You know how you have a bunch of different playlists, all with different titles? Maybe one is titled “sad” (lowercase ‘s’) and another is titled “Summer” and another is simply “Chill.” You might have one called “sleep” and another named “LOUD,” but the point is that you have a lot and they are all full of different songs by different artists in different genres and you listen to them when your thoughts and feelings match up with whatever the title of the playlist is.
That, to me, is what listening to K. Flay is like.
I saw K. Flay live last week at the Bowery Ballroom, a cool venue that serves up live music and refreshments. She was on tour, hitting up the favored spot before moving on to Buffalo. It’s a good thing, too, for her fans were excited to see her perform live.
Rob, for one, a thirty-something male from Washington D.C. had come into New York City to see the concert with his wife and a few friends. “I’d listened to her music on Music Choice Radio and thought it’d be fun to take a spontaneous trip to the city for the weekend,” he’d said.
Dani and John, who recently moved to New York from Australia, had a similar story. Dani discovered K. Flay on Spotify while searching for new American artists to listen to and found out about the show soon after. “We live close to here so we were excited to come out for the night and listen to good music.”
All around the venue, in fact, were like-minded people of varying age and gender who no doubt traveled from a wide-range of places to see K. Flay in person. Her music seems to be appeal to everyone, whether 18 or 40, male or female, etc. And once the concert began, I could see why.
She opened up the show with “Everyone I Know,” a slow-starting ballad that introduced the audience to her style of mixing low beats with a fun and fast chorus. Immediately, the crowd became one and began swaying, like a wave reaching the shore for the millionth time. After that, the wide range of K. Flay’s music became apparent.
“Sunburn” was next, another song that made your head bop but introduced an unexpected component into K. Flay’s music: rap. The verses were quick and clever, original, and I found myself quickly googling the lyrics just to keep up with the experienced fans around me who kept up word for word.
The rest of K. Flay’s set was a blend of rap, pop, and rock, with these intricate bursts of “vibing” beats that really made the crowd come alive. The subject matter varies from songs about love, sadness, drinking, and surviving, but told in a refreshingly new light.
“I’ve written a lot of songs, and some of them have been about getting f***** up,” she said softly into the microphone, introducing “Black Wave.” The fast and loud music that picks up around the chorus, she said, is something she wrote because she just wanted noise and something to scream and dance to, especially in the world we live in today. The bridge perfectly sums up this sentiment: “How did a girl like me end up in a world so mean?”
By the end of the night, I knew I would be adding her songs to my various playlists on Spotify. Besides the catchy beats and relatable (so cliché, I know, but true) lyrics that make up K. Flay’s music, I think I most admired the inspiration she draws on. If you look at the lyrics of her fast-paced rap songs and the slow ballads that you listen to while lying in bed, you’ll hear that each and every word was put there for a reason.
K. Flay’s story is one that is woven intricately throughout her songs. Take a listen and see if you can figure it out.
