DIVA meets the Barcelona-born singer making vulnerability badass
BY ZOË SCHULZ, IMAGES BY ZOË SCHULZ
Diving into the world of FOX GUNN, you’re met with dark alternative pop melodies intertwining with queer narratives and the influences of her Spanish roots. There’s something salacious and playful in her music, with lyrics such as “Please forgive me a flirt” – you can listen while crying on the bathroom floor or dancing till 5 am in the morning.
The London-based, Barcelona-born singer just had her first sold-out London show and is quickly becoming a rising star. From amassing over 50k followers on TikTok and catching the attention of Fletcher, there is a vulnerability and rawness to FOX that is drawing in fans from around the world.
“I’ve realised that I’m a very emotional person, and I’m very vulnerable. But I’ve also realised that’s fucking badass in the world we live in right now.” Their first EP, BADASS And VULNERABLE, released last year, explores precisely this – there is strength in the messiness of our emotions if we can show up and share them honestly.
FOX’s musical roots trace back to their childhood in Barcelona, where classical training laid the groundwork. Then, moving to London at eighteen, they began writing and performing with a rock band for a few years before deciding to start from a clean slate, and FOX was born.
It’s a journey tied closely to their experiences with sexuality and gender. Looking back, they can see in the music they released with their rock band that they were still figuring out who they were. Although this will always be a continuous journey, there is a layer to FOX now as a musician that says, “This is who I am and what I want to be doing.”
Part of the reason her music has connected with so many is the openness FOX sows into each song. Exploring her identity and queer dating, she is inspired by anything that makes her feel something. Her debut EP shared a story of heartache and how this can leave you emotionally shut off. Then, when she found herself longing after someone again, she put these feelings into her newest single, CRUSH.
What started as a rough demo on TikTok turned into their latest single in just a matter of months. After sharing a couple of clips of the song as it was being written, FOX realised how much it resonated with their audience. In many ways, as a token of appreciation to those showing up online to support their music, they finished writing, recording, and mastering the song in just two months.
“I’m just trying to be the person I needed when I was a teenager, and I was lost,” FOX explains, reflecting on how they want to show up online. As someone whose music is often diary-like, if they’re dating a woman or non-binary person, they don’t think twice about sharing that in their lyrics.
Looking back at the first time she used “she” pronouns about a love interest in a song it was during her rock band era. In contrast, back then, it was something that felt significant. It was five years ago, and although she was out about her sexuality, she remembers it still felt like a big deal and helped bring to light the internalised homophobia she had grown up with.
Audiences connected with this honesty, and it started a chain reaction to the badass, vulnerable way FOX now shows up in the world. “I needed to be every single person I’ve been before in my life to be here right now, and I’ve never felt more like myself.”
Although there’s a side of FOX that’s flirty and confident, there is also a side that’s nervous and awkward, and by unapologetically sharing these versions of themself with the world, they are reminding us of the magic in the raw chaos of what makes us who we are. On the verge of a breakthrough, with new music coming this summer and a potential European tour, FOX continues to carve out a space in music that is real and messy – for all of us who are finding our way through identity, emotion, and art.
Find out more about Zoe’s work here: studiozo.co
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