The Making of ‘Wildflower’: Zoe Boekbinder on Gender Equality and Community in the Music Industry
Singer-songwriter Zoe Boekbinder’s career has been a road full of twists and turns. With the release of their most recent project “Wildflower” (April 2024), Zoe shares how a devastating hurricane led to a cross-continental relocation and an album packed with authenticity. By telling their story and giving platforms to marginalized communities, Zoe aims to see gender inequality and transphobia eradicated from the music industry.
Thank you for taking the time to chat with us, Zoe! Your new album “Wildflower” is a beautiful folk collection. This isn’t your first album by any means, but it’s the first in several years. What prompted you to release a new project at this time specifically?
I would have released this album sooner but was delayed by hurricane Ida and my subsequent relocation. It wouldn’t have been a different album without the delay, and I'm so happy with the album it is.
How would you describe your personal and professional growth as an artist and beyond between your previous work and “Wildflower?”
My growth as an artist and as a person feel inextricable to me. I don't know if I describe the changes in myself, over the past few years, as growth. It has been an extraordinary time for all of us, to be sure. Maybe the most remarkable change is that I care a lot less what people think of me. I finally made the album I wanted to make, instead of the album I thought people would like.
You wrote “Wildflower” after moving from New Orleans to upstate New York. How did those NOLA roots impact your sound during this process?
New Orleans will always be a part of me. That place has a magic to it that cannot be explained and must be felt. I found endless inspiration there. I can't tell you the number of times I rushed home from attending a show so I could work on a song. That city, and all the incredible artists who call it home, lit a fire in me that I hope never goes out.
Where do you feel most inspired to create?
I can't say there is a place or even a type of place. I've written songs on trains, in the forest, in the tour van, in the green room, in my bedroom. Its more about when then where. When the inspiration comes, I have to grab it. It is a fleeting thing.
Your selection of your production team was very intentional on this album. Walk us through that process and the key players.
I got a grant from Canada Council for the Arts to create an album with only women and gender expansive people (no cis men). I wrote this grant because I see and live the gender inequality in the industry and I want to be a part of the change that is necessary. Music is such a huge part of what shapes our society. Everyone must be represented in that; otherwise we will continue to see prejudice and violence, and they will be accepted as the norm.
I had worked with a team like this on my previous double single (“I Am Yesterday”) as well, and it was such a joyful process. This time I found Megan McCormick, my producer, because she was playing guitar for Jenny Lewis, and we were playing the same show in summer 2022. I asked her about playing on my album and she straight out offered to produce it. She is so well connected in Nashville and plays with so many talented women musicians. She put the band together, chose the studio and engineers, and we were off and running. I decided to work with the same mastering engineer and publicist as the “I Am Yesterday” release, because they were both totally badass. Now that I've experienced working with a team of all women and gender expansive folk, I'll never go back. It's been the most incredible experience.
How has your gender identity impacted your art and the way you approach the industry?
In a way, my gender identity motivates me to keep going. I see that non-binary people are underrepresented and I want to be a part of changing that. Unfortunately it is very challenging, even in spaces where you wouldn't expect it to be. I've encountered a lot of transphobia among my peers, perhaps most of all the proclaimed feminists. I've been called high-maintenance and fired from a tour, for asking to be addressed with gender neutral pronouns. It has had measurable negative impacts on my career. I know that I, and other trans people, deserve to exist and to be respected and to be a part of creating culture through music. Despite these setbacks, I persist.
What do you hope to accomplish through “Wildflower?” Is there an overarching message or feeling you want listeners to take from the record?
With any art I create, I hope that people resonate with it and find a sense of belonging. Once it is released into the world, it has a life of its own.
Mainstream music has a long way to go in terms of diversity. Are there other artists that you see leading the way in this effort?
I am so happy to see the shifts that are happening. Of course I'd love for it to be happening faster, but it has certainly changed a lot since I was a teenager. Gender isn't the only thing that concerns me in terms of representation. We need to see more BIPOC songwriters and more people in the spotlight who aren't thin. I'm really excited about Remi Wolf, Brittany Howard and Tami Neilson (among others). I so appreciate the way that Billie Eilish plays with gender presentation. Ezra Furman, Mal Blum and Mya Byrne are all kicking ass despite the challenges of being trans and in the spotlight.
How would you encourage artists who find themselves in more marginalized pockets of the industry?
I would reassure them that their voices are necessary. The pushback is more proof of that. Sharing their art will literally save lives.
How can fans best stay up to date with your work and support you?
The best way to support my art is to sign up for my Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/zoeboekbinder). The other (equally) best way is to consume my art (stream, add to tiktoks and reels) and to share it with people who will appreciate it. If we want to increase representation in media, we have to be a part of that change. We need to be intentional when we choose which artists we support. Cultural shifts take a lot of grassroots effort. The more trans people we see in the media, the more acceptance there will be. It may sound strange, but streaming a song by a trans artist is, in a small way, making trans people safer.
I post most of my updates to instagram - for those wanting to know about new music and art - follow me there @zoeboekbinder.
Stream Zoe Boekbinder’s newest album “Wildflower” and check out Heart Eyes Magazine’s playlist we curated based on Zoe’s suggestions: Zoe’s Picks.
If interested in hearing more of Zoe’s story, start here.