FIVE QUESTIONS WITH GRACIE ABRAMS

Interscope's Gracie Abrams is on the ride of a lifetime, opening for Taylor Swift on select dates of The Eras Tour and headlining on her own. In fact, Abrams' Good Riddance Tour sold out in less than an hour when it was announced in January. We won't be surprised if she nabs a Grammy nom in the Best New Artist category. Despite her best judgement, Abrams agreed to chat with us about her meteoric success, the biggest lesson she learned from T-Swift and her debut album, Good Riddance.

There’s a lot of chatter surrounding a Best New Artist Grammy nomination for you. What would that mean to you?

The truth is that I already feel so deeply honored to be in the conversation at all—I can’t really imagine what it would feel like to earn an actual nomination. I’ve been watching the Grammys every year of my life it feels like, and the idea of being in that room for any reason at all is wild. I’d be honored beyond words.

You’ve had a huge year, opening up for Taylor Swift on The Eras Tour and going on your own headlining tour. What have you learned along the way?

I watched Taylor make every single one of the stadiums we played in feel intimate. I had no idea that was possible. Every single thing about The Eras Tour has broadened my imagination and really truly made me want to do this forever. Playing headline shows feels like a family reunion every time, and the people that are generous enough to buy a ticket, that are thoughtful enough to listen to the album in order again and again, the people that know every single word—they are the only reason I get to do this and so for me to spend a night in their company is this massive gift that I cherish and will never get used to. It just feels rare, the kind of compassion and vulnerability they bring to this whole thing. They’re great people. They teach me a lot, too.

Looking back on your debut album, Good Riddance, what are you most proud of?

I’m very proud of my transparency on the record as someone who used to tap out when feelings would get too big and scary. I’m proud that through this album I was able to begin articulating some of those feelings. I feel forever proud of my relationship with [producer] Aaron [Dessner]—he's someone whose taste and instincts I admired for years before knowing him personally and our friendship and collaboration means more to me than I can say, really.

Is there anything you’d do differently?

Answering this question now, part of me wants to say that I wish I had spared some of the details. Once I started writing the record it all just came pouring out and while I’m grateful for that, I know that moving forward something I will certainly do differently is maybe have a few conversations with the people in my life before releasing music. That’s how I feel today.

What does your music mean to you on a personal level?

Writing means everything to me. It’s how I’ve made sense of every feeling I’ve ever had since I started as a kid and through live music over the past two years I’ve gotten to see how the songs translate in person and getting to look into the faces of people who understand my stories and in turn share their own. It's a way to communicate that I can’t compare to anything else, really.