Q&A: Christian Leave on Maturing His Sound Through Tour & New Single “Why Not?”
STRAYING AWAY FROM HIS REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING — Chrisitan Akridge, better known as Christian Leave, has made his return to the alternative-indie scene after not releasing any new music in the past year. Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, Leave is hitting the ground running with his newly “matured” sound, as seen amongst the release of his latest single, “Why Not?”
The singer-songwriter signed with Warner Records in 2018 and said that both he and his sound have evolved since the beginning of his music career. In the transition from Vine star to musician, Leave has released a handful of EPs, singles, and music videos, but feels as if he has just now found a sound that is his own.
Read below to learn more about Leave finding comfort in complete isolation, touring with beabadoobee, his newest single, “Why Not?” and what the future holds.
LUNA: In an interview with Rolling Stone, you described “Why Not?” as a song about “finding yourself sunken into complacency, identifying it, and not having the motivation to change it.” Can you recall a time when you felt this way? What do you become complacent with?
LEAVE: I think coming out of the pandemic, I began to feel quite lost in my motivations and intentions. It was such a change of pace of the regularly scheduled programming and it just went on for so long. I had shacked myself up in my apartment and found comfort in all that isolation. I became a real homebody. When things started to open back up and people started going back to work, going out, reviving their social skills, I felt myself struggling behind all of my friends. I started to feel really awkward all the time. It felt like I lost one of my abilities and didn’t really care to regain it.
LUNA: Why did you choose “Why Not?” as your lead single?
LEAVE: In my mind, it really encapsulates the sound of the project as a whole. Lots of small details that are heard throughout the record — felt like a good primer.
LUNA: Describe the creation process for “Why Not?”. What’s your process for writing lyrics, and how was your experience collaborating with Yves Rothman?
LEAVE: This song in particular is just a bunch of linear imagery describing moments of inspiration, frustration, and reflection. I started by writing out a short story and using that as a template to inform what I felt were the most important phrases to not only service the message of the song but to tend to the listener’s visualization of what’s going on.
Working with Yves is always a blast. He is an amazing producer and an incredibly supportive friend. He’s really helped me in creating a space where I can take my time and focus on being honest and hit the mark of what I’m looking to achieve.
LUNA: Tell me about the cover art for “Why Not?” What did you envision for the cover, and did the final product live up to your expectations? Who was the artist who designed it?
LEAVE: I worked with a good friend and really fantastic artist named Noah Gallagher. A lot of the demos were based around visual imbalances, someone standing taller than someone else, a figure being closer to the foreground. I wanted it to feel like our “hero” was facing a big challenge and whatever it was facing held some kind of intimidation or power over it. We used an amalgamation of AI renders to inspire the final painting. It was a lot of fun and turned out exactly how I had envisioned.
LUNA: You haven’t released music since 2021. How would you say your sound changed during this break and did touring influence the sound of your upcoming music?
LEAVE: I think I’ve matured. I’m slowly trying to develop a more uniform sound. In the past, it has been a big collage of inspiration, trying on the different hats of my favorite artists and doing my best impression of them. But now it feels more like I’m putting stakes in the ground and defining what I want a “Christian Leave” record to sound and feel like. Touring was very informative to my writing process and to what was possible on stage. It gave me a gauge for better understanding the role my music plays in some people’s lives and what they come to a space to hear me play.
LUNA: What was the most memorable thing from touring with beabadoobee?
LEAVE: Definitely the Toronto show. The band and I thought it would be funny to try to sneak a couch from our green room onto stage without anyone noticing. We brought it out and hid it behind this giant curtain and waited for our cue. They ended up carrying me out on the couch in front of the audience while the theme from The Simpsons played. It was awesome. The venue was not super happy, but it was an amazing show. The crowd was incredible, and it was probably our best performance as well.
LUNA: As the first release after a year of no new music, why is “Why Not?” the perfect single for your return to the industry? Does “Why Not?” reflect your upcoming music? What can we expect from you within the next few months?
LEAVE: You can expect a few more songs, a few shows, a few live events and a 24-hour live stream of me break dancing nonstop.
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