The Lockdown Interviews
80 minute long free music compilations featuring intriguingly mixed rock and rock-based music . Satisfying musical appetites around the globe since 2005
20 illinoisentertainer . com april 2021
Elle King
There two distinct ways of looking at our current coronavirus crisis , reckons usually rollicking R & B-rocker Elle King , who ’ s reframed and restrained herself in a hushed acoustic setting on her new “ In Isolation ” EP . And they both are perfectly exemplified in the timeless film fable Groundhog Day . Are you a glassis-half-empty person , like Bill Murray is initially as he grudgingly finds himself reliving the same day , over and over again ? Or are you the glass-is-half full optimist that he eventually becomes , seeing each 24-hour period as a chance to learn more about yourself , your capabilities , and the world around you , in general ? The first option ? Been there , done that , sighs the former hard partying scion of comic Rob Schneider and model London King . “ I ’ ve spent most of my life as an asshole , and I was just repeating bad behaviors and wasn ’ t learning my lesson ,” she says . “ So you have to be active in change , and you have to be ready . A million people can tell you to quit smoking , for instance , but you ’ re never going to quit until you say , ‘ You know what ? I don ’ t want to do this anymore .’ And when you start trying something new and embracing change , a beautiful world unfolds for you .” Having just turned 31 , she was happy to run down a checklist of all the new wisdom she ’ s acquired over the past four claustrophobic months .
IE : Where are you now ? ELLE KING : I am sheltering in place with my sister and her three children , and I live at the bottom of the Hollywood hills . So I am a true Hollywood hillbilly — I have an inflatable hot tub , I have an above-ground pool , and we ’ re just motoring through . And in a weird way , I ’ ve been counting my blessings this whole time . I don ’ t think I ’ ve ever spent this much consecutive time in my home , so the amount of down time that I ’ ve been able to have in this consistent manner has been incredible , and I really feel like I ’ ve grown a lot . And as crazy as this situation is — and with everything else that ’ s going on in the world — I just have to maintain the beauty that can come from this and push away all my fear of change , and embrace it and just buckle up for the ride , you know ?
IE : Your EP ’ s single , “ The Let Go ,” sounds like a brutally frank breakup song . I ’ m sure the pressure of Covid- 19 has shattered quite a few relationships , and only strengthened others . EK : Yeah . Whatever relationship I ’ ve ever been in — whether it was my marriage , my engagement , or just having boyfriends — because of my job , I ’ m always ina long-distance relationship . But this was a true test , and and I am still in a relationship and still happy . And we ’ ve done a lot of work on ourselves . He ’ s on the other side of the country , and distance definitely makes the heart grow fonder . So separation can be a beautiful demonstration of love , if you will . But I feel very grounded and happy . And obviously , I want to go on tour and play shows — I ’ m definitely feeling that hunger pang for live performance . But I think we ’ ve been given a test , and I tell the kids , “ This is the summer where we push ourselves and we come out of it — out of everything that ’ s happening right now — as the best versions of ourselves that we can be .” So I think the constant theme throughout this is , “ Stay healthy , and how can we better ourselves ? How can we better the government ? How can we be the best America that we can be ?”
IE : Like the rest of us , were you scared , confused at first about this pandemic ? EK : 100 %. But I ’ ve found through the different trials in my life that every experience is truly a message for growth . So this has been an opportuni- By Tom Lanham
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