That's why I made my record before I had a label. I put it out independently - in a way, out of fear - because I didn't want anyone to change it.
— Aubrie Sellers
I think my music is a little shocking to some people because my voice is very traditional-sounding, and my music is not.
I think that because I have so many different influences, and that shows in my music, that different people can connect with it.
I don't tend to write when I'm happy, which I think is pretty obvious.
When I first started performing, I was a nervous wreck. Honestly, sometimes I felt like I was going to run off the stage.
One great thing about my mom, about the business, is that she has a really great head on her shoulders about everything and always has been 100 percent about the music and not about the other junk.
Sometimes I'll meet somebody, and they've looked me up online or whatever, and they've never heard me talk or met me. I think they expect me to be a lot darker than I am and maybe less - not less friendly - but I guess I'm drawn to that dark emotional music. Maybe they think I'm a little more brooding.
It's very important to me that every person takes away their own meaning from a song, and it's why I don't always love spelling out what a song is about for somebody.
When I was thinking of video ideas for this song, I wanted it to reflect the energy of the music and express the big eye roll that 'Sit Here and Cry' is. I had a very specific visual vision for it, and when I saw Sam Siske's reel, I knew he was going to get it.
I was born in Nashville, but my whole family is from East Texas, so I consider myself a dual citizen.
My voice is very country, and my songwriting is very country.
I didn't sign a record deal; I didn't do any of that. I made my record independently, and I went out and hit the road in a van.
Steve Earle had a mainstream career. Dwight Yoakam had a mainstream career. Willie Nelson did. But they always made good music, they always stuck to who they were. They weren't relying on radio like a lot of people are in Nashville.
It is like therapy to write and have people connect with it. That's the kind of music I connect with most.
On my debut album, I wrote a lot about women and their roles in society.
Playing at the Opry, for me, it has such a history. It feels sort of like a coming-out party as a country artist. To know your heroes have played here is kind of crazy.
'Sit Here and Cry' was one of the first songs I wrote with that overdramatic sarcastic dry sense of humor, which is why the energy of the song doesn't necessarily reflect the subject matter.
What really excites me is the production. I get in there and change a lot of stuff.
I was always drawn to darker sounds, things with an edge and a little bit of grit, things that have a lot of emotion and a lot of drive.
So much of the music I love is polarizing. People might either hate it or love it, but they remember it because it was different. That means it was pushing buttons and not just following trends.
My favorite movies are from directors that have a vision, like Wes Anderson or Tim Burton.
'Elle' is such an iconic magazine, and the intersection of fashion and music has always been something that fascinates me.
I love narrative videos, but sometimes I think they can limit a listener's experience of a song.
A lot of the songs are very rock-oriented. My voice makes them country, and a lot of people think that is a strange combination... I think it creates something different and unique.
I just don't have a tolerance for people being fake, I don't think. Maybe especially when I think they have bad intentions.
My record's all electric, and that's why I call it 'garage country.'
To be honest, when you grow up in the music business, people heard me sing from a young age, and you get offered development deals and things like that.
I want a long-lasting career. I want to build up a fan base that will come to my shows and love me no matter if I have a song on the radio or not.
I tend to write from a personal place, and most of the time when I'm writing by myself, it's coming from something I've experienced.
The drums are very trashy: it's all electric, it's very in your face, and it's not perfect. It's raw, and I think that's what 'garage' means.
Listening to 'Raising Sand' was one of those turning points in my life that really made something click in my brain.
I grew up in the entertainment industry, and I think being around that gave me a different perspective on people and what's real and what's fake. I think about that a lot, and it comes out in my songs.
When I'm writing, I'm focusing more on just the basic melody and the lyrics.
I always knew I was going to do something with music, but with my whole family being in the business, acting was something that was just mine. But when I was 20 or 21, I started writing songs and felt the itch to make a record.
I think that soul, to me, is the theme of music that I connect with.
I'm a very friendly, smiley person.
At this very early stage in my career, I want people to experience the music first and let it drive their imagination and their experiences.
I prefer to create friction. Because if you're not pushing buttons, you're just making something pleasant; it's probably been done before, and it's not making anyone feel anything.
There's a lot to live up to when three of your parents are successful in the music business.
I had all these raw, gritty rock records that really inspired me sonically, and so I think everything I listen to when I started writing my own songs kind of came out naturally, and it created this new sound.
I think what I've learned to focus on is my music, and that's why I made my record independently.
Everyone in my family, they do music, and they love music; it's all about the music.
I've always been drawn to the real stuff and the stuff that feels authentic. And so when I'm writing songs, that's what I try to do.
There's a new grievance every day to write about.
Vocally, I sound like my mom. I don't think I can help it. That's just my natural voice.
