The Grammy-winning songwriter has been on the cusp of stardom for years.Jaguar IIshould change that.
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In honor of Victoria Monets 2024 Grammywins, were re-running our interview with her from August.
Victoria Monet starts with the show tunes.
Over the Rainbow connects with me a lot.
On her just-released albumJaguar II, she again pays respect to her predecessors.
I combine lineages, she says.
ThoughJaguar IIhas received its share of fanfare and press coverage, for years Monet operated behind the scenes.
Monet spent what time she could on her own work, releasing four moody, genre-hopping EPs between 2014-18.
But they received little notice outside of her small but devoted fanbase.
It wasnt until her 2020 EPJaguarwhen whispers about her talent began to amplify.
The project landed on several year-end critics lists and introduced her work to a broader audience.
Yet it still didnt turn her into the true household name her or her fans had thought it would.
The hope isJaguar IIfinallywill.
Its just part of my story.
Everything that I was doing was necessary.
Were in an era of fast career ascents.
Artist development now feels like a lost art.
You spent years writing songs for other musicians before breaking out on your own.
How have you navigated prioritizing your solo career over songwriting?
Like, it was just me.
It was just a lot for me to handle.
I feel like Ive worked in everyones position that Ive hired on the team; theyre mostly women.
I have really big respect for what everybody does because I understand it.
You recorded songs from bothJaguar IandIIsimultaneously, with the producer DMile.
It was kind of like doing shadow work and digging deeper into who I am as a person.
Its been a full-circle moment.
This is the first time youve released an album as a mother.
Im really not trying to multitask.
I wanted to teach her things.
I just wanted to create a world where she has to hear less nos.
If she wants to go to Europe, its like, okay, lets go!
Im also still pursuing what I dreamed of before she existed.
Right now, its a lot of Baby Shark and Cocomelon.
But Im also trying to absorb it.
Im trying to pick that up to bring into R&B and pop music.
She loves to sing Smoke.Shes my little A&R; shes got her tastes.
Both your daughter and your mom cameo in the On My Mama music video.
And Im like, Yes, of course, youre my mom.
I get it from you!
Im singing the song about you!
Be in the video.
Then she got on set and was like, So, what do you need?
I dont know what to do.
I was like, Just be you, just dance!
And so as soon as the music comes on, she snaps.
She was living her best life.
I was like, Oh, you were waiting for this moment.
The dancers were hyping her up too.
It seemed like something that we owned.
We own these things, and thats something people can never take away from us.
The South in the early 2000s was one of those moments where we were inescapable; we were everywhere.
The dances that were doing in the video crossed from our culture to other cultures.
So for On My Mama, it feels very triumphant and it feels very Black.
So we wanted to capture that.
You mentioned playing Earth, Wind & Fire for your daughter.
Theyre also featured on the new album, along with Lucky Daye, Buju Banton, and Kaytranada.
Each artist represents very different styles, generations, and regional sounds.
When the opportunity came to have them feature, it felt like another full-circle thing.
That was the universe and God working in my favor.
To have their blessing on my music just means that they admire it as well.
Theres a mutual respect there.
And during my childhood, my mom listened to Buju a lot.
I always remembered his voice; I remember asking her, like, Whos this person?
And then I reached out to him over Instagram and he said yes.
I was in sweatpants and wore no makeup.
We have options too.
Im like, why cant girls have big pussy energy?
They really own the fact that theyre not tied down by traditional standards and stereotypes.
Were all humans; maybe were not monogamous.
You also said Earth, Wind & Fires music was an inspiration while making the firstJaguar.
Its crazy that it’s possible for you to write so many different songs with 12 notes.
Everyone who weve ever used anything from is also being paid for it.
Even when artists are careful, it doesnt always work.
So thats part of the business side of it.
On 7 Rings,theytook 90 percent of that song.
But it also just went diamond.
So without that melody I dont know if it would have been as catchy.
Are you still writing songs for other people?I am, but not as often.
Any other free time I have is allotted to my family.
I think I want to eventually genre-switch.
Id love to jump into country or pop-rock, just to challenge myself and see what its like.
I love songwriting so much, but writers in general arent really respected the way they should be.
So it was hard for me to stay in love completely.
Im having fun being hands on and being able to see it all the way through.
As a songwriter, you kind of stop at the studio.
Ariana Grande is one of your best friends and main collaborators.
We havent specifically sat down and had a question-and-answer session about advice.
I think the best way that I learned was through experience.
I was a person who didnt go to college.
I just jumped into the field.
I think thats how I learned the best: just going into it and navigating it in real time.
And Im so close, I might as well just keep going.
I also have great people around me holding me up and keeping me excited to do better things.
Im in competition with my old self, and that makes me keep experimenting.
Your first solo headlining tour is starting up this fall.
Touring is especially tricky for artists right now, even the successful ones.
I dont know what it stems from, why people are throwing things.
I dont want anything to hit my face or anybody elses face.
I want to be safe.
How are artists meant to protect themselves from these situations?
But beyond that, Im really excited.
Its definitely an investment for me too.
Im not at the place where I earn money from touring yet.
For rehearsals, everything has been really, really amazing and challenging at the same time.
I think its the busiest time of my life.
But theyre happening at the same time.
Its a good challenge, but it definitely is a challenge.
I appreciate you saying that.
I just want my fans to get the best experience and not give them any less than they deserve.
So Im spending money on them.
How are you defining success for yourself now?
So its almost like youre never present.
Like, okay, how do you feel today?
Do you feel happy?
Are you wanting to readjust anything in this moment?
Its this balancing act of business mind and then zen spiritual mind.
But Im feeling good.
I think that everything is happening the way its supposed to.
