Proxoxie is a multi-talented artist hailing from Detroit, Michigan, is known for her captivating music and influential online presence. Her creativity knows no bounds as is a pioneer in the field of music, blogging, being a radio host as well as a fan fiction writer. Her latest track “Irrelevant” is another such display of her immense creativity. The song is an electro pop delight which spans the realms of Scenecore and Hyperpop. With an upbeat, pulsating groove, electronic textures, glitchy vocal effects, and catchy, infectious hooks, the song keeps you on your toes throughout. The high-octane energy and experimental production makes the song a sonic delight. The melody is like an earform and you will find yourself coming back for more time and again. We recently had the privilege to talk to the mastermind behind the song herself, Proxoxie. A true inspiration of an artist, it was an immense pleasure to get to know her.
How did you create your song "Irrelevant," and what emotions or messages were you trying to express through it?
Irrelevant was written in the fall of 2022 after I went through a really rough time in my life. It was the first and last song I was able to write for a couple of months. I didn’t want it to be passive aggressive since I really didn’t want to include any bad vibes on this album, but it was the only thing I was able to think about for a while. Irrelevant is the song that I wrote to help me get over everything. The strength I was able to find manifests in Irrelevant’s lyrics such as “And I’m not gonna say what I’m gonna say” and “These days I laugh it off for the hell of it ”. After this song, I promised myself I wouldn’t write another song that would remind me of that time, but it was the healthiest outlet for me. I wrote this song as a demo, then I sent it over to my mix engineer Drop Cat and he produced the rest of the beat for me. I told him to go crazy and do whatever he wanted, and he transformed the song into something beautiful. Now, it reminds me of a song you’d hear in the background of a mall. I’m glad Drop Cat was able to make it into something that’s upbeat and danceable. I’m tired of being sad, I just want to have fun this summer and not worry about anything which is what the song is all about.
What inspired you to combine different music styles like Scenecore and Hyperpop, and how does it shape your unique sound?
Scenecore is such an enigma, it’s just the niche I was able to grow with during my come up. For those that don’t know, Scenecore is a niche/ trend/ revival of being emo/ scene. It’s more of an aesthetic thing both sonically and visually. As far as the music goes, I’d consider Scenecore to be a lo-fi version of club music with modulated vocals over DIY beats made by SoundCloud producers. That’s Scenecore right now, and it is growing with the help of TikTok.
Prior to this single, I’d say that is what described my sound the most… but I wanted to make this debut album more professional and industry standard because I feel like I’m growing out of Scenecore, but I still wanted to keep some of my music oriented to Scenecore, as it’s in my roots. Hyperpop is more refined in terms of its sound. Hyperpop is maximalist pop with interesting sound design. That’s the wave I wanted to ride with “Irrelevant”. Irrelevant is a weird mix of industry standard/ commercial sounding pop and Hyperpop. I have no idea how to group my music into genres sometimes, I feel like most niche artists struggle with this.
In your journey as an artist, what are some of the biggest challenges you have faced, and how have they shaped your growth and artistic direction?
The most challenging thing I do go through as an artist is making music. I struggle to get into a creative flow sometimes, and I’ll go months without making music which ends up physically draining me. If I am not able to make new music after a while, I feel like my identity is slowly being taken from me. I know that sounds dramatic, but music has always been my outlet and I struggle with finding my self-worth if I am not able to make anything new. This is still a challenge I am over coming today. I feel like the market for music is so oversaturated, I mean millions of songs come out on the daily… The need to contribute to the world through art is overwhelming for me and it makes it difficult to focus on other life things. At the same time, that’s why I am so blessed to be given this passion. Sometimes, when the time is right, melodies flow through my head and I am unable to turn them off until I make a song. Hopefully, I will have the resources to a lot make more music in the future. I think of it like this, if that’s my biggest challenge I am facing today, that means I need to get my game on and grind in this industry.
How have your experiences in the Detroit and Chicago underground music scenes influenced your artistry, and do you have any standout moments or collaborations you'd like to share?
Detroit’s underground music scene may be tiny now, but it defiantly was the most organic place for me to start as an artist. What I mean by organic is that it had the ability to influence my sound and my brand to stand out from others in the most authentic way. In Detroit, if you pull up to a Techno show happening at Menjos, Trumbellplex, Tangent Gallery or even if you attend a mini party at the Russell Industrial Complex, you will be impressed by how cool the fashion is. New York is cool and everything, but I’d say that Detroit’s underground artist scene blows NYC away. You can’t compete with the artists in Detroit, their sound, style and swag are too unique for me even to describe. I can name a couple of things that stood out to me; baby doll heads on chain necklaces, Real Tree patterned T-Shirts with a million things stitched onto them, Black Veil Brides T-shirts with Buff Sunglasses… These are the things that stuck with me as an artist. Fashion defines my identity and helps build my brand, so being around fashionable people inspires me to do my best. Chicago’s scene is so loyal. If Chicago sees you perform live, you can expect to have people check out your music and remember your name. Ever since I moved to Chicago, my career has thrived. I am blessed to have met so many creatives who like to hustle for their art. I network at most shows I go to and everything is so connected here… When I met Slaywitme2k in 2021, we did a song together and that really drove my engagement on my music. In Chicago, the scene was truly thriving when ‘Gayhouse’ was a thing. Gayhouse was a community of people in the scene who were booking some bigger artists like LustSickPuppy and Dazegxd. Everyone misses Gayhouse, but the underground community they fostered still somewhat exists when you go to different functions.
How do your collaborations with other artists enhance your creative process, and what do you look for in a musical partnership?
I was just thinking about this today. Collaborations are so valuable because when you collaborate with another musician, you are essentially blending your brands together to create something totally unique. Most of the songs that have been successful for me have been collaborations with other artists. Collaborating is not just about making music together; it’s about fostering a niche online scene. What I look for in musical partnerships is if the other artist has talent, if they are a producer I look for if they truly know what they’re doing and if they have developed their own sound. If I am collaborating with another vocalist, I usually send an instrumental and ask them to record a hook or a verse for me or something. I make all my music from my bedroom, so I have different approaches in working with other artists, it really depends on how they like to work. Recently, I collaborated with a Scottish MC named Wee Pow, and that is probably my favorite artist I have ever collaborated with. They bring so much energy to the track and they get excited if I send them a Makina beat. Wee Pow will be featured on my Debut Album “Darling, It Wouldn’t Be a Party Without You…”.
Your aesthetic curation and maximalist expressionism are notable aspects of your artistic identity. How do these elements come together to create a unique visual and audio experience for your audience?
Lets talk visual aesthetics. That was my priority when starting Proxoxie as a project. I needed to create an aesthetic that would align with my sound and create an entire world. I made a mental mood board for what I wanted to weave together; creepypasta and dark storytelling, old internet/ deep web imagery, nostolgia, and the color pink… more specifically #FF007E.
I took all of these themes and wrapped them up with some Proxoxie branding. Branding is so important for Proxoxie’s consistency… I love fonts like Impact and Times New Roman.
I feel like my aesthetics match my old sound because it’s so low quality and gives off old internet vibes, I wanted my music to feel like you are discovering something that isn’t meant to be found.
I started a blog to add onto the entire experience, but it turned into an outlet for me and a way for listeners to get to know who I am. Now you can read through thousands of words of my writing for hours and hours. WhatI love about the blog is that it will exist on the internet for as long as it’s published and that it dates back to October of 2022. It’s almost been a year of blogging consistently on Friday’s.
My debut album “Darling, it Wouldn’t be a Party Without You…” is going to keep the same aesthetic but the quality is going to be a lot better. I am so exorcised for it, it drops in September.
Discovered via https://app.musosoup.com #sustainablecurator