I feel like this project is such a strong representation of what my writing is, and I never strayed away from that. I think that’s a message within itself: I still stayed true to what I wanted despite everybody trying to make me feel small and trying to tell me to do otherwise.
In general, everybody wants to make this weird fake sense of healing. It’s always supposed to be breathwork, and you’re supposed to really reflect and feel good all the time. But no, that’s not what it is. I don’t care what healing looks like to anybody else, and I don’t care what sort of expectations my family or a white conservative man from the South thinks that I should be doing.
This is kind of off the path of what we’re talking about, but I think it’s so funny when I read in my comments, and it’s an angry man, because I’m like, “I don’t make music for you. Why are you here, girl? Get out of here. You’re not supposed to be here right now. This is not for you. This is for the girls, the gays, and the thems.”
TV: Speaking of family. You have a lot of nods to your Vietnamese background, like your black grills, and you embrace it, but you also said that there’s a lot more to you than just being Vietnamese. How do you balance that when trying to present yourself to the public?
SAILORR: I think I’m just a girl first. I don’t know. Obviously, people can see that I’m Asian. I can’t wipe that off. You know what I mean? I can’t be like, “Okay, I’m not Vietnamese anymore.” So, a lot of the different Easter eggs or different customs or traditions that I choose to highlight will often be something that I want to juxtapose.
So, for example, the Genius performance of “CUT UP” where I was wearing the ao dai. Women in Vietnam wear that dress to celebrate either getting married, having a baby, or during New Year’s. I wanted to juxtapose that because I’m celebrating myself right now. I’m celebrating the fact that this music is successfully getting to a mainstream scale and other people are really resonating with it, and I want to be celebrated for more than being a mom, for something more than just what they think women contribute to society.
A lot of the things that I do to exhibit or celebrate my heritage are often just spun on their heads because I think that it’s really cool when people take traditions and just put their own spin on them. There are a lot of different things that make me who I am in terms of the music that I’m into, the clothes that I like to wear, and the food that I like to eat. Growing up in America, you get a lot of influence from multiple people and different cultures, and I think that without that, I would not be who I am today.
TV: If someone were to describe you out and about when you’re not there, what would you want them to say about you?
SAILORR: Damn, she smells good. That’s all I want.
TV: What perfume do you use?
SAILORR: I’m gatekeeping. I can’t say. No, okay, so it starts from the shower. It’s not just a perfume thing. I use specifically Dr. Bronner’s Lavender, Rose, or Almond. You’ve got to scrub it down. You’ve got to feel it. If I’m using almond, I have to leave the shower feeling like a f*cking almond, okay? When I get out of the shower and I’m still damp, I go in with body oil. As of recently, I’ve been really obsessed with the NEST Madagascar Vanilla Oil. It’s a super good one to layer with.
