Emily Wolfe Finds Her “Power” Source

When you hear Emily Wolfe’s new single, “Power,” it feels like pure adrenaline, but the explosive rock song actually came from a place of weakness.

“To me, power is something that I think is in everybody,” she says, “but life can sometimes cover that up, and I wanted access to my power again.”

Wolfe continued, “There’s a lot of things in life that people can’t control, and I was like, I want the control of this, I want the power for my career, and my life, and I feel like I just want to take it, and run with it.”

With that as the backdrop, “Power” was born, and Emily Wolfe was back at full strength.

Gearing up to hit the road for back to back tours, first with Frank Turner beginning September 15th, then with The Toadies beginning October 8th, Wolfe’s “Power" will be on full display in her favorite form – live on stage.

I caught up with her to find out more about finding her power source, her minimalist approach to music videos, and touring with a litany of diverse artists, including critical lightning rod Yungblud.

Your new song is “Power,” and it has the chorus, “Give me power, give me sex, give me honey, give me flesh.” So this is one of those subtle, read between the lines type of songs, right? 

{laughs} Yeah.

I had a conversation with my producer (Gavin Brown), and he was like, “What do you want? If you strip everything away, like literally everything – what people think of you, what you know your surroundings are like – what do you want?”

I was like, “Power, sex, I want somebody to be nice to me, and I want like, you know, just like flesh,” and he was like, “There you go. That’s the song.”

So it’s a short little song, but it’s like a punch you in the face, you know?

Yeah, and those are four really big desires, but power comes first, and you named the song “Power.” Other than from a rhythmic perspective, why was it first? 

Power was first because at the time I wrote it I felt completely powerless, so that’s what I wanted.

What had you feeling powerless? 

It was like small paper cuts over time.

Touring’s really, really hard. I love it so much, but as fun as it is, it’s also brutal, and after doing that for years and years and years, that’s when I was like, I feel very powerless.

My producer, Gavin Brown, I’ve never worked with a producer like this, to where he truly wants to uncover everything, and get the cobwebs out, and repaint the walls, and dust, and just rebuild the foundation with an artist, and he’s done that with me, and it’s awesome. That’s kind of where I came from.

Being a queer woman in rock, and with the way the country is today, do you feel like your mere existence, and your mere presence, is a powerful statement? 

I hope so.

I definitely feel that way on stage, and as I get older I’m growing into that offstage.

It’s funny, because my onstage presence, it’s very like – I do not care. Just, boom, let’s go. Then offstage I’m a little bit more reserved. 

I’m very much looking to combine those identities into just one thing. So I would say onstage, yes, for sure, and then offstage it’s a work in progress.

There’s a simplicity to the video for “Power,” and there’s been a similarly minimalist approach to your last few videos. What are the reasons for that? 

I think I really wanted to just strip away anything … like trimming the fat. I just wanted performance style kind of videos, because personally I like watching those more than a narrative thing, or a big grandiose set, or something like that. I like the song to come first.

And I think a DIY approach is a complete contrast to the whole AI world that we’re living in right now, and it’s like if there’s a DIY type of soul to a video, I think it makes it stand out more, and I think, or I would hope, people relate to that more because it’s real.

You’re about to hit the road, actually twice in a row – first with Frank Turner, and then with The Toadies. When you tour with a new single, versus touring with a new album, I’m guessing it opens up the set list a bit. Are there any songs you’re going to revisit that maybe you haven’t performed in a while? 

Yes, actually, I am.

It’s funny, I have a whiteboard here that my whole life is on.

Me, too! 

Isn’t it awesome?

My set list is here, and I’ve got “Power,” “Walk in My Shoes,” a song that’s unreleased, a song called “Road to Ruin,” a song called “Bad Behavior” from my first record, the new stuff, obviously, and “Holy Roller,” so it’s kind of everywhere.

It’s been fun to put singles out, because I can play the new stuff, and then go back to the older stuff, and then (more) new stuff. It’s not just like, hey, I’m playing a new album. It’s like, here’s a collection of songs that I’ve been making over time.

Then there’s some jam spots where I’ll just solo, because it’s my favorite. I love to do that.

You also recently toured with Yungblud. He’s become a bit of a lightning rod for critics, with questions regarding authenticity. Why do you think certain artists get targeted in that way, and did you find him to be a genuine guy? 

I did. He’s really sweet, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen anybody treat their fans the way he does. He treats them like family, and it’s really beautiful to see, because he gives them everything – he gives them the old stuff, the new stuff, the classic rock stuff. It was a really cool show to see.

People will wait outside for him for hours, and no matter what he’ll go and say hi to them, and take pictures, and sign. To me, that says a lot about who he is, but I think when you’re that big, it’s so inevitable that it’s gonna be divisive like that, but what I found was he’s just a really, really sweet guy, and he really feels everybody’s energy, and he’s definitely full of energy himself.

I always bristle when an artist is called an industry plant. I’m like, that’s not how it works. My running joke is the only industry plant is if there’s a ficus in Jimmy Iovine's office. 

The industry plant thing is so funny, because I don't know anyone in this industry that would put everything they have into someone that hadn’t already done the work. If you’re an artist, now you do it all first, and then they come to you.

Industry plant is such a funny term to me, because when you look at it, somebody like Yungblud has been an artist for years, and it’s a funny concept to me that that people have run with. It just doesn't make sense, and it’s also dismissive of the hard work that people put in.

The Warning were also on that tour. How exciting was it to watch three young women rock out like that on a nightly basis? 

It was so cool, and the drummer, I loved watching the drummer.

They’re all so nice, and they’ve got a huge sound. So that was cool.

Having toured with such a diverse array of artists, have any tourmates put you on to any bands, or artists, that you’re now a fan of? 

Yes, a lot.

I’ve done a lot of tours with with The Gaslight Anthem, and Brian Fallon, and he’s gotten me very into the Jersey punk scene. That’s a cool community.

Adam Jones (from Tool) is always sending me music to listen to, or pedals to check. He’s gotten me into a lot of different media, like – have you seen this movie? Have you seen the show? You gotta see it.

Flipping that, who are you introducing people to, other than yourself? 

There’s a band that I really love called Middle Kids. Anytime somebody’s like, “Who are you listening to?” I always say them, because I love their stuff so much, then Ecca Vandal, and Demob Happy.

Being someone who’s on the road a lot, do you recognize home when you get back, or do you need GPS just to find the grocery store again? 

My body remembers where things are, but the mental calibration takes me a few days. I’ll wake up in my bed at home, and be like – when’s loading? When do we have to leave? Or I’ll wake up and be like, oh, I’m not in a hotel room. So there’s definitely a calibration that has to happen, especially the longer you’re out. Then it is really weird going to the grocery store. Like you’re on stage, and you’re doing this thing every night, and you’re meeting people who like your music, and then it’s like, oh, we need toilet paper today, I’m gonna get toilet paper, and Dawn Power Wash for my dishes. It’s just a weird thing.

Getting back to the music, “Power” followed “Crave Me” and “Lips.” Is all this leading up to a new album? 

Yes, it is. Right now the plan is early next year, full album. It’s currently being mixed.

It’s crazy, I feel like I’m constantly waking up in the morning, and being like, I’m doing it again, there’s another record coming out, how did I get here? But I love it. I love the record, and I love the clarity of it. I love the songs, and I can’t wait to play them.

You’re in Austin, and “Choosin’ Texas” has been the number one song in the country for something like 20 weeks. How would you react if you had a song that was number one for five months? 

I would be so happy. I’d be like, OK, this is what I’ve worked for, now I can chill. I’m getting a pool, I’m getting go-karts, like let’s go. But mostly I would want to tour.

The biggest goal, obviously, is to play for as many people as I can, and then chill, and then go do it again. That’s the dream.

Do you know how to chill? 

Sort of, but then I get antsy. I need to do something. I need to like solder something. I get restless, you know?

Absolutely. Whenever I give myself a day to relax, two hours into that day, I’m like, what am I doing with myself? 

Yeah, totally. Wash the car, or do something.

Is there anything else you want to add about yourself, the tunes, the tour, the world? 

I think all I want to add is come see the shows.

I know how hard it is to get out of your house, but they’re going to be so fun. They’re going to be experiences, and I’m probably going to do my own merch, so if you want to hang out, and say hi to me, come and say hi.

For more Emily Wolfe, including all of her upcoming tour dates, check out emilywolfemusic.com.