My Exclusive Interview With Aestrea

Aestrea takes on a lot of personas in her music—a space explorer, a bedroom pop singer, an abandoned bride—but every release has a distinctly ethereal, luminous sound that complements her delicate aesthetic and soft, angelic vocals. With over 10,000 Instagram followers and nearly 60,000 monthly Spotify listeners, the Internet is waiting to see what she'll do next. Luckily, you don't have to wait for a peek behind the scenes: this interview dives into her aesthetic, her early work and her latest track, offering a look at the artist behind the white veil.

1. Your music tends to alternate between soft, angelic vibes and dark, unsettling vocals, sometimes in the same track. Do you think this represents different sides of yourself, or is it more symbolic? How do you choose a particular vocal style for a track?

I think this unintentionally represents different sides of myself, yes. I never necessarily choose a vocal style for my songs; it just happens naturally in the songwriting process. If there's a verse that's angry, I'll sing louder and add a little distortion; if I'm singing a section that's about a nice memory or love, I would just naturally sing softer. I have many sides of myself, just like we all do, and I naturally express that through my music.

2. Cold Eyes' cover has always intrigued me because it contrasts a dilapidated house with a glowing light and a flowing white wedding dress. What's the meaning behind this cover, and what was the process behind this photoshoot? Did you take the pictures in a real abandoned house?

The cover of Cold Eyes represents a love that is falling apart. A love that was still alive in my heart, while I watched the paint peel off the walls and the wood start to crack. The wedding dress came from a thrift store; it was sitting in my closet for so long that I was excited to use it to symbolize love. We did take the photos in a real abandoned house. It is a beautiful spooky spot! The photos were taken by the amazing Summer Schantz!

3. Speaking of album covers: several of your songs and covers have a vintage sci-fi theme. Are you a classic sci-fi fan—and if so, what inspired you to incorporate this into your music? Do you feel like you're playing fictional characters or different versions of yourself?

I am a huge sci-fi fan! I love retro futurism and the space age aesthetics; I try to incorporate it into my persona. I think my love of space and science is what really inspired me. I used to go to space camp and dream about being an astrophysicist, then I realized what that actually entails and decided to be a musician, haha.

Sometimes I really do feel like I'm playing fictional characters of myself, especially when I'm making the music. When playing shows, it's a bit harder for me to be that "character" because I have stage fright, but it's all a process and I'm working my way there. I'm currently working on a new album, and there are a ton of space and sci-fi themes woven through it! 

4. As a self-produced artist, what's the production process like? Do you have any methods or techniques that make your songs uniquely yours? What are the benefits of being your own producer?

I think every artist who self-produces has methods that make it sound uniquely theirs. I don't think you can help it; your personality and taste just come out in the music because it's such a personal and tedious process.

My production process is different each time, but I start with writing the song and then mapping it out on Logic Pro X slowly, piece by piece. One thing that I always do is spend an insane amount of time looking for the right sounds. Anyone who knows me knows I'm a freak about it, like annoyingly. I can sit there for hours in an analog lab trying to get the right synth sound for this one part, and I think that level of detail makes a song come to life!

There are so many benefits of being your own producer; one big one is that no one can tell you what to do, you have complete control over your music, and your music is like a very precious thing!

5. With over one million streams, "prey" is your biggest hit yet. Why do you think this song resonated with so many people? Did it go viral on a specific site, such as TikTok, or did it just blow up in general? Would you want to go viral again?

"prey" did not blow up on any social media. Honestly, I barely even promoted it, and it randomly blew up years after release. I think it resonated with people because of the sound more than the subject matter; I don't know, though. I self-produced this when I was around 16 or 17, and I used a lot of gritty, intense sounds. I've gotten comments comparing it to video game music.

The song is essentially about being frustrated with men or people in power trying to take advantage of you. I wouldn't consider this a true "viral" song, but no, I don't really wanna go viral. I love a good slow burn.

6. "Space," your latest single, has a fantastical, expansive sound that makes me think of galaxies, nebulae and shooting stars. How did you achieve this otherworldly sound? Do you ever feel like you're worldbuilding when you write music?

Thank you so much! I totally feel like I'm worldbuilding when I make my music, especially with "Space." I would say I achieved this sound by picking dreamy organ sounds, sparkly chimes, and spacey reverb on the vocals. I also used a slight rotator on my vocals for this song.

The trick is to layer in a bunch of sounds to make it feel expansive. You really have to sit there and connect with what you're making. This was my first song that I recorded and mixed the drums completely on my own. I usually use MIDI drums when self-producing, so it's very validating to hear that people like it!

7. Similarly, how do you achieve the glowing, echoing quality that makes your vocals sound luminous? What do you think it adds to your music? Do you think it makes your work more relatable or appealing to a specific audience?

The right reverb/modulation or any weird vocal effect is the way to achieve that glowing, luminous quality. I think it adds that ethereal touch to my music that it needs. I do think the way your vocals are mixed affects which audience you appeal to. If you have super dry, pop-sounding vocals, you're going to appeal to that mainstream audience. The more weird or DIY-sounding you get with the vocals, the more niche your audience gets, which is what I think you should want as an artist.

8. What's the first song you ever recorded? How do you feel about it when you look back on it now? Would you do anything differently?

The first "real song" I ever recorded was this song called "floating in space with you." I think it's still on Spotify. When I look back on it, I feel a bit cringe, but mostly I feel very sentimental about it. If I could go back, I wouldn't change a thing. As an artist, you are supposed to start out being bad; that's just part of the process. I think leaving those early songs is good because it shows your growth as an artist. It also shows that you’re okay with being imperfect.

9. "Darling" is probably my favorite song in your discography, so I have to ask a question about it! What inspired this lullaby-like tune? Did you write it for anyone in particular?

So about two/three years ago, I went through my first breakup, and that’s what inspired me to write "Darling." It was my first experience of no contact, and it was so hard for me to not have that line of communication anymore. One day I was sitting at my keyboard, crying, just feeling those gut-wrenching feelings of a breakup, and I started writing this fake letter to him that starts off like, "Hey, what are you doing," which is the first line of "Darling." This song is literally a letter to my ex that I never actually gave to him; I just turned it into a song.

I also want to clarify, "Darling" is not necessarily a "love song." The entire Cold Eyes EP is about love, but if you can dig deeper, it's about leaving an abusive relationship. It's about loving someone who hurts you, and how hard it is to actually get out of that situation.

When you leave, all that pain turns into strength, and you can finally be yourself again. Writing this EP helped me process my relationship, and I was able to turn it into something good.

To stay on top of Aestrea's mythology, you can visit her website, follow her on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and stream her tracks on Spotify, Tidal, SoundCloud and Apple Music.