Xochilt Garcia
Editor in Chief
Vietnamese American singer and rapper promqueen (yes, it’s all lowercase) was a debut act for Weekend One of the Austin City Limits music festival. The Austin based artist sings and raps in Vietnamese, her mother’s native language, and in English in her latest album release “szn two.” Currently, promqueen has 2,952 monthly listeners on Spotify.
I sat down with promqueen next to a payphone in Zilker Park, the festival’s venue, where she shared the inspirations and life experiences that have guided her music. This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.
Q: First of all, I just wanted to ask why the name ‘promqueen’?
A: Well, I’ll give you two responses. The original response is that I was playing an online game called “Scribble” with waverly (a spokesperson for promqueen) and another friend of mine. I usually choose the gamer handle “shitty kitty,” but I decided to choose promqueen for some weird reason. I kind of liked the ring of it when my friends called me ‘promqueen.’ So later, when waverly and I were working on a song together, he was like, “OK, well, this could be a project. What’s your artist name?” And I was like, “Well, I just chose promqueen for ‘Scribble.’ Why not use that?” So that’s originally how it started. Now, let me tell you what the deeper meaning is, because we always love a deeper meaning. I thought about it more, and growing up, like, I was a nerd. I had my friends, I did choir. I didn’t always fit in, and I certainly was not in the running for prom queen. So this is taking that back – anybody can be prom queen. It’s your story. So that, for me, is the greater message of it. So you can pick whichever one you want to go with.
Q: I really like “gemini’s throne” from your second album “szn two.” Are you a Gemini?
A: “promqueen” is a Gemini. I chose it, because the project was born in June – June 16th. So we decided, hey, you know, she’s [the project] a Gemini. So yes, I definitely do relate to a lot of the characteristics of a Gemini. So I was like, actually, oddly, I connect with this.
Q: I noticed that some of your lyrics are in Vietnamese. Why is it important to you to sing in Vietnamese as well as English?
A: Yeah, great question. So to give some more context, growing up, my mom was like, “Don’t speak Vietnamese out in public,” like “Speak English; fit in.” And so I didn’t include that in my music for a really long time. And when I worked with waverly, he was like, “why don’t you try a song in Vietnamese?” and like, “why don’t you try rapping?” I was like, “I’ve never done either. I’ll give it a try.” Once I did include some Vietnamese, it felt so authentic, like it unlocked something in me that was like, “This is who I am.” Especially since the lyrics were English and Vietnamese, because growing up I spoke half and half at home. I was like, “This is authentically who I am.” So, it’s a big part of the project. It’s a big part of me continuing to process my cultural identity, which is ever evolving.
Q: There’s so many avenues for art: why choose music?
A: Music has always been my first love. Going back to my parents, it’s the one thing they didn’t have expertise in. So I could do whatever I wanted and I could imagine and create worlds to process drama, joy, whatever, you have it. So it’s always been that place for me. But for my approach with music, I’m just such a multimedia girl. Like I love films. I love acting. I love shows, producing and writing. So for me, it’s a place where I can utilize as much as I can to tell the story that I want.
Q: Are there any artists, whether they do music or not, that inspire your music and your sound?
A: There’s so many influences I would say for the promqueen project. Rappers like Missy Elliott, Doja cat, Gwen Stefani, TLC, Naz. A lot of those rappers influenced me, but as far as just the show itself, a lot of comedians really influence me. Hasan Minhaj – I’m a big fan of his work, and I’m a big fan of his presentation. I love comedians and how they connect with their audience. So comedians influence me a lot. Film – I love, love, love film. All these things kind of coalesce and influence me. A lot of people outside of music influence me. I don’t know if that’s an answer, but that influences the project.
Q: Your music sounds very dynamic and fun; really kind of pop and feminine. Why choose that style and how does that speak to your process in making music?
A: Growing up, Vietnamese women were really portrayed as feminine and dainty, and I like ran into things. I was just not graceful, so I didn’t feel like I fit in. So for this project, I’m like, “I’m going to make it how I want to make it.” I feel for me, it’s tapping into my queer identity, which is a sense of just tapping into the masculine and feminine side of being who I am. That just naturally came out: a powerful woman, you know, like my mother, like all the women before me. There was just a strength that I wanted to bring to the Asian American woman experience. But that’s just out of my own natural processing. I wasn’t like “I’m going to write a heavy song called ‘mountain.’” You know what I mean? It’s just processing what I resonate with.
Q: Almost all your work is titled with lowercase letters. Why?
A: Right now it’s lowercase, maybe it’ll change, but promqueen is all lowercase. And so I was like, let’s just keep it like that for now. It keeps things synchronized. So that’s kind of the extent of that. But, I love these detailed questions.
Q: Since we are at ACL, who are you excited to see? Are you seeing any shows?
A: There’s only one person I’m the most excited to see: Tyler, the Creator. He is also another influence on my music: incredible musician, very creative choices made in his work and his albums. I am so excited to see Tyler, the Creator.
Q: Is this your first time at ACL?
A: First time performing at ACL.
promqueen is set to perform an ACL Fest Night at Stubb’s Bar-B-Q Oct. 10 at 10 p.m..
