If you haven’t heard of Chi, you’re already behind. The singer-songwriter certainly isn’t waiting with bated breath to receive household recognition — that’s why she’s shed the pressure of expectation and diverted from her breakout sound. Instead, she’s just waiting for the audience to catch up.

The London based crooner’s upcoming album Premium Beauty is a love letter to the exquisiteness of the mundane. During the earlier moments of her career, marked by past projects including Under the Moon, crybaby/rain, and I’ve Seen the Lizard People, she felt a need to diverge. To diverge from the norm meant making the most subversive mark — but the musician quickly fell into a routine that felt more performative than affirming.

Shedding her inhibitions, she now leads with truth. A true sense of herself and a true openness to the world around her — because beauty is truth after all. As she steps into what feels like turning over a new leaf of her career, her encore, if you will, the artist shares the intricacies of her album creation process, the inner workings of her Virgo mind, and what’s to come.

KAYLA CURTIS-EVANS: After uni, you went on to work at Amazon. Now, you’re pursuing music professionally. Was this always a dream of yours?

CHI: Pursuing music was my childhood dream. I think everything I did, I always had that in the back of my mind.
I did business at uni with a more IT-facing focus. That's how I ended up in tech and working at Amazon. My mom always wanted me to work with computers. She's very strict. So that was always a thought I had, like, ‘What if I just did it?’

When I moved to London, that's when I had the opportunity to put feelers out there in the music world, because where I grew up is not really a creative scene. So moving to London was kind of a means to an end.

KCE: You mentioned your mom kind of urging you in this one direction, which is very analytical. But in your current career, you use a lot of the creative side of your brain.

CHI: It's funny, because I think I use my logic and my analytical brain way too much. I'm a Virgo, so I can't really help it. I analyze everything. Even when I approach songwriting, it kind of follows that same path — I analyze everything that I'm saying, and I don't know if that makes it better or worse. In my head, it makes it better. But maybe I should let go a bit more.

KCE: So you tap a bit into both parts of your brain in your creative process. It’s a balance. Before your time in the UK, you were born in Nigeria. How do you feel that all of these different parts of your very multicultural upbringing have manifested sonically?

CHI: I moved to London after Uni but I grew up in Cheltenham, in the Cotswolds. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere, a random, tiny little town. I went to uni in Loughborough, and then after that I moved to London. So I really didn't see any kind of city life until I was a bit older. I was actually quite scared of London before. Every time I'd come and visit, I was like, ‘This place is so unruly.’ But now I love it. And every time I come back to London, I always try and make an effort to go visit home. I didn’t appreciate it enough when I was younger. I was too busy trying to get drunk in the park or whatever [laughs].

But the way I grew up made me very open to anything and everything. Nigeria is a place full of color and their way of living is so different. My parents are literally from two polar opposite places, so that’s just made me just so much more open to any kind of idea. I can make sense of anything.

KCE: That’s an amazing trait to have as a creative person because it opens you up to perceiving everything and anything as inspiration. What are some of the earliest musical memories that you can recall that really stuck with you?

CHI: There wasn’t a crazy amount of music being played in the house when I was very young. But the first thing I can remember was my dad, when I was probably around six, he gave me Queen's greatest hits. I was obsessed with the CD. I would be playing it on the computer and writing down all the lyrics to every song by hand, so I could memorize them. Especially in “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the lyrics: ‘Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango?’ — I was in my room trying so hard to figure out what they were saying [laughs]. That was my first musical obsession. My mom was very much a big ballad lady.
She loved Celine Dion, Whitney Houston — the powerhouses. Everything that I was listening to was very dramatic, so I think that’s what shaped me. I love dramatic music, There were never any soft jams being played. And then I have 3 older siblings, so I absorbed a lot from them. My sister was really into R&B, like Aaliyah, Ciara, and Destiny's Child. And then my brothers loved pop punk, like blink-182, Green Day, and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

KCE: So you would say you’re a dramatic person?

CHI: So dramatic, babe. I’m so dramatic. I think I've cried like 4 times today. I just be weeping, honestly.

KCE: But that's why you're good at what you do. A lot of people can't channel that into some sort of output. I think dramatic people are some of the best creative people, because we have somewhere to put all of it. You self-direct and write your own songs. Where do you usually pull inspiration from when it comes to your lyrics and melodies?

CHI: Oh, definitely experience. I’m super direct, and it's really hard for me to conjure situations or stories out of nothing. Obviously, sometimes through song, we make those stories sound more dramatic than they actually are. But generally speaking, I find it really hard to lie. I wouldn’t usually write something in a song that wasn’t a real experience. I guess you could look at that as manifesting, but generally speaking, if I say something in a song, I’ve probably done it or it’s happened.

KCE: But that’s awesome, because for your fans and listeners, you're really putting it out there and sharing your world. On past projects, your sound shifted a bit from a softer, neo-soul vibe to more alternative and punk elements. I’m curious what spurred that shift.

CHI: Oh, my God, I don't think I ever wanted to do soul to begin with. I think soul is just kind of what everyone in the UK was gearing towards at the time, and I just didn't really have that much direction at that moment in my life. I didn't really know what I was doing, you know? I was just kind of like plonking myself in a studio and telling myself to make music that sounded like what people wanted to hear at the time. Now, I'd cringe at any of those songs, honestly. But after I departed from that, I felt like I had a bit of a point to prove. I would think, ‘How can I make music that’s as in your face and as ugly as possible?’ Because I feel like I was doing so much influencing, but it was overshadowing a lot of music that I was making. And it felt like on my page, you only saw the modeling and the nice pictures. It was really difficult for me to conflate that with how I perceive myself. So I think I was trying to make the music almost as unattractive as possible. Just to sort of prove the point that I'm not just some brand or an Instagram influencer.

KCE: It was a little bit of a rebellion. Do you feel that doing so — leaning into your rougher edges — felt more aligned with who you are?

CHI: I think at times it's a little bit difficult for me to really show my complete personality. I'm not the most, ‘Hey, look at me!’ sort of person. And so I think the only way I can show that more emotional or angry side is through the music. This is the space for me to do that. And I'm still figuring out that whole balance. I wish I could just have a chat with everyone rather than having to be online and portray myself in certain ways. But I can’t really do that. So I think showing it through the visuals and the sound is way easier for me. That’s what I was giving at the time — trying to be a bit more in your face.

KCE: I mean, it’s really interesting. You have to reconcile the fact that your job is so audience facing, but you also want your fans to get a true understanding of you beyond the performative aspects, beyond the artist. But it’s really beautiful that you get to work it out in the music. On that same note, with that shift of your sound, do you also feel that you've evolved personally?

CHI: For sure. I no longer really feel the need to prove a point. Whatever insecurity or itch that was, it’s pretty much gone. I'm now in this headspace of, ‘Okay, I'm literally just gonna do what I want to do.’ I don’t have anything to prove. Which is great, because I think when you're doing it with the idea of something to prove, it takes away from it a bit. It’s not as pure.

KCE: So you feel that you're in this era that’s kind of unprecedented for you?

CHI: Perhaps. Yeah, I think that's why the project is called Premium Beauty. Now, what I'm trying to show is the beauty of myself beyond whatever you see on the screen. It's actual, raw emotion and genuineness.
This is my beautiful era. Everything was so ugly before and I was so scared to make it prettier.

KCE: Where was that fear coming from?

CHI: I don't know. I think there’s a bit of a stigma sometimes, especially if you're known online for one thing, and then you then start trying to push something else. People love to box you in. So I think that’s kind of where that comes from — my whole rebellious side. I just don’t want to box myself in or betray myself in how I want to be seen. I didn't want everything to be the sort of ‘perfect’ image because I think that's what people were expecting. But, literally, I need to stop caring. I stopped caring about what I thought other people were thinking. Because that's probably not even what they were thinking. It's probably just me over fucking analyzing everything. That's my analytical side again.

KCE: It's a blessing and a curse. A lot of your songs are about love, the loss of love, and finding yourself all along the way. What is the best advice that you would give to your younger self on the topic of love, now that you've had time to meditate about it, write about it a little bit more, and process it?

CHI: Choose yourself every time. I think that's probably what I would tell myself. I think I'm understanding that now, and it definitely puts me in sticky situations. It puts me in situations longer than they need to exist. I feel that that's something that you kind of can only learn through experience, though, you know?

KCE: You talked about being more cognizant about the beauty that's around you. And this project departs from your others, both thematically and sonically. This is kind of, it sounds to me, like a lighter era. What characterizes true beauty to you?

CHI: That's a hard question. What is true beauty for me? I think honesty and realness. Because even if something has negative connotations, if it's real and that's how it's meant to be, then it’s just as beautiful in the same sense. Beauty is everything.

KCE: What are you most excited for other people to hear on the new project? And then, concurrently, what are you most excited about?

CHI: I really allowed myself to sing. It sounds weird, because I've been singing for ages, but I think I really pushed my voice as much as I could. I really tried to take it in every direction. I think that's probably what I'm most excited about — the vocals.
It's just so big and I gagged at myself. I did that!

But it's funny, because I feel like the project’s still changing. I even jigged it around today a bit. So in terms of the songs, I'm still changing until the last minute. But as of now, there's one song called, ‘How Could You?’ that’s been on repeat for the past few months. I love it so much, and I think it's a mix of everything that I love. That song is me to a T.

KCE: Are you a perfectionist?

CHI: Oh, yes. But again, I’m a Virgo. But I'm trying to release myself from expectations and perfection because it's definitely been, at times, to my disadvantage.

KCE: I saw that you recently shared some photos from Club Ego. What were you most excited about when it came time to perform some of these songs live?

CHI: Club Ego was incredible. I'm so grateful that Chxrry’s team asked me to join in on the Euro leg. I'm really sad that it's over. I wish I could do it all over again. I performed some songs that were unreleased, and seeing everyone's reactions to it, I think it cemented a lot of it. If I was doubting anything, it sort of made me feel like, ‘Okay, yeah, this feels right.’ And I think the tour was already sold out before they announced that I was coming. So it was kind of a whole new audience. I didn’t really think anyone would be going to see me.
So I was like, ‘I'm gonna just play what I feel like,’ because they had zero expectations. I don't doubt that half of them didn’t even know who I was. It was great.

KCE: I was going to ask you about your previous stage name, “Chi Virgo,” and I was also going to ask if you aligned with the traits of your star sign. But it sounds like you do.

CHI: I do, but honestly, I need to try and release myself from making that my bloody identity.

KCE: Is that why you shifted away from that stage name, too?

CHI: Yes, for sure. And I also think it's like — what if someone had a bad experience with a Virgo one day and then they don’t want to listen to my music? [laughs] I’m trying to shed the overthinking and overanalyzing. Virgos are very self-critical. So I’m trying to improve that.

KCE: We’ve talked a lot about that self critical voice. In the process of quieting that, and throughout the journey of creating Premium Beauty, what’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned about yourself?

CHI: I feel like I've learned so many good things. I've learned I'm indecisive as fuck, because this album has literally changed five times. But the biggest lesson I’ve learned is honesty. Because I think the reason it changed so many times is because I wasn't necessarily being honest with myself. I was allowing myself to be influenced by a lot of external factors, whether that be TikTok and what songs were blowing up and all of that. At one point, I felt like I was almost trying to chase a hit, which is just never, ever a good place to be as an artist. The second version of the upcoming project was more cookie cutter, you know that electronic pop that everyone makes now. And I just remember thinking, ‘If this is what I end up being known for, I would die.’ I think I just had to really be honest with myself in terms of what I actually wanted to sound like. For ages, that wasn't necessarily what I was making. Nothing is going to guide you better than your own source, so let me stick to that rather than having all of these other influences in my head. It’s been a fucking roller coaster, but we’re nearly there.