Q&A: Emily Kinney On New Music, Playing Live And More (2024)

Singer/songwriter/actress Emily Kinney (known to many as Beth Greene on the hit show The Walking Dead) just released her new single, the playful gem "B Or C For Effort." As Kinney explains the song is grading a past relationship. While the relationship failed, the guy at least earned the equivalent of a participation trophy.

The sparkling song, one that everyone can relate to, is part of Kinney's upcoming fifth album, Swim Team, due in September. Kinney walked me through the making of the upcoming album, as well as her early days playing in New York City, hosting her own music podcast, how she balances her time and much more.

Steve Baltin: What inspired "B Or C For Effort"?

Emily Kinney: I was spending more time to myself when I wrote this record, a lot of it was during the pandemic and I was reflecting on a breakup. So, I feel like "B Or C For Effort" was definitely me trying to give a bit of a grade to the relationship or at least to the effort to the participation. I've been joking that "B Or C For Effort" is almost like a participation trophy. But the actual relationship itself failed was an F. So, I'm giving you this like, "Sometimes you tried even if it wasn't quite right."

Baltin: I think most good writing is subconscious. So, as you started to write about this stuff whether this song in particular or the whole album, were there things that emerged that surprised you?

Kinney: The whole album was definitely a surprise. I felt really complete after writing the supporting character. And I had started my own music podcast and was interviewing bands. And I interviewed this guy Tim [Kasher] from the band Cursive. And when he was packing up his stuff to leave I had said, "Yeah, I think I'm done writing for a minute or I'm done." I don't know. And then he very intently was like, "No, you're never done, you can't be done. You can't be done writing." And that night I flipped through my notebook, and I had written down a phrase from "B Or C For Effort." So, that song, it's the phrase that says, "I don't wanna be your teacher but if love is a class he's the one who can't focus sitting in the back. We let him out into the world despite the skills that he lacks." That I had written down 'cause I'm always sort of like collecting little things. And that became the start of "B Or C For Effort." And then that kind of kicked off a whole group of songs. Just reflecting on my relationship, reflecting on now dating, spending a lot of time by myself..

Baltin: It's interesting. Could you shut it off even if you wanted to?

Kinney: Yeah, I don't know if I could. 'Cause even when I quit for the day or I quit for whatever. little phrases pop into my head. I've definitely been writing little poems since I was a kid really. So, it's almost like this natural way that I put things together, make sense of things. Once I have a phrase and I'm stuck on it, I sort of need to put the puzzle together.

Baltin: I think as a writer that's how you process things.

Kinney: Yeah, for sure. So, I think this album was definitely a great way for me to look at a relationship, look at where I was at and get to kind of like say my side, but also put it all together in these songs that then felt like, "Okay, well, this makes a little more sense now, somehow."

Baltin: Do you know Paul Westerberg from The Replacements?

Kinney: Oh, yeah.

Baltin: He has this amazing song called "Things." It's a whole laundry list of things, like "Things I can never tell you, things I wanna tell you." And then it goes, "One day you'll be a song I sing, a thing I give away." I love that line so much because it's inherent that if you're with an artist you're going to become part of their of work.

Kinney: Yeah, I think anything that I come in contact with, like even just the world in general, my environment shows up in my songs too. I've traveled a lot because of acting and things like that. And I feel like when I listen to the songs I can hear certain vibe of that city. Or I can hear the room that I was in, in a certain way when I was writing those particular songs. So yeah, I think not just the people but the environments and how people phrase things that comes into my songs. If my mom phrases things a certain way, maybe then that becomes something for me. So yeah, everything that I come in contact with in some ways is like fair game.

Baltin: Looking at your podcast and you had some great musicians on there. And musicians talk differently with each other than they do with journalists. So will you bring back the podcast at some point? 'Cause it looks like it ended for now in 2021.

Kinney: Yeah, I think eventually. When I made the podcast I was feeling a little maybe singular and alone in my artistic journey. I wasn't working on necessarily a TV show, so I didn't have like a little family around me. And my music I write a lot by myself. Once in a while I'll do sessions but for the most part I write by myself. And I think I was feeling like I wanted to connect with other musicians. And I'm such a fan myself. So, honestly selfishly, I was like, "I want to meet Cold War Kids [laughter]. I want to see Local Natives play a song." And some of these people I had been interacting with on Instagram, and so it kind of became natural like, "Oh, I think they would want to be on my podcast."And then also, with my musician friends coffee has always been such a fun thing. And I just started to put the two together like what are people's routines and how they have to have their coffee their certain way. And I know bands where they'll bring their own pour over kit, so that they can make their coffee the way they want. Or finding the coffee spot in the town when you're on tour is a big thing. So, that was sort of the way in to getting to talk to all these people. And I loved doing the podcast, however I had finished an album, I did two seasons of the podcast and then it was like, "I just want to write now. I don't really want to talk about writing anymore. I don't know if I want to talk about my morning routine. I just want to do my morning routine or write." And so, right now I feel super inspired to write not just music, but I also write short stories, and I write scripts and stuff. And I feel like I have a bunch of projects. And so, the problem with the podcast is it becomes lower and lower on the list. Because I do have so many creative projects plus acting, and so even though I love doing the podcast it's sort of not the priority right now. So, I would love to do it. I'll probably do it when I have paused for a minute with writing.

Baltin: So, who be the dream person to have on there?

Kinney: Probably Jenny Lewis or Kacey Musgraves or some awesome female songwriter that's been an inspiration to me. So yeah, probably those two are way up there. I'd love to have Paramore [laughter]. Just sort of the teenager in me.

Baltin: Do you go to a lot of live music? 'Cause I imagine that's also very inspirational.

Kinney: Yeah, I love going to live music. I used to go all the time and I think this happened to a lot of people. But during the pandemic I sort of got used to not going, and I've gotten back into it recently. When I lived in New York I would go to a couple shows in a night. Because I would go to Rockwood, and then I'd go to whatever else, Pianos. I would plan to see different bands in one night. And then when I got to L.A. it was like a different scene but I still had my little places. And then now I don't know, I haven't been going to as many. I've been really liking going to this place Club Tee Gee, because they'll have these little Sunday night just singer-songwriter shows. So, I've been checking that out a lot. I really like smaller shows.

Baltin: What's the best show you've ever seen?

Kinney: I saw Jenny Lewis and I saw the Chicks at the Greek and that was a great show. Their voices sounded so incredible. Yeah, that was a great show that I saw more recently. I went with my dad to The Eagles, this was many years ago, but that show was very inspiring as well. I couldn't believe how their voices held up. That was in Omaha, I went with my dad for his birthday many years ago. But that was a great show too.

Baltin: Is there one place for you, you mentioned Club Tee Gee, that you really just love to play or that feels like a second home?

Kinney: Yeah, I've heard Rockwood is changing a lot. But when I first moved to New York that was one of my first places that I ever did play. I think it was like the second show I ever played in New York ever. Was just Rockwood stage one, like the little stage before they had stage two. And then I played at least a few times a year. Once I lived in L.A. sometimes I would come back and play like two nights in a row, stage three in the little tiny listening room. So, I always loved playing there, and I would always run into people I knew there. So, it felt really homey. I think that place in particular is like such a big part of their story or just even how they met other friends that were musicians and stuff like that.

Baltin: Is there that L.A. venue that's become that home to you the way that Rockwood was?

Kinney: I love Hotel Café of course, and I do feel like the same thing when I go there and I run into people. There's this great thing they do called the Hootenanny. It's like the last Monday of every month. And they'll have different artists just come up and sing three of their songs with the Hootenanny band. And it's really fun. I feel like so many musicians go to it. So you go and listen to great music, but you also get to see everyone. And I do feel similar with the podcast, you have your music friends that you want to connect with.

Baltin: What songs from the new record are you most excited to play live?

Kinney: I'm really excited to play "B Or C For Effort" is probably one of my favorite songs I've ever written, to be honest. And so I'm excited to play that one live. I'm excited for "False Start." There's a song called "Broken Air Conditioning" that I just think is a lot of fun. And I have gotten to play that one live. I played it at Americana Fest and the reaction from the audience was really fun and they were laughing and so I feel like that one's just going to be a fun one to play live.

Q&A: Emily Kinney On New Music, Playing Live And More (2024)
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