in my head — MUSIC — Unclear Magazine

INTRO BY ALICIA GRAYHAM

INTERVIEW BY CAMI LIBERTY

Nikki Hahn is a talented young lady who is an actress and a singer, who made a name for herself on various TV shows & movies. She has appeared in shows such as iCarly, Jessie, Pretty Little Liars, and The Fosters, just to name a few. She is well known for being in the film Adventures in Babysitting, starring alongside Sabrina Carpenter and Sofia Carson.

Nikki Hahn is definitely a rising star in the making, and following her acting career she went on a new path to become a singer. Her single “In My Head” has been released and has already been making airwaves on the RDYou station, which you can find on the Radio Disney app. When Nikki isn’t acting or singing, she volunteers for different charities, one of those being Kitty Bungalow which is a charity for cats who are in need.

When you first realized what you wanted to pursue, was it acting or singing that came first?

Nikki: “Acting came first when I was about four years old. I didn't even really know I was acting or working, I was just having fun. I didn’t start singing until I was about six or seven. I sang musical theatre first, and then pop at ten years old.”

You recently released your debut single “In My Head”. Can you tell us a little about the song and how it came about?

N: “‘In My Head’ is the first song I have ever written. It actually started off as a journal entry, and was written from there. It took about a year to finish. What I loved most was that I got to have a hand in the direction of the song and production.”

Were you more nervous or excited to release “In My Head” since it is your first single?

N: “I was definitely excited to see people’s reactions. My fans had been asking for original music for a long time, so I couldn’t wait for them to hear.”

Where do you find most inspiration when creating music?

N: “I mostly journal about my personal experiences. Personal experience is where I get my lyrical ideas and concepts. I also love listening to other songwriters I love, like Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish.”

You will also be releasing your debut EP this summer! What can we expect from this batch of songs?

N: “I’m still working on it but it’s definitely going to have fun, party vibes. Maybe even some acoustic songs.”

When it comes to acting, of all the roles you have portrayed, which one has stuck with you the most and why?

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N: “My favorites are Adventures in Babysitting and American Horror Story: Asylum. They’re very different projects but I had a lot of fun working on both. Adventures in Babysitting was the first time I got to work with a cast of kids, so we really did have a real life adventure for two months in Vancouver where we filmed. As for American Horror Story, I have always loved horror, so you can imagine how I excited I was to play a villain. I was about ten when my episode aired, so I didn’t see the whole thing, only my scenes. It’s actually one of my favorite shows now.”

Back in 2011 you starred in a skit on Jimmy Kimmel alongside Tom Hanks that went viral afterwards. What was that whole experience like for you and how did it feel for it to receive so much attention?

N: “I auditioned for it because I wanted to play a pageant girl. I thought the dresses were beautiful and I wanted to wear the makeup. I was super excited to work with Tom Hanks. Because I was young, I wasn’t really starstruck but it hit me a few years later like, ‘Oh my God I worked with THE Tom Hanks.’ I didn’t know what viral meant until the day after it aired and my mom’s phone was blowing up. It was my first time experiencing that kind of publicity. I never expected any of it. Later the casting director told us that they had auditioned over 70 girls for the role, and Jimmy picked me. It’s just wild to think about and it’s still surreal.”

We learned that you are a huge supporter of the charity Kitty Bungalow. What does this organization mean to you?

N: “As an Angeleno and cat lover, I really love that Kitty Bungalow works to trap, neuter, and release stray cats all around LA. I’ve seen the cats they rescue and I think it’s very heroic.”

Is there anything else we can expect from you in the near future?

N: “World domination. For real. I’m working on it. Still acting and currently recording more music.”

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REVIEW BY EMMA SCHOORS

INTERVIEW BY CAMI LIBERTY

Indie pop effort Sleep House’s new single, entitled “In My Head”, is a tune reminiscent of the many great sounds of the 80’s, yet pushes listeners to the present and future with its modern qualities. This is important in modern music, as we need to all in some ways accept and embrace the past and use it as a tool to feel more in the present and make the most of the future.

The drums move more like waves than impulsive beats, which is not only refreshing, but innovative and fun. This wave-like phenomenon makes way for the vocals’ dreamier tone, which is something that pairs beautifully with the guitars, comparable to Bad Suns or The Night Cafe’s riffs of the same sort. It brings a new twist on indie, which has dominated alternative music as of recently. It brings a dreamier, softer label on powerful songs, showing that you don’t need to be the loudest band with the most grit to get a point across.

The lyrics repeat, throughout the chorus, “I don’t need you in my head”, which lets listeners interpret just how convinced they are of the statement. Is it a self aware sentence, or something that is repeated to knock it into our minds? Whatever the case may be, it’s something that gets us thinking, and that’s often the whole point of music.

Can you tell us a little about your new single?

"Our new single, 'In My Head' is out everywhere. We are very proud of it and we hope the fans love as much as we have for the past few months."

How did you first come up with the concept for the song and begin writing it?

"All the concepts we have for the songs come from very personal experiences and feelings I have whether it’s super happy or super done with everything. I think our songs come out naturally mostly and I strive for them to be songs people can enjoy and dance to but also go to when they feel a certain way about life."

How would you compare this song to the “I’d Die for You” EP?

“'In My Head' is definitely a lot more mature than 'I’d Die For You' and has a more defined sound that people will resonate with and connect to the 'Sleep House' name better."

Do you find that you have the same process when creating music or does it change often?

"Writing wise, it always comes different and you never really know when a song will come to you but what makes this new song stand out a lot for us is that for 'I’d Die for You', we had a lot of outside help and left the producing and engineering to other people. For this new one, we went away into the studio and did the producing and engineering for the whole thing ourselves and we tried to really get down what it’s like to do everything on our own."

Is there anything else we can expect from you in the near future?

"This song is the kickstart for what 'Sleep House' is and means to us. This song is the beginning of the growth of us and we are so excited for what’s to come. We have been away in the studio for a few months now writing and making this new music that we are incredibly proud of and can’t wait to get out into the world. Expect a lot of new music and shows real soon."

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