Liddy Clark Releases Made Me Deluxe Album
Plano, Texas native. Moved to Parkland, Florida when you were in the first grade. Inspired by your family including Cousin Drew Womack, a co-writer of Kenny Chesney’s first number one “She’s Got It All,” you appeared in over 30 musical-theater productions. Which role was your favorite?
I loved playing Ms. Hannigan in Annie actually! It let me explore my kind of meaner side and was just a super fun character to play comedically. I was also 12 at the time so it was a big role for me to fill!
Wrote your first song at age 12. Summers in Boston attending the Berklee College of Music Summer Programs to improve on your songwriting skills. Fronting your own band, opening for major acts but searching for more. “A lot of times you can feel very alone and like no one understands the struggles you’re going through but whenever I hear a song that describes exactly what I’m feeling that connection makes it so much less painful.” Your lyrics earned praise from Garth Brooks after he saw you perform at the iHeart Country Music Summit in 2017. How has his praise, along with other artists’, shaped the artist you are today?
It always shocks me whenever someone of significant influence gives me compliments on my music! That’s honestly so validating and really gives me the confidence to push forward through the music industry. It’s always such a nice thing to hear!
Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. You knew many of the families affected by the tragic shooting. Invited to a gun-violence awareness event later that year when you performed “Shot Down (Stand Up),” — “This problem has answers that won’t be found / If every time we try to stand up, we get shot down.” How did this event give you clarity about your own mission?
I think this event really made me look at my songwriting and ask what message I wanted to get across with my music. I believe it’s so important to incorporate my values into my songs. Furthermore, it’s my truth and exactly what I’m feeling and thinking, so I want to share that with others in case they don’t have the words to describe those feelings.
Connection. “Honestly, I feel like it’s my own therapy session when I write a song, because I tend to bottle my emotions up. Being able to write a song about it and figure out what I’m feeling as I write it — and then use that to connect with others — that means everything to me.” The Recording Academy (GRAMMYs) invited you to make a presentation to the President and Board regarding how they can connect with the Gen Z generation. What advice did you share with the Academy?
Haha yes I did that! I think connecting with Gen Z is all about relatability and casual conversations that make you feel like you’re right there with a person. Gen Z also cares less about genre than any generation before, which I think is a huge plus and allows for so much more creativity!
“With the song “Made Me,” I knew it was something special. That song really talks about getting to know somebody and changing as you grow in a relationship, and how that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. And I think that especially throughout writing these songs, metaphorically speaking, they really have made me the person I am today.” Working with Mark Siegel and all the musicians to create ‘all-encompassing productions’ for your debut album, Made Me. What song, of another artist, do you believe has the most stunning production that has inspired your own music?
“Garden Song” by Phoebe Bridgers is one of my favorite songs production wise (and songwriting wise). I love the soft drums blending in with the beautiful natural sounding instruments. I think producing is all about listening to what each individual song needs and letting it flourish naturally.
To releasing Made Me (Deluxe Edition) including the new song, “Playboy.”
The new song was inspired by a personal experience, “I wrote ‘Playboy’ a few years ago after experiencing an overly confident guy come up to me at a bar & insist that he was going to be my date for the rest of the night. I’ve always believed that men like this are afraid of confronting something deeper within themselves and therefore take it out on the girls they get with. I wrote this song about understanding who a guy is immediately after meeting them & that women do not have to accept and validate this type of behavior. Hey, ‘if you can’t play nice, I ain’t ever gonna let you play boy.’” What else have you added?
Made Me is an album that I’m truly so proud of. I’ve poured my heart into creating these songs over the past couple of years, and these are the songs that have stood out at crucial moments in my life that have “made me” who I am today. I’m so grateful for the reaction this album has received so far, and I can’t wait to continue doing what I love.
Made Me (Deluxe Edition) features 4 new tracks, including 2 different versions of songs on the album. I included these songs as bonus tracks because I feel like they give an even more complete picture of songs that were written earlier in my journey to find my artistic voice.
“John Mayer is one of my all-time favorite songwriting guitar inspirations ever. He’s just incredibly profound with his lyrics, and his musicality of course is incredible as well. He’s one of my top artists that I always look to.”
“Potential,” inspired by Mayer’s Heavier Things album. “And I wrote it as a little indie, rock-pop anthem for anyone who feels like you’re nervous about that early-to-mid-20s, figuring your life out, what ifs, and it’s just taking a second to breathe and feel okay and know that throughout life there are going to be times when you do not know what is happening.” Mayer has inspired your music; how has his music influenced life choices you’ve made?
I ended up falling in love with John Mayer when I went to a Berklee Summer program in my high school years! His music has certainly changed my view on songwriting and allows me to see the world in a more poetic sense. His music made me go back to the summer program the next 2 years as well!
“If you’re in my life, there is a 99% chance I have written about you in some way or form, just because I take inspiration from little bits of people. Sometimes, somebody will say something to me and I’m like, ‘That could be a really interesting line in a song, or that could be a fun song title.’ My notes on my phone are an absolute mess, honestly, and every day I’ll write down something different that I hear, and I’ll come back to it later.” You’ve shared how you’d collaborate with Mayer if the opportunity arose but also JP Saxe. How does Saxe’s music influence you as an artist?
JP Saxe is one of those artists that when you first hear his music, you know exactly how he’s different from other artists. He stands out in such a unique way. I love listening to his lyricism, and I find myself inspired by the way he melodically crafts his specific lyrics.
What’s ahead this year?
Well I just put out my first full length album, so definitely promoting that! I also plan on playing a ton of shows and maybe even releasing some acoustic versions of the most popular tracks on the album.