Dodie Clark (pronouns she/they--both used throughout) is a 26-year-old singer/songwriter based in London, England. She received modest internet celebrity in the mid-2010s after releasing a few EPs, including 2016’s Intertwined and 2017’s You. Despite Intertwined being an unsigned record, it reached the UK Billboard #35 during its first week of release, an incredible feat for someone primarily known from vlogs and storytime videos on YouTube.
However, Clark’s crowning achievement has been the release of her first official studio album, Build a Problem. The album has twenty-two songs, including fourteen official releases and a B-side with eight “demo” songs. Clark is currently touring North America and Europe for the album’s release. In this album, Clark writes about social isolation, grief, anger, suppression, and the pressures of being raised in unhealthy environments.
Phoebe De Angelis from the UK’s Dork writes “[t]he album’s intimacy is like a series of diary entries.” She continues, “Her lyricism’s brutal honesty addresses everyone’s shared fears; that gut-wrenching feeling of speaking the unspeakable makes dodie relatable on a universal scale.”
Clark refers to this honesty when discussing their creative process. In reference to her titular song, “Hate Myself,” she says, “Yeah, I love writing about something complex and maybe not as bright, as the track implies. Because this song is meant to be a little bit playful – I’m not really indulging too deep into the bad parts of this feeling. It’s meant to be like, you’re right, a silly dance I play. And I think I can almost look back on it, from an imaginary older me and see myself in these situations and ask, ‘Why?’”
Later, they say, “I think it’s a result of everything I talk about, but in a far more grounded way. I kind of live in this heightened, denial, chaotic, manic state of like, excuses and blame and then self-blame. It’s not very grounded at all, a lot is in denial.”
As the writer of all of her songs, she tries to balance vulnerability and distance. They cite their creative process as a way of speaking their thoughts but try to distance themself from the public eye on their channel. Their creative process is very personal to them, and they try to not put “all of [them] out there,” like they feel they did in the past.
She pulls inspiration from other musicians in her field. Recently, she has cited Ethan Gruska for his work: “I don’t know what piano he uses or how he produces it – but it sounds so, so pure and so dark and dusty and dank and close. It’s this delicious, muted sound to the piano.”
Clark’s creativity is a perfect example of “Little C” creativity, as we’ve discussed in class. They use their music for personal discovery and introspection. She uses her creativity to work through her life experiences and to express herself. Clark also fits Csikszentmihalyi’s (1997) dichotomies in creative individuals. She maintains passionate objectivity about her work: being able to critique her work and break down her verse structure to the 13-piece orchestra featured on the album, while being proud of and praising her own music.
Harkening back to De Angelis’s review, “‘Build A Problem’ speaks to overthinking and creating problems where there might not be any; it’s what we all do, but don’t want to admit.”
Link to Album on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2oMbQ7W1QddUdasTYrJdzE?si=UX5JYcTRQny1K9OtMRKbKg
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I’ve heard a few of dodie’s songs, so I loved getting a bit more insight into their creative process! I think it’s really admirable how dodie is able to set and maintain boundaries for herself. Songs are often extremely personal, and celebrities don’t owe the public the full intimate details of their lives. Dodie’s music in particular is incredibly introspective and emotional, and you can hear that in the songs without knowing the full background of the lyrics. I also thought it was cool that dodie uses a 13-piece orchestra in her album! Not many singers today use full orchestras in their music, so I think that’s very creative and shows dodie’s attention to detail and commitment to her music.
ReplyDeleteI have very loosely followed dodie's career since her start posting singing videos in her room to YouTube. I didn't know they actually released a debut album or anything like that, since I haven't been keeping up with any of their music as of recently. I'm excited to give it a listen and hopefully find some new favorite songs to add to some of my playlists. I always enjoyed the personal nature of their music, so I am excited to see what type of story her album tells.
ReplyDeleteDodie's music has always made me feel incredibly understood, and I am really glad to see a blog post about them. I liked how you mentioned her introspective style of work because even though she makes music for herself, most everyone who listens can relate, and it creates a feeling of community-- like they're saying, "this is about me, but it's also about you because we're all working through the same struggles". They do a wonderful job at bringing taboo topics confidently into social light, honestly inspiring many to open up about their struggles. Fantastic article!
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