Seriously, who hasn’t heard of Natalie Jane? Be it one of her 6.8 million TikTok followers or a mere social media passerby, the New Jersey native is the mastermind behind today’s most viral tracks. Remember the inescapable parking lot riff from Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy”? That’s her. The infectiously unforgettable girl belting “Who the fuck is Ava”? You guessed it, that’s Jane again. At only 19 years old the starlet has the world in the palm of her hand; and at the precipice of her inevitable superstardom, we’re watching her shape into one of the industry’s most potent voices in real time.
One fact reigns undeniably true of Natalie Jane: she’s a master marketer of her own craft. Ahead of her latest release “I’m Her”, the singer cleverly baited the song for weeks with various TikToks, ultimately amassing a stellar 20 million views from these teasers alone. Combining a clear-cut knack for social media with her equally established musical genius, she’s taken over the platform boasting 217 million total likes to bat. Harnessing the power of her digital prowess, Jane is single-handedly breaking the Internet.
From one viral tune to the next, no matter how routinely we hear Jane’s voice there’s still a thirst for more tracks to add to our pop-derived playlists. Since her 2021 debut with “Love Is the Devil”, she’s crafted an irresistible persona rooted in authenticity and spunk. Blunt lyrics pair perfectly alongside catchy beats to create a picture-perfect popstar built for chart-topping.
Discography aside, listeners will quickly understand Jane to be music’s big sister. An ability to produce a cool beat is one venture (a skill she already knows from the inside out), but it’s her aptitude for fostering connections through poignant, sharp lyricism that gives Jane a signature style all her own. Heartbreak and beyond, she’s Gen-Z’s musical lifeline.
Hear the story from Jane herself as EUPHORIA. Sits down with the singer to unearth her newest track “I’m Her” and internet finesse.
Exciting news to share with the world: “I’m Her” drops today! Why is this a song you wanted to release now? What’s the elevator pitch for the track that’ll make people have to listen?
The song is about empowerment and not letting anybody get to you. Whether you’re in a toxic relationship or not, you shouldn’t let anyone make you feel bad because you have the power over your own heart. In the song, I say, ‘I’m a God. I’ll obliterate you from my heart.’ It’s not actually calling myself a God, it’s calling myself a being with such power because I have the power of this relationship. I have the power over how I’m going to feel, and I think that’s super important because there are so many people who probably don’t feel like they have the power, but no, you seriously do– it’s all up to you. It’s all what you make of yourself.
Totally. And the song itself sounds powerful which really drives it home. I know the track comes following your previous single “seeing you with other girls” which put you in a raw, soft, edgy energy. For people who may have heard that track but not yet “I’m Her” how would you say they compare?
I like the flow of “I’m Her” coming after “seeing you with other girls” because seeing you with other girls is super sad and vulnerable, talking about how it hurts me so much to see him move on with this person. Then a month later, I’m singing the song where I’m like, ‘I’m a God, I’m going to obliterate you from my heart and I don’t even care that you’re with her. I’m not going to let you get me down.’ So I think the timeline in which I’m putting it out, everything is along the lines of this storyline I’ve put out since “Mentally Cheating”.
The duality definitely makes sense, and even more, so that you released “seeing you with other girls” as a duo single with “AVA” which is giving a similar vibe. Being able to tap into such different themes is amazing, so I’m curious to know how you tap into such diverse ideas and sounds while still authentically sounding “Natalie Jane” as an artist.
I think the biggest thing for me is the emotion behind the vocal. When I’m recording, I’ll always put down a little scratch vocal to see what it’s going to sound like. But when I’m recording the main vocals, I think it’s the emotion behind the recording that makes it sound like the Natalie Jane sound. I personally feel that when I listen back to my songs, I’m able to feel what I was feeling at the moment of recording. So when I am recording, it’s going to go back to that moment in time to how I was feeling when writing it or feeling it.
I think the lyrics are definitely the driving force behind your music – which I personally love.
I just like to say exactly what I’m feeling at that moment. Like when I found out about this girl named Ava I’m like, ‘Who the fuck is Ava?!’ into the song. With “seeing you with other girls” I wanted to capture the feeling of seeing the person you once loved move on with someone. Like dang, that stinks, that burns–and it burns seeing you move on with her.
And you’ve been able to widely connect your music to so many people online. You’re really the epitome of using social media to give success to your music. I thought it was amazing to see tease after tease of “I’m Her” on TikTok and Instagram. Being basically an expert at this point, what do you think social media has done for this generation of music?
Honestly, all this social media is the reason I feel I could say that I have a music career. The way I go about releasing my music is based on the idea that everything I put on the Internet is something that I like. But then it’s not based on what I like entirely, it’s also based on what my followers like and what the people like. If I love something, I can put it out into the world, but I’d rather put something into the world that I love and other people love. So I use social media as a tool to see what are [the world is] into right now.
Are you ever making a song and stopping to think “Yep, this is the part that needs to go on TikTok ASAP”?
That’s what I think about with every song. I’m like, ‘Oh, this part will go. Or this part I think people might like.’
And that’s something you’ve definitely mastered since you first jumped on the scene with “Love Is the Devil” back in 2021. Two years later, what do you think that song to say to one of your newest tracks like “I’m Her”?
I love that question. I think “Love Is the Devil” is just the first step to getting to what “I’m Her” sounds like. The inspiration behind all my music is Bishop Briggs and I was listening to her forever. So she was definitely the inspiration behind “Love Is the Devil”, but then everything flipped when the Euphoria album came out–the soundtrack the Labrinth made. When I listened to that, I was like, “Whoa!” My jaw dropped. With every new verse that came on my jaw dropped. Then I was like, this is now what I want my music to sound–a combination of Bishop Briggs and Labrinth. I think if “Love Is the Devil” heard “I’m Her” today, it would say ‘You’re doing it, you’re doing what I want to sound like.’
I had the same feeling when I heard the Euphoria soundtrack. It changed me forever.
So good. Labrinth is a huge inspiration for me. When you listen to “I’m Her” I am sure you can hear those references in there, but the main goal when I write songs is for people to feel something and not necessarily from the lyrics. A big part of it too, from the production. So when I’m working with a producer, I like telling them exactly what I want to hear. With “I’m Her” I’m like, ‘this verse: I want crazy harmonies on here, barely any production. Then I want the drop.” I give references for exactly what I want to sound like. Everything that you hear is something that I wanted and exactly how I want it to sound.
As a listener, I can personally say anyone will be able to hear the passion you put into your music immediately. I think that’s partly why you’ve resonated with so many people.
I think a good comparison would be from when I put “Love Is the Devil” out to now. That was my favorite song at the time, and “I’m Her” is my current favorite song.
And “I’m Her” is frankly the best way to usher in this new era for you. How does that track fit into the world of your upcoming music? Is it similar? Totally different?
This is definitely the sound and vibe I want to go forward with. It’s a weird combination of genres. It’s like alternative electric pop EDM. I don’t think it fits into one genre which is what I really like. You can pull people from multiple different pools of music and bring them together in one song, and I think that’s kind of cool.
Physically speaking, what do you think would be the perfect setting for “I’m Her”?
Wherever you can listen to the song the loudest. Whether that be in your car or full-blast headphones. There’s obviously no wrong way to listen to a song, but in the car, you can just crank it. You can choose to enhance the bass, which I think you should always turn up the most. The best way for me personally to listen to my music is as loud as possible.
100 percent agree – there’s no other way. One part of your journey I wanted to touch on is how you’ve come to be the artist you are today. You’ve been a musician since you were young. What do you bring from your early years to your current career?
The love and passion for it. As long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to be an artist, whether that was singing on stage or writing songs myself. I think because I’ve loved it for so long and wanted to do it for so long and all of my inspirations in life are musicians or artists or singers, bringing that love and passion with me makes it ten times more enjoyable.
You’ve made such fun, impressive waves just a couple of years into your career. For a fan-to-be who may not have yet heard a Natalie Jane track but is reading this as their introduction into your world, how would you describe your sound and where it’s going?
I think it’s energetic and powerful. I would definitely describe my music as energetic and powerful. But who knows where it’s going to be in a year? I have no idea!
Sometimes no plans are the best plans! Wrapping things up on a Tiktok-related note, we have to bring up your viral cover of Gnarles Bakrley’s “Crazy” in that parking garage. Millions of people fell in love with your voice through that video. If you could watch a singer go viral for covering one of your own songs in a parking garage, what would you want to see?
I would want someone to sing “AVA” – I think it’s the most fun song to sing. It’s the most fun song to scream, honestly. My most vocally challenging song is “seeing you with other girls” in my opinion. I still struggle singing it, so I think if someone were to sing, “seeing you with other girls” in a parking garage, I’d be very impressed because it’s not easy to do.
“I’m Her” by the internet’s musical it-girl is out now on all platforms.