INTERVIEW: Kate Cosentino
Kate Cosentino is a woman of subtle nuances and a plethora of dad jokes. She encompasses wit and sass while balancing the profound ability to speak on behalf of the struggles of others for the mere proposition of opening up conversation. Born & raised in Kansas City, Cosentino has always had an affinity for strong storytellers and jazzy hooks since the beginning. Influenced by powerhouse women like Regina Spektor, Norah Jones, Phoebe Bridgers, St. Vincent, and many more, Cosentino has found that the best voices are authentic ones.
Through songs like “Dirt On It,” which deals with the struggles of a trans-child, “Starving For Love,” an unassuming ode to the damaging effects of eating disorders, and “Just Remember,” which details a loved one’s journey with Alzheimer’s, Cosentino’s art is undoubtedly cultivated by a deep desire to share stories and share them well.
After auditioning for NBC’s The Voice in years past, Kate Cosentino finally got her big break on Season 23 of the show. Dubbed an "already made star" by Niall Horan, Cosentino's three-chair turn was a sign from the universe that her next big thing was on the horizon. Noisescape sat down for a conversation with Cosentino to catch up with her about her experience on The Voice, discuss her newest cover release, and her plans for the future.
Photos by Sara-Anne Waggoner
I know you love your dad jokes, so do you want to start by telling us your favorite one?
Oh, my God, my favorite dad joke… It's funny. It's a dad joke, but my mom actually gave it to me. It's, how do you make a Kleenex dance?
Ya, put a little boogie in it.
Ahh, I love it! What is your favorite non-musical activity, and does it influence your music?
My favorite non-music activity right now is roller skating – I love roller skating! I think there's something about the fantasy of being like, ‘I'm in the 70s or 80s’ with these Impala skates that I love. I think it influences my music because I love the aesthetic and pull from that a bit. I will skate outside while listening to nothing, but skating with music, I feel like, is where I get a lot of ideas or actively listen for what makes me want to skate versus what makes me want to cry in my car [laughs]. So yeah, that’s where the upbeat stuff comes from. Roller skating is the Serotonin version of staring out your window in your car, sad listening to music.
What’s your favorite song you’ve made so far or the one you’re most proud of?
Ugh, that's so hard… choosing my children… Hmm. I always say “Prettiest Girl in the Room” because it is my calling card. If you wanted to hear one song by me that shows what I'm about – that song captures it. It's also the first song I worked on with this producer, Tony Chetta, who I love. He did my most recent cover of the song “Call Me” and will do my next single. Working with him feels like I really found someone who gets my sound.
Many of your songs, like “Prettiest Girl in the Room,” tackle deep topics, which is fantastic. How do you stay true to yourself and to your songwriting? Has that authenticity ever been challenged working in the industry?
Yeah, that's a really good question. I've always stayed true to myself with what I want to speak about. I've never felt afraid to sing a song about body image because I feel like everybody deals with this, and if you don't like it, it's probably because you're uncomfortable, and you need to deal with that yourself. So I've never felt silenced by wanting to share these ideas that are deeply personal or even somewhat political. It gets more challenging to find my sound because making music is such a group effort. Even if you do it all by yourself, you're influenced by the people around you. You're influenced by your mentors, and asking them things like, ‘Is this good enough? What is radio quality?’ which can be helpful and influence you in a certain direction. But that is probably where I’ve felt the most like I needed to step back and think, ‘Is this actually what I want? Am I making the creative decision to take it this way? Or is it just because someone else suggested it?’ And not even maliciously; it’s just like, they produce 500 pop songs that sound the same every day, and I'm just another one of them. So I have to say, ‘Actually, I want it to sound weird.’ That is probably the most challenging thing – finding a producer where I can be like, ‘I love that you do this pop stuff, and that's why I hired you… However, I want you to put this twist on it.’
Has anyone ever been offended that you didn’t take their suggestion or taken aback?
I feel like it’s been more of people being like, “That's super cool, but I don't know how to achieve your vision,” which I totally respect, and thank them for telling me. Then, of course, some people just say, “Yeah, I don't get it. I don't get what you do. It's too far left field.” And whenever someone says that, I feel like that means I'm on the right path. Because I don't know, I feel like I've heard the same song 4,000 times this week, especially being in Nashville and LA. So I feel like if I stuck out to you even in a bad way, that’s good.
I was listening to your song “Impostor Syndrome” and remember you saying you struggled to fit in post-grad life when you wrote it. I thought it was pretty serendipitous that you released it almost a year ago to the date, given all you’ve accomplished since then! So I was wondering, thinking back to where you were in that moment vs. where you are right now, how have those feelings changed?
Yeah, man, it really is serendipitous that it's been a year since that EP! Once that was released, I took the whole summer off and was kind of in crisis mode. I was like, ‘Please, universe, send me the next thing. I simply am out of juice and don't know what to do.’ And then “the schmoyce” fell into my lap. So it's interesting reflecting on that because I'm still going through the same issues, just at a different level. Like, now I've had this great success – something arguably that I've wanted forever and that people externally see as I’ve made it. I feel appreciative and like I have made those leaps and bounds, but I don't feel like a different person. So it's still this impostor syndrome where I compare myself to my peers on the show with me or the next level. Like, oh, I hit 10k followers; now I need 20k. I think I am getting better at telling myself that I know these are just vanity metrics that don't really mean anything, but it is a voice that I have to stop nearly every day, especially going on social media. In some ways, I envy those with this unwavering confidence in themselves. But I think I do feel that way when I'm more guided by joy and creativity and feel confident that my music is meant for people.
That makes sense. I think we all struggle with “Imposter Syndrome” at times. I’m sorry, wait, are those clowns on your earrings?
These are clowns on my earrings, yes.
That’s amazing.
Thank you. I love them. They’re like my babies.
Whenever I see your posts, I wonder how and when you picked up your style because it’s so cool. I love your outfits!
Thank you! That is a high compliment. Oh, gosh. I feel like I started dressing super wacky, like, as soon as I gained consciousness. I was wearing fingerless gloves and Doc Martens in the first grade before they were cool again; I was really out there. I don't know what necessarily introduced me to it. I feel like watching shows like Hannah Montana and playing video games like Guitar Hero – things where people had that rockstar style. I was just like, ‘I can do that at JCPenney.’
I can see it on the mannequin right now.
Yup, that Avril Lavigne style, the colored skinny jeans – I was like, ‘Yes, give it to me.’ I also love to combine multiple patterns that seemingly don't go together; that is my favorite. And anytime I see something funky, I've just told myself I'm allowed to buy it because I'll probably never see it again.
Very cool. Okay, so we have to talk about The Voice. What did you hope to achieve by going on the show?
Honestly, I felt so proud of the work I did for my music career up to that point already – with putting my own record out and playing in town – like, I'm respected in Nashville now. I thought it could be a great opportunity, but I knew I was doing well without it, ya know? But it was worth its weight in gold, and I'm not tied to anything anymore. And isn't that just beautiful?
Absolutely. Everything has its time and place.
Exactly. For that reason, I'm so glad it happened to me at 24, not 19, and definitely not at 15. I don't think I would have understood.
Did you have a specific coach in mind you were hoping to impress?
Oh, God. My hope was precisely what I got: the people I cared about impressing were Kelly, Chance, and Niall. Literally, their reactions to what I do were worth the whole thing, and I will take that to my grave. Kelly Clarkson said she's a fan of mine, Chance the Rapper thinks I'm cool, and Niall thinks I'm a star. It’s so cool.
Niall describing you as having a “jazzy, kinda Amy Winehouse-y vibe” is the most incredible compliment ever!
It seriously was. It was cool to hear him say that no one is occupying that space, in his opinion, right now. When we talked about it, he said he felt like I needed to be the one to occupy it. And I was like, ‘Ah, yeah! That's literally what I'm going for! How'd you know?’ So this was cool, too, because I struggle a lot of times – which I think is a good thing – to fully describe my style. People ask me to describe my sound, and I can tell you a lot of things that go into my influences, but I'm not someone who's, like, a sound-alike, you know?
Let’s discuss the newest release of your “Call Me” cover. I loved the video; it’s beautiful! Do you pick your own outfits and makeup for music videos?
Yeah, thank you, this one was a collaborative effort. The company I worked with is made up of my friends from Belmont, so it was a Working Holiday production. They are awesome! They have a whole production team, and Sarah Corbett Woods is the stylist. I'm one of their clients, where I'm like, ‘This is what I want to wear, but I trust you to know what will look good.’ So I kind of went big and emailed Megan O'Cain for this video. She was on Next in Fashion this past season on Netflix. I got all these texts from people like, “Oh, my God, there's this girl on Next in Fashion that designs stuff that totally looks like you, very clown-y.” And so I emailed her and was like, ‘So I've been told we should work together. Could I wear one of your pieces?’ And she sent me a bunch as a loan! So that dress that I'm wearing is one of her designs. And Sarah and I were like, let's add this corset and put it together. Then I came up with a general makeup idea and hired a makeup artist to do that good contour.
Did you initially have a vision for the video, or was it a group effort to develop its idea?
Yeah, the vision was mainly mine, and they kind of did their own spin on it. So my inspiration was the fairy godmother from Shrek 2, ya know, singing “Holding Out for a Hero”. I wanted it to be just me singing in the dark on the piano with a spotlight, and then all the instruments come in, and there’s a colorful band. So yeah, Shrek [laughs]! That was the inspo. And it was pretty close.
That’s absolutely incredible – you did that. So lastly, are you looking forward to anything for the rest of the year? Besides getting married, of course. Congratulations, by the way!
Ah, thank you! Yeah, that's the big one. I feel like I am about to start my next planning phase. I want to play a lot of shows. I want to go outside of Nashville and meet some people who have found me online since The Voice. I'm going to Orlando to see Kala from the show and hopefully play a show out there, and hoping to release an original this summer.
I definitely am at that point where I feel like I need to write, but I need to step away and live a little bit of life. I don't think I've missed a day of posting in about two years, so I think I need to stop. And again, that is the evolution of my impostor syndrome now. I've worked so hard to accumulate these fans, and I got this moment handed to me that I'm so grateful for. I don't want to squander it by taking a break. I want to work hard because I was given this gift, but on the other hand, I'm burning out. And so then, what's the point? Then I'm not taking the gift as the gift. So I will step away to get married and enjoy that, be in my personal life, and get some life experiences to write about. From there, I’ll get back into the zone and write. I’m not going to quit anything, but I need to live a little and be more present in my life. So yeah, that’s the scoop. I’m looking toward a long-term goal.
WHERE TO FIND KATE COSENTINO
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Spotify | Apple Music