In Session: Girl Love

ALBANY – Award-winning poet Laura Beth Johnson, performing under the moniker Girl Love, is really starting to hit her stride as a singer-songwriter. And, with a release show at Caffe Lena that celebrated her eponymous debut record fresh at her back, all evidence certainly points to this, as the beginning stages of a tour are underway. Fully embracing her identity as a queer artist, Johnson, now feeling more honest to herself and her craft than ever before, has nothing holding her back.

For those who wish to support Johnson’s eponymous debut record, please click here.

I had a chance to sit down with Laura this past week. What follows is our conversation.

Lucas Garrett: Hello, Laura! Thank you for taking time tonight to talk about your new album, Girl Love.

Laura Johnson: Sure thing! Thanks for chatting with me.

LG: Where did the name of the album come from?

LJ: It’s something I thought of for the project originally. It was originally going to be the album name, and I liked it so much that I thought the project would do well with that name as well. It encapsulates me moving into my queerness with music.

LG: Queerness with music… Can you please elaborate on that?

LJ: Sure! With my music, I hope to affirm queer holiness; that’s one of my values and one of my goals with my music. I grew up Christian, so I have this religious heritage. I use a lot of religious themes and motifs in my music, but I also want to stay true to how I love and who I love.

LG: Do you ever have any backlash from either community about the other community?

LJ: I do. The queer folk are accepting and appreciate what I do. The religious folk are hesitant at best, and rejecting at worst.

LG: As unfortunate as a circumstance as that may be for you to deal with, how do you overcome that?

LJ: I have a community of queer folk that I meet with and am friends with that keep me grounded… to me, the message of Christ is love and acceptance, and so I feel the religious folk I get push back from could use the love and acceptance that Christ has preached about.

LG: How many songs are on the new record?

LJ: Ten!

LG: You debuted that album at Caffe Lena on Nov. 28^th. How was that experience for you?

LJ: It was wonderful! I played with my brother, and sister-in-law, James and Katie Johnson. I also played with Hannah and Marc LeGrand, who produced the record. It was really a great night.

LG: Is this the first time at Caffe Lena?

LJ: I’ve played their open mic and I teach songwriting groups with their music school, but this was the first time headlining a show there. It was very exciting for me.

LG: This album was in the process of being made for a while, correct?

LJ: Yes! I last put out an EP in 2017…

LG: Under Sorrow Estate?

LJ: Yep!

LG: How was it going from that project to this one?

LJ: I wanted to pivot with the name because I felt I outgrew what Sorrow Estate represented in my life. I was in college at that time, and in my early twenties. I was discovering my found. I feel that putting my best foot forward as Girl Love was the best move for me. The name, now, better represents what I believe.

LG: As a songwriter, who are some of your favorite creative influences?

LJ: I grew up listening to Amy Grant and Shania Twain. As an adolescent, I listened to a lot of Bright Eyes and Arcade Fire. Right now, I’m listening to a lot Phoebe Bridgers and Adrianne Lenker.

LG: When did you start playing guitar and writing songs?

LJ: I was raised by a pair of folk musicians. My dad plays guitar, writes songs, and all that. I have three brothers, and we were all given a student guitar at the age of 10. At the age of 15, we were given our first real guitar. I was writing songs around 12, getting more serious about it in high school. I’ve been writing for about seventeen years.

LG: When anyone can express exactly who they are, personally, that’s what I want to see. I feel the best way for folks creating art is when they’re connected fully to who they are. Do you feel your songwriting has changed since you’ve identified as a queer musician?

LJ: Yeah, I do. I’ve been songwriting these past six years, and I’ve grown a lot as a songwriter since then. But I would agree that since accepting my queer identity and living that out fully in my personal and professional life, I’ve been able to be more honest and write love songs about women, non-binary folks, and men. It’s my desire as a songwriter to write a level deeper than I initially am willing to go. Sometimes I’ll write three or four songs about something before I have the song that’s honest.

LG: Is it hard to be that honest and raw with your songwriting? If it is, how do you overcome that?

LJ: It can get me in trouble at times! I have a song called, “Dove,” that’s unreleased. It has a line that says, “We both have other lovers/Isn’t monogamy such a bummer?” That’s how I came out as poly in my life. There’s definitely catches to being so honest, but overall, I don’t share things that I’m not willing to share. I definitely have boundaries. I have things I might write about but might not release or perform. Anything that’s out is something that I considered and decided that I wanted to be honest about. 

LG: Where can folks see you next?

LJ: I’ll be playing at The Linda on Jan. 28^th with Deb Cavanaugh. I’m planning a tour for March; I like to do a tour every spring. I’ll be doing a home show somewhere in the Capital Region, as well as New York. We always go to Chicago and back.

LG: What’s it like having this new outfit, Girl Love? Are you enjoying it a lot?

LJ: It’s great! It feels like I can start my career, now. There’s something about being under the right moniker that feels really freeing, and really at home.

LG: Well, I think it’s terrific what you’re doing with your music.

LJ: Thank you!

LG: Is there anything else you’d like to talk about as we wrap the interview up?

LJ: I had a bit of a mix-up with the distributors – it should be online within a month. The album can be purchased as a CD or vinyl on the IndieGoGo project we have for it.

LG: Alright, Laura! It was nice to meet you, and best of luck with everything you have going on!

LJ: Thank you so much, Lucas! I appreciate it.