DIVA caught up with the singer to find out more about her new track The Tempest
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY KIM SELLING
Like most angst-filled, closeted teenagers who grew up in the 2010s there was one song I would blast religiously through my broken corded headphones: Same Love by Macklemore and Mary Lambert. The 2012 hit track was nothing short of a cultural phenomenon. Soon it was on every Pride playlist, nominated for a Grammy and skyrocketed into the top 10. Even now, it’s likely that you’ll hear the familiar piano opening at most queer events.
Mary Lambert’s powerful voice singing “she keeps me warm” has inspired millions. And now, she’s back again with another rallying cry with the release of her first track in nearly a decade, The Tempest. It’s a bit surreal to be speaking to the person whose voice held me in those moments of teenage sadness. Mary’s dog Georgie quickly wants to get in on the Zoom call, and we immediately launch into a discussion about Mary’s recent move to a farm in Western Massachusetts. We’re both in agreement: farming is super gay.
The Tempest is a battle cry song all about the necessity for us to reclaim our bodily autonomy. Returning to the music industry after nearly a decade can be a daunting thing for many artists. “I squirrelled myself a bit,” Mary admits. “I needed time to take care of myself. I wasn’t doing well.”
Mary tells me that her new track The Tempest is her “dream creation”. “It is so aligned with my activism and my belief that everybody has a right to do whatever they want with their bodies.” Written around the time that Roe v Wade was overturned and trans rights were being stripped away, Mary turned her anger into music. “I was angry that my trans friends were being scared for their lives.”
It’s a song that a lot of us could do with right now. Globally, LGBTQIA+ rights are being eroded, with trans people being targeted by lawmakers in the US and beyond. Mary describes The Tempest as being a track which she wishes her 18-year-old self had been able to hear. “I feel like it would have put a fire under my ass,” Mary laughs. “I would have felt galvanised to be socially and politically active. I would have put it on my feminist rage playlist!”
When Same Love came out in 2012, LGBTQIA+ rights seemed to be on the rise. Same-sex marriage was looking like a dream about to become reality for so many. The song became an anthem for the queer community to rally for their rights. I ask what it was like to be shot into stardom overnight. “It was a delusional fever dream!” Mary admits. The singer went from playing a show to two people – one of which being her mum – to playing to over 8,000 people. As of right now, the song has over 350 million streams on Spotify.
For Mary, it was vital to provide sapphic representation in the music industry, especially at a time when visibility is scarce. “I made a commitment to myself at that time that I was going to make songs that were explicitly about women. It was mind-blowing to go on tour with Macklemore and hear crowds of thousands singing ‘she keeps me warm’.”
Mary’s new song The Tempest is just the beginning of her new wave of music. What’s the message she wants people to take away? “It’s permission to be angry. As women, we’re really comfortable with sadness and grief. I think anger and rage is unfamiliar.”
You can listen to The Tempest now: www.tenderheartrecords.com/
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