Twenty-one year old US-based artist, writer and producer Mia Gladstone channels raw emotions and honest opinions through the creation of chilled out jazz pop-fusion songs, magical music videos and stunning visuals of sequins and glitter. Featured on Spotify’s Alternative R&B, Anti Pop and peach playlists among others, Mia’s music is on the rise, promoting positivity and self-acceptance while highlighting the importance of growth and creative freedom. Mia describes her music as being for the “anti-fixed” individual and encourages the development and acceptance of non-males in music production, running an Instagram account which acts as a community for women and non-binary producers, aiming to show people options beyond what is seen in mainstream media.
For Mia, music has always been important. “I’ve been singing forever and started writing songs in elementary school. It’s been my guide— a passion that’s led all my major life decisions.” Unapologetically herself, Mia’s tracks allow listeners to enter her open-minded and anti-fixed world, with songs such as ‘CHANGE THE CHANNEL’ and ‘FOOD’ exposing and criticizing society whilst simultaneously pushing boundaries and advocating for body positivity and acceptance. This year, Mia released her EP ‘CYCLE/S’, consisting of five tracks which mix pop, jazz and R&B to create effortlessly upbeat and perfectly pristine open and raw dialogues surrounding topics such as self-confidence, body image and gender identity. Despite the chaos of 2020, Mia has found time to look after herself— “I’ve been eating a lot of vegan food. I just moved to a new state and the vegan scene here is insane… also been hanging with my cats a lot.”
Sheesh Magazine chatted with Mia Gladstone about her music, the importance of freedom in creativity, body positivity, and more.
Q: How would you describe the music you create?
MIA GLADSTONE: I don’t like to define my music. It’s a free expression of whatever I’m feeling at a given moment and takes many forms, I don’t take genre into account when creating. I’m inspired by a wide variety of music and eras because I listen to everything! I love jazz, bossa nova, soul, I love Amy Winehouse, Flying Lotus… everything inspires me.
Q: What does it mean to you to put music out into the world?
MIA GLADSTONE: Putting out music always feels like a lot of pressure for me, given it’s so personal and I say more in my music than I could ever say in a conversation. It’s an honor to have a platform. I am always touched when the music resonates with people. I’ve met really beautiful souls through my music, people on the same wave. I’m very grateful for that.
Q: What do you hope people can take away from your songs?
MIA GLADSTONE: I hope people can be vulnerable when they listen to my music and see that we’re all going through similar things. And see that despite all the struggles there’s stuff to be happy about and gratitude to tap in to.
Q: How did you go about creating ‘CYCLE/S’?
MIA GLADSTONE: We created it loosely over three years. I was inspired by the cycles I find myself in. It’s this circle of feeling good about myself, then self destructing, growing from my pain, finding light, and falling back to it in a new way. The project is analytical of my tendencies and consists of affirmations to be good to myself despite these struggles. I communicate a message to the world of being more compassionate and connected to other beings – we all have vices, and we all have love to give.
Q: What does creativity mean to you?
MIA GLADSTONE: It’s a source of escape for me. So rewarding, clarifying, emotional… I face this resistance to creating. It’s hard for me to release, it always takes this build up and then when I do I feel a huge sense of relief. I owe my life to self expression, it’s gotten me through my darkest moments.
Q: Can you talk a little about gender identity and its influences on your work?
MIA GLADSTONE: Gender identity is quite a complex thing. I think our need to define and categorize people/things as a society is a big problem. It boxes people in and makes you feel like you don’t belong, or if part of you fits in a category but other parts of you contradict it, you’re put in a compromising position and it can be hard to find self acceptance. I didn’t start paying attention to these struggles personally until recently. They’ve always been there but I kind of ignored them. I am now seeing all the ways that my struggle with my identity has affected how I’ve acted in the past and how I represented myself.
Q: How have you been finding ways to stay creative in your personal life and the content you produce?
MIA GLADSTONE: I’m typically inspired by human interaction, public transit, people watching. I’ve had to find inspiration from different things. I haven’t been creating as much. I don’t like to force it, I just flow. When I feel inclined to create, I do but I’m more focused on my health these days, less about making content.
Q: Can you talk a little about Producers Who Produce?
MIA GLADSTONE: Producers Who Produce is a page I created to curate a community of women & non-binary producers. My aim is to represent people who you wouldn’t normally picture when thinking of producers and inspire more people to express themselves through making beats. I just want people to know that there are resources available and you don’t have to have fancy equipment to be creative—if you have a laptop or a phone you can make beats. I like to spotlight incredible producers and share their stories.
Q: Can you talk a little about ‘FOOD’ and the meaning behind it?
MIA GLADSTONE: ‘FOOD‘ is about my experience in this body. As someone with big boobs, I’ve faced hypersexualization ever since I went through puberty. It’s been very confusing to navigate because I don’t see myself how the world sees me. I didn’t feel like a girl growing up. I tried to combat girl gender norms as a kid and when I developed boobs in 6th grade I was immediately boxed into “young woman”. ‘FOOD’ is kind of an open letter to the world—I tried to illustrate my experiences and talk about how being sexualized made me not want to eat, and how your physique truly shapes your experience. Releasing this song was scary for me—I said things that I had never expressed to anyone before. The outpour of support has been really beautiful.
Q: Do you have any advice for young people growing up who may be struggling with identity and self confidence?
MIA GLADSTONE: Some advice would be—don’t rush the process of finding yourself. No one has it figured out. Be open, experiment, see what makes you feel good and try not to judge yourself. Imagine your best friend was sharing something personal with you—treat yourself with the same compassion. One day you’ll be so happy you took the time to understand your needs and wants and sources of joy.
Q: How do you stay positive despite the toxicity of social media?
MIA GLADSTONE: It’s been hard for me lately. Social media is like a black hole and I feel like I lose myself when I spend too much time on it. I think the best thing for pulling myself out of a negative headspace is turning off my phone and hanging out in nature.
Q: What would you like to see more of in the creative and music industry?
MIA GLADSTONE: I’d like to see people being paid more for streaming, more money being invested in creative communities, more music retreats in nature. I think getting away from everything and being isolated in a new place would be very inspiring.
Don’t forget to follow Mia and Producers Who Produce on Instagram, and of course listen to Mia’s music on Spotify!
