Izzy Pingrey is a 16-year-old singer-songwriter from New York City. She writes and produces her music with her dad in his studio, along with their dog. Izzy listens to a lot of music—an amount that has been referred to by many as "perplexing," consuming an eclectic mix of genres. She once listened to a Taylor Swift song and a Limp Bizkit song immediately back-to-back. Izzy enjoys messing around with these musical interests to create her own hybrids of them to tell the stories of her personal experiences. She has been writing music since she was 13 years old and started producing it when she was 15.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Hey Izzy, super nice to have the chance to chat with you. What first got you into music?
Thank you for talking to me! I can’t remember not loving to sing. I was super into musical theater when I was younger. I think I fell in love with singing when I saw my older cousin’s middle school production of Cinderella. Because of my dad’s work, there was just always some music on. I honestly don’t even know when I decided to sing. For my entire life I’ve just been singing all of the time. If you know me at all, you know I’m basically singing whenever I’m not talking. It’s been that way for as long as I can remember.
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of music?
I have a lot of super random hobbies. I take dance classes outside of school that I’ve been doing forever. I like to go on bike rides whenever I can. Biking on the West Side Highway is surprisingly really beautiful, especially one part of that route near Chelsea Piers that goes under a canopy of trees. I’m super interested in the brain; I actually want to go to school for psychology or Neuroscience. Maybe education, too, since I love to volunteer at my old elementary school on Fridays. I like to work with children.
Your latest song is 'sick of it'. Can you tell us more about the making of it and if there were any unusual things happening during the process?
I wrote “sick of it” going off of a different chorus I wrote for a different song. I remember that I was sitting on the couch watching TV, and there was one note from a theme song I just kept humming to myself over and over. It turned into a riff, which turned into a chorus, and it was the fastest chorus I’ve ever written. I wrote around that chorus, and it morphed into a song about situationships, so I ended up changing the chorus (due in large part to the suggestion of my dad). I think I was feeling very deeply about my romantic failures at the time so that’s what came out the most in the project.
Can you reveal the recipe for a musical hit?
I wish I could. If I ever write a musical hit, I’ll call you. But the recipe for any one of my own songs is really just heart. I put my heart and authentic feelings into everything that I write, and music is much easier to connect with on a deeper level if it comes from real, raw emotion.
What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop as an artist?
I’m just continuing to write and put my shit out there. That’s all I can really do. I’m working with my dad to keep creating more music, I’m working on some music videos. I’m very enthusiastic about talking to anyone who makes music or has been making music for awhile. I’m so young that I’ll take any wisdom that I can get. That and just continuing to create are what I’m doing to keep growing.
What inspires you as an artist? Could it be the sea, the weather or something else?
My relationships really inspire me. Not necessarily romantic relationships, like I wrote about in sick of it, really just anyone that I’m close to or know. People that I care about, or have any opinion on, really, are the factors in my life that evoke the most emotion from me, and that’s what will crank the best song out of me. All of my art has to do with my interactions with other people, for now. I find it’s really hard for me to write a song about just myself or about something else, but I’m working on it. I want to be like Mac DeMarco and be able to write a song about a beaver.
How do you spend your free time? What makes you feel relaxed?
Music really relaxes me a lot. Since I’m a junior in high school, college stuff and my grades are so stressful. My spotify wrapped hours this year are going to be borderline concerning. I just find that there’s always a vibe of song that can match with how I’m feeling. Especially Taylor Swift. I spend most of my time when I’m not making music either with my friends or in school/doing homework. Being around caring, kind people and listening to music are two of my all-time favorite pastimes.
Do you have a mentor or coach?
There are so many people in my life who teach me so much. My dad is the obvious answer. It was him who encouraged me for so long to take my music to the level of producing it and releasing it (but he never pressured me to do it unless I wanted to). He gives me such helpful notes and advice when we’re working on my music and both him and my mom are so supportive of me. Also, I wouldn’t call her a formal mentor, but my cousin, Maddy Wood, is also making music. I feel like I’ve learned so much just from watching her work and continue to grow. She inspires me so much.
Do you think it's easy to become established in the music world, or is it difficult?
I think it’s really hard. I mean, I definitely would not consider myself established in the music world. That’s an aspiration for me at the moment. I just know that there are so many people who are so talented and are making amazing music. What makes one person stand out and one person fall behind, I have no idea. I’m happy as long as I can keep writing.
What accomplishments do you see yourself achieving in the next five to 10 years?
The thing I really want to do is graduate from college. I’m only a junior in high school, so I don’t know where I want to go yet, but I want to stay on the east coast so I’m close enough to my dog and my parents, and can come back to New York. You really can’t take New York out of the girl. As for my music, I’m trying to keep an open mind about where it will go. If people like it, I would love to keep going. If I could do anything, I think it would be so fun to go on tour. Maybe I could go around North America and play some venues. I would take my best friend with me as my concert photographer, for sure.