ve definitely gone through periods of time where I’ve had a god complex. I feel like everyone should have a little bit of time to have, maybe not an actual god complex where your feeling others are less then you, but there is something healthy about being able to say “I’m the shit”. You have days you wake up and your like, fuck yeah, I can take on anything I can do anything… nobody can stop me. I definitely go through ups and downs but when I’m at those super-high-highs, I do feel like I have a god complex.
EMILY: So is that what that song was about? Was “god complex” written about you?
OLIVIA: You know what’s funny is when I wrote that song with my friend, Oscar Scheller, I came in and I was like, “Dude I feel like shit. I am about to be in tears.” He told me something that was really interesting. He was like, “at the root of sadness is anger” to some extent and how sadness and anger are pretty adjacent emotions, it’s super easy to jump from being sad to being pissed. And so now that might be why I write. Yes you know what, I think that’s why I write so much anger in music. It’s because it is such an easy emotion to tap into wherever you’re at. Anger can be empowering. It can pull you from any place.
EMILY: Do you want to leave a hint to your fans about something your going to be doing in the future?
OLIVIA: Yes! So this is just a slight promo, but I have a song coming out March 4th called “Cherry Picking” and that is a very angry song. Then after that, potentially one of the songs in the set is going to have a moment that will lead into something European based. So, if anyone lives in Europe, be on the lookout!
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THE VENUE: THE RAVE The Rave is a premiere multi-level, multi-venue, entertainment complex conveniently located off highway 94 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin hosting hundreds of concerts each year. The Rave/Eagles Club houses seven venues (The Eagles Ballroom, The Rave, The Eagles Ballroom Club Stage, The Eagles Penthouse Lounge, The Eagles Hall, The Rave Bar, and The Rave Craft Beer Lounge) ranging in capacity from 400 to 4000 people. The Rave/Eagles Club is highlighted by the spectacular Eagles Ballroom featuring an elegant 25,000 square foot dance floor and a stunning balcony that circles the ballroom. From the elegant domed ceiling to the eagle sculptures and intricate trim on the pillars, a concert at the Eagles Ballroom is a truly spectacular experience. Over the past decades, The Rave/Eagles Club has hosted some of the biggest names in rock, pop, electronic, and alternative music as well as many up and coming acts and regional bands from Wisconsin, Illinois and surrounding areas. Address: 2401 West Wisconsin Avenue - Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233 Phone: (414) 342-7283 Website: www.TheRave.com Upcoming Concerts & Tickets: www.TheRave.com/Concert_Tickets Hours: The Rave box office is open 10am to 6pm Monday thru Friday and 1pm on Saturday and Sunday if there is a show. The box office remains open until 10pm on show nights.
