From the press-release: Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Avery Friedman, relocated to Brooklyn, New York in 2019—but music was never the plan for her. It wasn’t until the spring of 2023 when a tipping-point combination of inspiration and unexpected events pushed her to begin writing her own songs in private… Friedman’s debut album, New Thing, can feel like a deep, atmospheric pool of uncertainty and anxiety, but it’s also a celebration of those moments that swoop in to make you feel alive and move you forward when you most need them.

Can you tell me a little bit about yourself? How did you get into music, and how would you describe your sound?

I’ve always been a huge music-lover, but it wasn’t until the last few years that I really allowed myself to consider myself a musician. I sang in choir all growing up, and played guitar casually as well, but didn’t try to put melody to chord progression until more recently. I was scared for a long time! I’m very grateful to have tapped into my musicianship, as it has become a crucial emotional outlet for me. I’d describe my sound as full, and lush and layered and raw 🙂 

Your artist’s statement mentions that the opening melody for “Flowers Fell” came to you on a “headphone-less walk.” Why is that detail important? 

Like many of us, I nearly always have my headphones in while walking around. But on this particular occasion, my airpods were dead, which I think made space for me to create a melody of my own, which became “Flowers Fell.” 

Sustainability is another theme that appears in your artist’s statement. How does it play out in your music?

Oh wow what a question! I’ve been thinking about the concept of sustainability a lot in my life recently — thinking about building things that are set up to last. I’m not sure how much this can be heard throughout my songs, but I think I really aspire for my relationship to music-making to be one that is sustainable, that can grow with me through many eras of my life.

I noticed that your logo on the “Flowers Fell” single highlights your initials — AF. Is that a play on the social-media shorthand commonly used for emphasis — as in “Avery Friedman is talented AF!”?

Haha! I wish! Maybe you can start a trend with that for me…

Your bio mentions that “a transcendent live music experience and a traumatic mugging” led you to seek catharsis through songwriting. If you’re comfortable talking about it, can you share details? How has songwriting helped you since then?

Yes…I went to see the band Big Thief play alone once by myself, and I was so moved and inspired by how the lead singer, Adrianne Lenker, was so raw and expressive on stage. I identified with her emotionality so viscerally, and for days after, was just left with the thought “I wish I was brave enough to do something like that.” I literally talked to my therapist about it. Shortly after this, I was robbed at knifepoint one night, and found myself at home a lot more, largely due to being a little freaked out to walk around alone at night for a while. This lent itself to me picking up my guitar more, and eventually helped push me to write my first songs.

You’ve mentioned that before becoming a songwriter, you orbited the music world but denied your own musicianship. Where did that orbit take you? What did it look like?

This orbit looked like me being a music writer for my college newspaper, interviewing musicians, hosting podcasts about music, being a mega-fan of many bands, and listening to music very, very closely 🙂

And who plays on the album with you?

James Chrisman produced the record, and played electric guitar, synth, and bass overdubs across various songs. The core of many of the tracks are live takes with Felix Walworth on the drums and Ryan Cox on the bass. 

What’s on the horizon for you?

I can’t wait to release my record ‘New Thing’ into the world on April 18. I hope to go on a tour this year, too. 

Photo credit: Mamie Heldman