Posie is the moniker of Los Angeles based singer-songwriter Jessica Flamand. A storyteller and instrumentalist, her songs fuse the musicality of classic folk & rock with the stylings of modern pop. A love of words and vocal tone drives her to consciously work in following the footsteps of female artists who have influenced her such as Stevie Nicks, Joni Mitchell, and Laura Marling.
What inspired you to begin a career in music?
I’ve always loved performing since I was little. I was in lots of plays in different theatre programs and the advanced choir at my school. There was something special about singing for me from the beginning.
I began writing songs around eleven or twelve without realizing what I was doing and then turned to it as a therapeutic outlet when I was going through a tough time in my life when I was fifteen years old.
Over the next couple of years I wrote songs that became the collection of material I released as my first EP “The Lost Years.” From there everything snowballed: I began playing live shows and writing more and more songs. There was never a singular moment where I said, “Okay, here’s what I choose to do with the rest of my life.” It just happened organically because it’s what I love doing the most, the way I want to spend my days is living in this magical world of being an artist.
What differs you and your sound from other rising singer-songwriters in the music industry?
I don’t spend a lot of time comparing my sound to other people. For one I think that’s a difficult thing to do yourself, I can never hear my own music for the first time and objectively judge it. I think that especially in the singer-songwriter space everyone is writing and performing their own material so it’s coming from the heart and that’s all that matters. It’s up to the fans to find their way to the work they connect with most.
There’s a Jeff Buckley quote that I have never been able to find my way back to in some obscure interview so I’ll paraphrase but he says along the lines of, “You can hear everything about a person in their voice. If they’re an asshole, there’s a little bit of asshole in the way they sing.”
I’m obsessed with the idea that every thought, every dream, every interaction an artist has comes out in the tone of their voice. I’ve had a unique life and try my hardest to transmit as much feeling when I perform. My sonic world is dark and tender. Full of dreams and a wariness of time.
Your latest single ‘Cordelia’ is out now. Please describe the creative process and inspiration behind the release?
I’m a very lyrically driven artist so usually I have to have a concept, or line that resonates as a spark for a song. I’d actually had the name Cordelia in mind to use for a few years. I love using unique female names for titles, this being a nod to the daughter in Shakespeare’s King Lear.
My writing partner and I started a melody together that had the opening line “She’s heaven/ she looks like a fallen angel” over it and I thought this might be where Cordelia can fit. Immediately a whole visual soundscape came together of a medieval princess living in Los Angeles. I’d go for walks after writing sessions in Silverlake and the winding roads there have lots of fruit trees, stained glass windows, and eclectic stone houses that I’d picture her living in hidden away from the world.
Cordelia is a song I hope connects with young women and girls who feel like they have a type of secret power to guard.
In your own opinion, what is the most meaningful song you wrote? What makes you say that one?
There’s a song “The Name of Sin ” I wrote when I was around sixteen that is off the first EP I ever released “The Lost Years” it’s still somewhere on the internet for any sleuths that feel like finding it. I’d been dating a guy who was around four years older than me which at that age is a considerable difference and I was coming to terms with the fact that he was using me and taking from me.
Some of the lyrics in it and feelings are just so devastating when I revisit it. I listen back and can still feel the pain of going through that and remain in awe that I could communicate it in a way that was wise beyond my years. Like the lines “Kiss my body/ kill my soul / when did I get so old? Pleasure is knowing the name of sin / and still longingly calling out to him.”
I remember one time playing it for a family friend and they didn’t believe I wrote it. A couple years later I played it at a solo gig in New York City and a guy came up to me afterwards and told me he was going to go home and call his ex to apologize for everything he’d done wrong in their relationship. That was fun haha.
Throughout your musical career, have you experienced any ‘wow’ moments? Those moments that you stop to reflect and can’t believe you are where you are?
Just recently I had a moment where I stopped and really took in how far I’ve come since writing my first songs in my childhood bedroom. Living in Los Angeles with such a flourishing community of writers and artists, partnering with a manager in the past few months, building a studio, and seeing the songs I released last year do well on streaming platforms and find their way to fans who can listen and make them their own is so special.
Getting to live this life is beyond a dream.
What personal advice would you give someone wanting to pursue this career?
I think pinpointing what you love the most about being a musician whether it’s the creative aspect if you’re a writer, or if it’s performing as a singer or instrumentalist, or dancing and the entertainment aspect of it.
Have it clear in your mind what you want to prioritize, because when you settle in and realize this is a business and you have to be doing things that you don’t love doing a lot of the time. We all have our strengths and you can feel beat down if you’re focusing too much on what you’re not good at.
Keep clear on what it is that’s your guiding force, what it is that’s magical to you about music, and what got you started on this journey will help to make everything fall into place and feel like it’s worth doing. Having specific values and goals will also help prevent anyone coming in and changing your priorities so you are no longer in alignment with your vision.
Did you learn any new skills during lockdown?
I wish I’d had the foresight to pick something at the beginning seeing how much time I could have dedicated to it, but not really! I learned how to bake sourdough bread along with 90% of the population. My boyfriend and I got a cornhole set and had quite a lot of fun getting into that haha.
For the most part, I just really leaned into writing and recording. I had more time to dedicate to that than probably ever before in my life. And I think these new songs coming out this year really highlight the growth I’ve made as an artist.
What does the foreseeable future hold for you as an artist?
I’m really excited to keep releasing a lot of new music this year, so far 2022 has been kicking off with a bang writing a lot of songs that I’m super excited about. Jeremy and I just signed a lease on a new space and are preparing to build a proper studio to work out of which we’re so happy about and I’ll be documenting that process in the months to come across my socials.
Also really looking forward to playing live again and scheduling shows. So, stay tuned for all of that!
Anything else you would like to add?
Just thanks so much for having me!
‘Cordelia’ is available now via all major platforms.
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