- Words Mike Vinti
- Photography Alexandra Adcock
Melancholic, genreless and born out of boredom, Hana Vu's music is the sound of a generation.
Social media has changed the way we interact with our favourite artists. More than just musicians, they’re now personalities, people we can interact with on the daily. Now more than ever we’re aware that musicians are pretty normal people, they just have a weird job. Every week we get to know one of our favourite SoundCloud heroes, internet dating style, in our new column, Internet Crush.
It’s hard to think of a track that captures the ironic not-quite-humour of today’s youth like “Crying On The Subway’. The lead single from Los Angeles-based artist Hana Vu‘s upcoming EP, it introduced the world outside of LA to the teenage prodigy’s melancholic, mesmerising sound. Sonically a mix of dreamy Mac DeMarco-esque bedroom pop and blissed-out West Coast beats, Vu’s sound is a sublimely relaxed introduction the world of Gen Z that’s even attracted the attention of Willow Smith. Ahead of the release of her new EP How Many Times Have You Driven By? at the end of June, we caught up with the seventeen-year-old Californian for this week’s Internet Crush.
When was the last time you cried on the subway and why?
I have a lot of dejected moments on the subway routinely, but the last time I remember really sobbing on the subway was in November 2016 after the most recent election. It was full of passengers and you could just really feel the collective blanket of depression.
How did you end up working with Willow Smith?
I met her at an art show I was playing and I guess she just really dug our set.
Does being 17 still suck?
Sometimes. It’s mostly exciting being young and getting to do what I love. Almost makes me feel grown. But they never let me forget that I’m 17 I’ll tell you that.
What’s your favourite thing to do on your own?
I love to sit down, eat, and watch TV by myself. Sometimes I just lay down by myself and stare at the ceiling. That’s always a good time.
Who do you roll with?
I roll with the underdogs.
Describe your sound in just a sentence:
“The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, also known as the Pacific trash vortex, spans waters from the West Coast of North America to Japan and is comprised of a soupy collection of marine debris—mostly plastics.”
Favourite colour:
Blue.
Favourite movie:
The Princess Diaries.
What’s your star sign?
Gemini-cancer cusp.
Have you ever been in love?
Yes.
Have you ever had your heartbroken?
Yes.
How do you deal with a broken heart?
I do not.
Last book you read:
James Baldwin – Another Country.
First single/album you ever bought?
Pretty sure it was Hillary Duff’s Metamorphosis
First band/act you ever went to see live?
TLC.
Earliest memory?
My earliest memory is a dream I had when I was like 5 and I was being pulled into a doorway as I was trying to run outside. Aside from that, I don’t remember much.
What do you do in your spare time?
Answer emails, get ice cream.
Are you a morning or evening person?
Who is a morning person?
First song you ever wrote?
The first song I wrote is actually the title track of my upcoming EP. I think I wrote it when I was like 12. I have since deleted the original Bandcamp posting of it.
Favourite song of your own?
‘Caught Up’.
Favourite lyric?
In Justin Bieber’s ‘As Long As You Love Me’ when Big Sean says “the grass ain’t always greener on the other side, It’s green where you water it.”