INTERVIEW: Avery Friedman Pinpoints Inspiration For Authentic Songs

Avery Friedman only just learned to perform, but you'd never know it. Friedman, an avid music fan, began to dip her toes in the water after several life-altering experiences, which she discusses below. By following her instinct, Friedman's debut album New Thing is a flowing, self-contained universe. (You can read Bee Delores' review of the album here.) In our interview, the Brooklyn-based artist gives us insight into exploring songwriting and identity.

Explain the title of your album.

My album title New Thing derives from a repeated lyric from my song with the same name. In the song,  I’m describing this vague “new thing,” sort of circling around it, fixated and exploring it without really naming it. When I wrote the song, I was referring to a newfound feeling of anxiety. I had been robbed at knifepoint a few months prior, and had just taken the subway home alone at night for the first time since. I was so tense – and disoriented by my surprising, bodily anxiety – that I missed my stop! I went home and immediately wrote the song. I chose to make it the title of the album because it felt both meta (music is such a new endeavor for me), and cheeky at once. I had a lot of fear around pursuing music, and something just felt right about this title. It felt like it had a lightness. 

Do you have any songwriting tips you can share?

If you’re having trouble starting out, invest in some classes/courses. I took a few classes when I just knew I wanted to write songs but didn't know how – and that was extremely helpful. I also think it’s important to cultivate a practice around creativity, so you can learn to do something as simple as pinpoint when you’re feeling inspired, honor that feeling, and find a way to get it out (in lyrics, or in a chord progression). I’ve also found this idea to be really freeing: the best chance we have at creating something unique and high-quality is to focus on it being as authentically expressive of our individual experience and taste as possible . Don’t overthink it. Follow what feels/sounds good in the moment when writing, then refine later. 

How do you feel your queer identity ties into your performance style or music?

I think my queer identity ties into everything that I do. To me, queerness is an openness, an essence, and a wanting. Of course the subject matter of my songs touch on love and desire, but, more broadly the practice of writing and performing music has been one about being brave, and honest and expressive and visible for me. There’s an pureness and an undeniability in my drive to pursue music, and it come from the same place as my queerness. 

What words did you need to hear as you explored your identity?

I feel like there is so much weightiness around changing. It’s always been really meaningful to me when people close to me have treated the evolution of my identity with a levity – like they’re just excited and curious to see who I become.

What's the first concert you ever attended? What do you remember about it?

The first concert I ever attended was a Brooks and Dunn concert in my homestate of Ohio. I went with my mom and my childhood friend Kelsey, at this lovely outdoor venue called Blossom Music Center. One of the bandmates actually threw a drumstick into the crowd at this show, and I ended up catching it. So, i just had a signed Brooks and Dunn drumstick lying around my house until my dog chewed it up…RIP.

New Yorkers can catch Avery Friedman's release show at Union Pool this Thursday, May 15th. Purchase your tickets here.

Avery Friedman – Instagram / Twitter / TikTok / Bluesky / Threads