The 21-year-old old singer has evolved as quickly as the internet platforms she grew up on.
Mxmtoon is letting her music speak for itself. Literally and figuratively. Ahead of the release of her second album, Rising, she is protecting her delicate, soft-tinged voice while on tour. But even if you’ve never spoken with her, you feel a connection with her by listening to her music. Each track from Rising feels like a scene from the coming-of-age film that is the 21-year-old singer and instrumentalist’s life. From the introspective “Mona Lisa,” to the poignant “Victim Of Nostalgia,” to the bittersweet “Sad Disco,” and the appropriately-titled closing track, “Coming Of Age,” the album, largely recorded by Mxmtoon in the guestroom of her parents’ Oakland home, shares anecdotes of loss, grief, self-actualization, and queer joy. Having first built a following online by drawing cartoons on Instagram, then diving into music by sharing covers on YouTube, Mxmtoon’s music has evolved alongside these platforms, making her a voice of her generation. On the release week of Rising, we catch up with Mxmtoon (via email, of course. Gotta protect those vocals) to talk about the process of making the album and growing up in the age of the internet. You first came to fame drawing cartoons, many for strangers, on Instagram. Do you still keep up with some of your OG followers? I’m not sure if anyone from my early Instagram days still follows me. I was 11 then and only had 200 followers, so the odds are pretty low! I do keep up with listeners that started following me around 2017/2018 though. How did you feel when you first went viral for your music? It was honestly really scary. It’s terrifying when someone becomes so much bigger than you ever imagine, especially when you’re just a teenager. I felt so vulnerable having millions of people critiquing, complementing, or criticizing me for art I had just made in my own bedroom when I was 17. It was simultaneously very exciting and also scary. Who would you say have been good mentors to you in music? My middle school music teacher for sure. Teachers have always had some of the largest impact on me growing up, and my music teacher was no exception.
