Romy has a simple yet impactful offering for combatting the inner-critic: "You’ve been strong for so long / You learned to carry this on your own / Let me be someone / You can lean on," she sings on "Strong."\
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Atop Fred again.. and Stuart Price's hypnotic, pulsing bassline, Romy's airy vocals reach deep into your heart when you least expect it — on the dancefloor, where this track is perfectly suited, or in the shower hyping yourself up through exhaustion.
"Something happens when she sings. Sentences other people might make sound sort of mundane or simple — through the context of her lens — sound unbelievably profound," Fred again.. aptly told the New York Times.
For its '90s dance pop-infused profundity, "Strong" earned Romy her first GRAMMY nomination, for Best Dance/Electronic Recording. "The fact that this song could reach more people [being nominated at the 2024 GRAMMYs.)] and hopefully encourage more people to open up about their feelings is really special to me," Romy tells GRAMMY.com. "I get anxious and feel a bit afraid when I'm about to do something new, but it's actually felt really great to be this out of my comfort zone," she adds, speaking of the growth she’s experienced with her solo project.
The nominated track is the lead single on her debut solo album, Mid Air, itself born from 2018 songwriting sessions with Fred again.. who is up for four GRAMMYs this year, including Best New Artist. At the time, Romy (born Romy Madley Croft) was not interested in singing on any of the records they wrote, let alone making a solo album. She was coming off of tour with her band The xx and wanted to explore songwriting for other artists.
Yet the friendship and studio rapport she built with Fred again.. brought her out of her naturally quiet shell and into the spotlight. When she began to write songs about queer love, Romy realized she had something to say as a solo artist, and set out to make the euphoric dance pop album filled with the lesbian love songs her teenage self needed to hear. Romy was the final The xx member to release a solo album, and tells GRAMMY.com the band has been working on their follow up to 2017’s I See You. As The xx, Romy and Oliver Sim sing sultry ballads alongside melancholic guitar and bass and minimalist synths and MPC beats. In her solo project, Romy has taken center stage as she sings about queer love, amplified by exuberant dance productions.
She's been busy the last two years with DJ gigs at big festivals across the globe. At Coachella in 2022, she debuted new music live during a hybrid DJ set, and in 2023, translated the exuberance of her album to a full live show with her Club Mid Air tour (which continues in 2024).
GRAMMY.com sat down with Romy at the Ace Hotel in Brooklyn during a tour stop, where she went deep into "Stronger," working with Fred again.. and connecting with the queer community.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Congrats on your first nomination. What was your reaction when you first found out?
Thank you. I was soundchecking in Amsterdam and one of my managers ran onstage. He's normally a pretty low-key person and he was really animated. He was like, "I'm really sorry, I wouldn't normally interrupt your soundcheck, but I've got some exciting news." I was pretty shocked, to be honest, and just trying to process it all. Then we FaceTimed people from the U.S. team and everyone was super excited, so that made me excited. My family and friends were all really blown away. It's really lovely and very unexpected.
I've worked in music for a long time and I'm grateful to be acknowledged in this way. It's very special to have other musicians root for you. Let's see what happens, but even to be nominated is a massive boost and really exciting.
Where did "Strong," your GRAMMY-nominated track with Fred again.., begin?
Fred and I had recently met and we were hanging out and really enjoying making music together. We initially got matchmade, really, as songwriters when we both were working for other people. We didn't come together thinking that we were going to work with each other for our own music, which now seems kind of weird. At that time, neither of us had solo projects. Both of us were happy writing songs together thinking someone else will take the song and run with it. It's a coincidence and lovely that we really connected and became friends very naturally.
Eventually, we wrote a song called "Loveher," which is the first track on [Mid Air]. I realized I felt very comfortable and safe with Fred, like I could open up a bit more. "Strong" came out of one of those early sessions, when I had been having a bit of a hard time. We were talking about it and started writing the song — it happened very naturally. I played Fred a lot of references of Euro dance, trance — emotional music to dance to — and we were connecting on that. It took a while for us to finish it and went through lots of different versions. I met Stuart Price, a producer that I'm a huge fan of, and he really helped Fred and I kind of craft the song and finish it, so he's a big part of the track as well.
What do you think Fred helps bring out of you in the studio?
When I went into trying to write songs with other people — pop writing — I just really wanted to learn. Fred is a very generous, energetic presence in the studio. He really lets me in on the creative process. We talk a lot, and I learned a lot from the way he works.
Through our friendship, I've felt comfortable to just sing melodies into the air and try a different version of songwriting than I had before. Singing with a stranger can be quite daunting. He's incredibly quick and talented, but he's also warm and makes you feel at ease to try things. Sometimes the studio can be a nerve-racking experience, so that's a great quality.
What shifted for you when you were working with Fred that made you feel ready to start your solo project?
It was a gradual building of confidence. I went into those sessions not in the most confident place. I had recently come off touring with The xx and I was really wanting to be creative, but I wasn't in the place that I wanted it to be for me. It took me a little bit of time to realize that I did have something that was important for me to share as a solo artist. I think writing "Loveher" and songs embracing and opening up more about my sexuality and queer love had me feeling like, Actually, I do have something I really want to share.
That kind of took me back to when I first came out and first went to clubs; it gave me a bit more confidence. It made me realize this is something unique outside of The xx that I want to explore. But it took me some time to get there. When I started to feel that feeling, it kind of lit a fire and the momentum carried on.
I love the exuberance of "Enjoy Your Life," which you also worked on with Fred again.. and Stuart Price, along with Jamie xx, and features Beverly Glenn-Copeland's voice. What inspired that track and how did it all come together?
That's a really special song to me. "Strong" and "Enjoy Your Life" are the two songs on the album that are me expressing and processing grief. The song came about because I heard the Beverly Glenn-Copeland song, "La Vita." I was in Stockholm with Robyn and she took me to a gig. I didn't know who it was going to be — obviously, I trust Robyn. I spoke to her recently and said, "Thank you so much for taking me to that show, it inspired this song." She said, "Thank you for being up for it." I was like, "Are you serious? Of course I was." [Chuckles.]
When I was at that show, I heard Glenn sing the lyric, "My mother says to me, enjoy your life." I was so blown away and moved by it — about how simple the line was, but how much emotion it contained. As a songwriter, that's my favorite thing; when you can find lyrics that have huge emotional depth in a few words. It made me think a lot about my experience of grief, and the way that loss made me think about how life is short and I wanted to make the best of things if I could.
When I heard Glenn's lyric, it reconnected me with that intention of trying to see the positives. I was like, If I could have that reminder in my own song, it would be helpful. I was grateful that Glenn was happy for us to sample his voice and for me to sing the lyrics too. His voice is clear on "Mid Air," the interlude. I really wanted to make sure he was a featured artist.
"Enjoy Your Life" is a huge collage of different collaborators, different samples, different versions. It was the most challenging song to finish — to try and contain all of those different emotions and samples and collaborators. I spent a lot of time with the parts and now to look out and see people connecting with it in the audience, I'm grateful we stuck with it. It's one of the highlights now for me to see them singing along.
Can you speak to the specific '90s rave and dance pop inspirations on "Strong" and the rest of Mid Air?
Big emotional trance riffs; big, anthemic club classics, especially from the UK. I'm obsessed with songs that people sing along to on the dance floor: What makes that a thing? Is it simplicity?
"The Rhythm of the Night" by Corona is obviously a massive song. If you take away the club element, it's still a beautiful song. The lyrics are amazing, the melody's really strong. I thought a lot about that when I was making the album, as well as sonically embracing the sounds on the
radio when I was growing up. I tried to reference the nostalgia but also make something fresh.
When did you fall in love with dance music — was it from the radio? What are some of those early songs that still really move you?
Yeah, definitely through the radio. Everything but the Girl's "Missing" [the Todd Terry remix] is a big one. I have a memory of being in the car with my parents, listening to the radio and being, "I want to hear that 'Missing' song." Tracey Thorn's voice has been part of my subconscious forever. I love her. The emotion that's carried in that song, as well as it being a great club track, is something that is clearly a big inspiration for this [album].
I started going clubbing a lot when I was about 17 in London. I would go to a few queer clubs and feel the freedom and the appreciation of pop music in such a joyful and non-ironic way. It's something that has stayed with me. I started DJing at [one of those] clubs and definitely relied on the songs that you press play and everyone's hands are in the air. That's still what I like to DJ now; songs that unite a room. Back then I couldn't mix so I had to just press play on big songs.
What do you think makes a great dance track?
Emotion. I can appreciate techno but I realized when I was on a night out once, I just didn't feel anything. I just need a little melody or a vocal hook to draw me in emotionally. If I can connect to my emotions, as well as an upward feeling of euphoria, somewhere between happy and sad, that's my dream place to be.
Beyond being a celebration of big '90s joyful rave sounds, Mid Air is also a celebration of love, and queer love. What has it felt like for you to come out publicly with this music and to also be in that space of "I love love"?
It feels really beautiful. I really love the connection I've felt with it. I've always been quite a shy person. Even in a club, when I first started going out, I wasn't going up to everyone saying hi. But being the DJ and playing songs helped me connect with people. Writing this music and celebrating queer love and wanting to actively connect more with the queer community has been beautiful. People come up to me and tell me about their experiences, or what the songs mean to them. That's the best feeling for me. On a lot of the songs I was thinking about what I would have wanted to hear when I was a teenager. There weren't a ton of lesbian love songs when I was growing up, especially not in the genre I was into.
Is there going to be more The xx music in the future?
Yeah. We have been in the studio and we've got lots more studio time coming up in 2024. It's been good for us to do these different projects. I learned so much from doing this [solo work] that I'm excited to bring it back and see what we make now with the band. I've been so proud of Jamie. When he did his solo project, he brought back a lot of experiences and fresh energy to the band. Now that we've all done solo projects, hopefully there's a bit of a three-way shared feeling of re-inspiration and acknowledgement of what the other people can do.
If you could go back to your younger self when you were first starting to make music, what would you tell her?
Wow. I was so shy when I started, I didn't want my family to hear me sing. I used to sing in private in my bedroom. I think if my teenage self saw the show that we're doing now, which is basically me jumping up and down, she'd be quite shocked. [Chuckles.] I'd say, "It's gonna be alright and don't worry so much about what other people think." I was very self-conscious, which is a classic teenage thing.
What are your biggest hopes and goals for 2024?
I'm excited to keep sharing this project and to travel to different parts of the world and play it live. I'm really excited to get back in the studio with Oliver and Jamie. Now that I've made this music, I'm excited to make more music. It doesn't feel like it's just this album. It's cool to think about still releasing songs and working with different people. It's quite open-ended now. I'm excited to see what happens next.