Q&A: Jazzie Young Yearns with “Waiting On You!”
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY SHARON LAZO ☆
Photos By Michaela Sprague
WE’RE ALL FAMILAR WITH THE DELUGE OF EMOTIONS THAT COME WITH A NEW CRUSH– cartwheels in your stomach. Shamelessly sending a risky text and flinging your phone across the room. Or feeling like your heart is punching through your chest. These feelings of exhilaration are all depicted in Jazzie Young’s new single “Waiting On You!”.
With Jazzie’s starry eyed vocals, atmospheric production, and vulnerable lyrics she is able to illustrate how hard hitting falling for someone is. The infuriating feeling of wanting to know if it's mutual. Wanting to belt out along with her, “Do you want this!”. She is able to showcase through her lyrics the uncertainty that surrounds all these whirlwind of emotions that you know are fleeting, but still hyperfocus on.
As a songwriter, Jazzie is able to effortlessly maintain the sentiment the words hold by carrying that over with the gentle drums and delicate melodies, with the help of Daywave. They both came together to showcase just how fragile having a crush is. All this intensity could crumble into nothing, or bloom into something more. Creating this sense of release that can be heard and felt towards the end of the track and its repetition of lyrics multiplying these anxieties.
Continue reading below to delve into the mind of Jazzie Young and find out why she has been esteemed as LADYGUNN’s 2025 artist of the year!
LUNA: First off, thank you for your time! How is everything? How do you feel?
JAZZIE YOUNG: Hello! Thank you. I'm so excited to chat. I’m doing pretty well, it's been a really heavy week here in Los Angeles but I’m excited for this song to finally be out in the world. It’s nice to have something cute and lighthearted to focus on!
LUNA: Congrats on the release of your single “Waiting On You!”. Can you tell us more about the single? How did the inspiration come about?
JAZZIE YOUNG:Thank you so much! I wrote this song back in April of 2024 during my very first writing session with Daywave. At the time I had a pretty big crush on someone and unfortunately I lose my mind a bit when I’m crushing. So I went into the session that day really wanting to put those feelings into a song, it always helps as a release of sorts. I had also been watching a ton of 90’s and early 2000’s rom coms so those kinds of sonics were heavily influencing me. We talked a bit about what kind of song I was looking to write, i.e. the tempo, the feeling (happy or sad) and the general energy. Daywave pretty quickly came up with a sonic palate that was exactly what I was looking for and that provided a really easy jumping point to start writing the lyrics from.
LUNA:During the production of the track, how did you go about making sure those sincere emotions were materialized into the song?
JAZZIE YOUNG: I think it honestly came pretty naturally. Daywave came up with a general palette for the song with guitar, we did a bit of back and forth with the “how do you feel about this chord progression vs this one” and landed on something that had a very strong emotion. From there it felt very easy to write lyrics that enhanced the emotion we had decided on and it all flowed from there. We wrote basically the whole song that very first day and had one more session to iron some kinks out. But overall, the process felt very intuitive and free.
LUNA: As a songwriter, how do you normally go about the writing process with your work? And was there anything different with the process of “Waiting On You!”?
JAZZIE YOUNG: For this album my songwriting process has switched up quite a bit because I wrote all the songs with someone else. The majority of the album I co-wrote with my producer John Velasquez, and we tried out multiple techniques throughout it to see what each change would inspire lyrically and sonically. For the most part though, it would always start on an acoustic guitar and be focused on the story telling. Then we would build the world around the song once it felt solidified.
However, writing with Daywave was inherently different because we had never written together before and the way he goes about producing is different than John. It was really fun to try out creating a melody and idea before lyrics, it felt like an interesting challenge where I could apply all of the songwriting techniques I had been practicing with John in my own way with someone new. I feel like every time you write with someone new they bring out a different side of you and can open your eyes to new ideas and sounds.
LUNA: What is your favorite part so far of your musical journey?
JAZZIE YOUNG: This past year writing the album hands down. I learned so much about songwriting and co-writing and had so much room to explore different sounds. Also, the connection that comes from writing with people is one of the most pure and enlivening things I’ve ever experienced.
LUNA: Sonically speaking, is there still more you would like to explore as an artist?
JAZZIE YOUNG: Absolutely! I’m someone who loves so many different styles of music I think I would love to continue to explore different avenues and grow in my own sound as I grow as a person.
LUNA: What artist/band would you say shaped you to be the artist you are now?
JAZZIE YOUNG: This is such a hard question because there are so many artists I look up to and listen to but I don’t necessarily sound anything like them. I think all music and art can be inherently inspiring but I don’t really ever try to sound like anyone else. You can hear a song that really sparks your emotional soundscape and then write something based on that that has absolutely nothing to do with the song that inspired you. I think of it more like a muse, something to intrigue me but not necessarily to be used as a template for my own sound.
LUNA: As one of LADYGUNN’s 2025 artists to watch, what are your goals for this year? And what could we expect to come!?
JAZZIE YOUNG: I have so many. First off, I’m currently in the beginning of the release schedule for my album and I’m so excited about that. That means a lot of singles and visuals and world building which I love. I’m also looking to play more live shows and hoping to tour! I’d also love to get back to writing and see where I’m landing in this new phase.
