Former America’s Got Talent winner Grace VanderWaal talks about her new music, “Call It What You Want” and “What’s Left of Me," how she uses pain as her inspiration, how her perception of fame was shattered at a young age, her take on the presidential election, her role in Megalopolis, and more!
Category
🎵
MusicTranscript
00:00I like kind of love being in pain. I love it so much. I just feel so like main character and inspired.
00:08Hi, I'm Grace VanderWaal and this is Billboard News.
00:14We're here today with former America's Got Talent winner, former Billboard 21 Under 21 recipient,
00:20singer, songwriter, and actress Grace VanderWaal. Grace, welcome. Wow, thank you. You're releasing
00:26two new singles. Yes. And you're going to be in a movie. So we have a lot to talk about.
00:32Yeah, girl. Let's get into it. Let's do it. Let's crack the egg.
00:43You achieved incredible success at a really young age. How has that affected you as you
00:48continue to work today? Instead of describing it as like experiencing success at a young age,
00:55I would like describe it as like the facade of fame being shattered for me very, very early,
01:02which I'm eternally grateful for. Unreachable fame is the one thing that you can absolutely
01:08promote so that people are constantly and it's like meeting God. And then he's like,
01:16you know, you would have an existential crisis. And so like I very much discovered at an early
01:21age, I was like, oh, this is completely hollow. And like, you just need to like, love the art.
01:28And like, I will never chase, you know, that fulfillment or facade at all. You know what I'm
01:34saying? Like separates you and your work from your ego. Yes, exactly. At a very early age, too. Yeah.
01:46For you being a woman in the industry, and just being so visible, whether it be on socials or
01:51through your music or in a movie. Yeah. You know, having someone who's just not afraid to be who
01:57they are. Yes. And people hate it. It's their least favorite thing. Really? Like, oh, absolutely.
02:05That's what drives people insane is like, just a woman, a young woman who has decided that you
02:13can't limit me. And you don't define me because it's a robbery of power. And it makes people so
02:20mad. So mad. How do you want to redefine yourself? I don't think I want to redefine myself.
02:27Okay. Yeah. I think I just want to be me. I want to be honest. I want to be free.
02:34Do you feel like that sense of vulnerability and that rawness is something you're carrying
02:38into this album? Is that something you aspire? Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I was just like,
02:43how uncomfortably honest can I be? Because I felt like that was like the performance art of it.
02:51This was the most I felt like free I've ever been. And just watching myself and also others
03:02in the project, like, start to be like, oh, like this is and understand the like monster it is.
03:09It is. And I was just like, wow, this is an experience I've never had before. I've just
03:15like pushing the boundaries of what we can really do. Do you want to tour this record?
03:20Do you have any plans? Yeah. Oh, yeah. I literally just manically wrote out on my notes app,
03:26like an immersive concert idea. And I like went through second by second of all the songs and like
03:35did what the lighting is going to be. And I love performing so much. I love just every dimension of
03:42this project. So I feel like the performances and like visuals will be just as important
03:48as everything. And I totally want to go on tour with it. I love touring so much.
03:59You've released a single call it what you want. What inspired you to write that song?
04:03Personal experience. Can you elaborate? When two people romanticize a connection,
04:10and you kind of both know it's sort of like a waste of time or maybe living in the past or
04:14it's not going to go anywhere. But there's just like so much love there. And it's kind of just
04:19like drug binging your love. What are we getting from what's left of me? What inspired you to write
04:26that song? That song has much more layers. Yeah.
04:35I was going through a breakup. And I just kind of was realizing like the butterfly effect of
04:46how changed I was from this relationship. So like, I wondered, would I choose the same sweater
04:53in the morning? Like what I walk, take my right foot or my left foot, just like how much would
05:00stem. And then I was like, what part of my skin is even still mine and like left before this
05:08relationship. I'm constantly now a shared piece of you. Fuck, that was really intense. And like,
05:19there isn't an uncomfortability to that because I was just like, it's done. Like, yeah, you have
05:27that and you'll be a part of me forever. And you changed me. And yeah, so it's called What's Left
05:33of Me. I'm not afraid to be emotional at all. I'm like, a little fucked up. I like kind of love
05:45being in pain. I love it so much. I just feel so like main character and inspired.
05:53Spoken like a true artist. So I was just like, yeah, I was like walking through like Fiona Apple,
05:58like it's rainy outside. I was just like, oh, I'm so hurt. And it got me to write this song
06:03because I was like so main character. We're in need of a great debate about the future.
06:09You are going to be in Megalopolis, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Tell us about your
06:16experience acting in that movie. Oh my god, I had the best experience acting in that movie.
06:22It was unlike anything I've ever done before. And like, I really saw firsthand Francis's
06:32process and like artistry. And it was really, really, really fucking cool. I remember Francis
06:40was like, oh, well, have you ever played a villain before? And I was like, but is she a villain?
06:47But is she though? And then he was like, oh, I'm like, yeah, she's kind of a queen.
06:53I fear she's kind of just like using a system. And that's kind of fabulous.
07:00So you say she's girl bossing?
07:03I think she possibly might be girl bossing.
07:05Viewers can decide.
07:07New headline.
07:09Go see Megalopolis and decide for yourself. Tell us about you. What are some things that
07:14you care about and have fun doing?
07:16My hobby? Oh my god, you know what my biggest hobby is? I just did this the other night and I
07:20was just like, I fucking love my life. And I just get Chick-fil-A or Dave's hot chicken.
07:28Dave's hot chicken. I'm like obsessed with chicken sandwiches. Put on an Adam Sandler movie,
07:34dude. Something about those shitty Adams. The shittier the better. Like you can tell that man
07:40was just with his friends drunk writing a script. I just put it on. Brain dead cat right here.
07:48And I have a back massager that I put on.
07:51Oh, yeah, that's advanced.
07:53Oh, yeah. It's like, it's honestly, I'm like, this is what life is about. I figured it out.
08:00How do you maintain work life balance in your life?
08:04I don't. The only way to survive doing what I'm doing is to be a person who loves chaos,
08:11which I do. I thrive under pressure. I honestly love being stressed out.
08:19I like love freaking out. I find so much enjoyment in it. It's like you have to problem solve right
08:24now. I mean, there's no consistency at all. Like sometimes I'm just unemployed and other times I'm
08:32like traveling and I mean, working hours. It's just like, you know, kick my ass. So.
08:38Terrible advice. But unfortunately, I understand.
08:42Rude.
08:45This is the first time you're going to be eligible to vote in an election.
08:48What does that mean to you?
08:50I've actually been wondering this lately, why that's not part of our education system.
08:56Doesn't that seem so obvious?
08:59Because then you become an adult and it feels so overwhelming. You're just like,
09:03where do I even start? But anyway, I am taking it very seriously because I am also a hashtag woman.
09:11If you haven't noticed.
09:12Woman.
09:13Um, and like, I would maybe like to have human rights.
09:19Is that too much to ask? I really don't think it is.
09:22Do you have a candidate that you're supporting?
09:25Do you think I just fell out of a coconut tree?
09:29So now some just rapid fire questions. I'm going to have you answer these as fast as you can.
09:34No hesitations, no pressure, but this is legally binding.
09:36Oh my God.
09:37Favorite food.
09:39Dave's hot chicken.
09:40Your go-to pizza toppings.
09:43Cheese. Cheese.
09:45What? Cheese.
09:48You're scaring me, please.
09:51Cats or dogs?
09:52Oh my God, both actually.
09:56But you're a cat owner.
09:57I can't answer that, but I love dogs and I love my pug so much.
10:02But you have a pug too.
10:03Yeah, I have a pug. His name is Frankie.
10:06I actually got him after America's Got Talent.
10:09With my money, shmoney.
10:11You cashed that check and said, I'm getting a dog.
10:14Girl, I was like 12 years old.
10:15They were like, oh my God, it was so messed up.
10:18They're like, what do you want?
10:19And like, some people were like, oh, I'm going to buy my mother a house.
10:22And I was like, a puppy?
10:25Well, Grace, best of luck to you on everything you're doing.
10:29Two singles and a movie, no big deal.
10:31And that is all we have for you.
10:33Thank you, mama.
10:34I love you.
10:35You're my best friend.
10:36Bye.
10:39Bye.