Within the span of just a few months, 19-year-old singer, songwriter, and social media star Katherine Li grew to become the face of American Eagle’s 2022 back-to-school marketing campaign, her track “Never Had a Chance” performed through the climactic finale of the Hulu doc collection The Come Up, and her debut EP, Crush(ed), was launched. With songs that target misplaced love and relationships that by no means have been, she has constructed a loyal fan base of fellow hopeless romantics.
And now, shortly after being part of the Fresh Finds debut showcase, hosted by Spotify Stages in LA, the Toronto-based songstress is the most recent EQUAL Global artist.
Spotify’s EQUAL Global Music Program began in 2021 with the purpose of contributing to gender fairness within the music trade by amplifying and celebrating the work of girls creators all over the world. To mark the event, Katherine’s face will adorn the duvet of each the EQUAL Global playlist and the EQUAL Canada playlist.
Katherine’s Crush(ed) EP facilities on the idea of the cyclical journey that comes with the infatuation of an unrequited crush. And plugging additional into her relatability, her newest single, “If I Weren’t Me,” touches on an identical vibe whereas displaying off Katherine’s lyrical prowess that cuts deep.
For the Record caught up with Katherine to speak about her profession, recommendation she has for younger artists, and what her inventive course of is like.
The artists who’ve impressed me probably the most are…
Taylor Swift and Julia Michaels. I like their writing types and the distinctive approaches to songwriting that they’ve. They really are geniuses!
A bit of recommendation I’d give to different girls artists is…
To take the leap of religion and dive proper into it! It’s scary to place your self on the market at first. It undoubtedly was for me, however everybody’s all the time gotta begin someplace!
A notable second in my profession thus far is…
The launch of my first EP, Crush(ed). This was my first physique of labor, and it was surreal studying messages from individuals who actually resonated with my songs. It’s all the time so comforting seeing that I’m not the one one struggling within the love division!
My inventive course of is…
Basically word-barfing into the Notes app on my telephone. Whenever I’ve a thought, I instantly write it in my notes to make use of as track lyrics later. I like the entire course of; it’s very therapeutic. A approach I’d like to see better gender fairness within the music trade is seeing extra girls within the room for periods and songwriting. Women severely carry so many nice issues to the desk they usually want extra highlight, particularly within the early levels of the music-making course of.
A number of up-and-coming girls artists I’m excited to observe are…
Catie Turner and Lyn Lapid. Their songwriting and voices are each superb, and the matters they discuss of their songs are issues I can all the time deeply relate to. I’m so excited to observe the journeys of those unimaginable girls.
My girl-power anthem is…
“Girl On Fire” by Alicia Keys. I used to be completely obsessive about this track after I was youthful, and nonetheless am now. This track actually makes me really feel like I can do something . . .
Feel all of the feels by listening to Katherine and different girls artists within the EQUAL Global playlist