To get away from the excited buzz of the crowd, Taylor Acorn and I crammed into her trailer and got personal about life as an up-and-coming pop punk artist in a pretty saturated scene. One light illuminated our faces and we got right to it.
It’s nice to meet you, Taylor. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
So, I am originally from a very small town in Pennsylvania called Wellsboro. Um, in the middle of nowhere, we literally have a McDonald’s, and that’s about it. No one in my family is really musical at all. I do have cousins and stuff that were in band and whatnot, but like everybody in my immediate family was very much so not involved with the music scene. So, it was kind of something that I found myself. Music, obviously, when you’re from such a small town isn’t really, uh, something that people find attainable.
We ended up moving to Wellsboro. We were living in a suburb of Seattle for a while and my dad passed away when I was eight, so we ended up moving to be closer to family. And so it was always just my mom, my brother, my sister and I, um, and then yeah, ended up in the really small town and kind of did all of my high school and middle school stuff there. Didn’t really have a ton of friends, so music was kind of my outlet. I would always come home from school and just play music and that was always the thing that kind of got me out of my head. I, you know, struggled really bad with anxiety and depression, so that was kind of like, the thing that would help me through all that.
And now you’re here.
And now I’m here and I’m making music and it’s really cool.
Is this considered your first tour?
So I had toured a lot when I was in country, but touring in country versus touring in pop punk is like night and day. Usually, we would do just like weekend runs, so, you know, Thursday through Sunday or just Saturday and Sunday. So it was a little bit different. Um, but this is, I would say my first big full U.S., North American tour.
How’s it going?
It’s going really good. We definitely have had some mishaps along the way. We’re sitting in this beautiful van that I purchased before tour because renting right now is really expensive. You know, it wouldn’t be my van if there weren’t like everything wrong with it. The first day we ended up taking it to a shop and it was in the shop and we were kind of just like “Is it gonna work? Is everything gonna be okay?”
Thankfully we were able to get somebody to fix it really quickly and we’ve been good to go since then. But right after that, I ended up getting sick, which I’ve been sick pretty much throughout the whole tour. I think Pittsburgh was the only date that I was feeling okay. But you know, we’re getting through it. We’re pushing through, and I’m just really happy to be here and to play music and these bands are incredible and they’ve been really kind to me. Granted, nobody has said that I sound like crap yet. It’s been really great.
Do you have any crazy stories yet?
Any crazy stories? Oh my gosh. The day before yesterday, when we were on our way to Richmond, Virginia, we got caught in like some crazy traffic we were all just like hanging out, chilling— I believe my drummer was driving at the time— and all of a sudden, we feel him slam on the brakes and people in front of us are like, bumper to bumper, fender bender. And then behind us there’s like fender benders. Then we go to stop at a gas station and while we’re at the gas station, an accident happens and we’re just like “Oh my gosh, should we just not be traveling today?” So, that was pretty crazy. And then my merch girl was driving and we were going on the other side of the road— like we were go driving into like oncoming traffic— and that was pretty crazy. We’ve had troubles with the van and stuff, but for the most part everyone has gone along. No one’s wanting to kill each other or anything yet. It’s been really fun.
You mentioned going from country to pop punk. Why did you make the switch over?
I have always loved pop-punk music. I grew up on it. I grew up going to Warped Tour. It’s always felt like my little comfort blanket and the place that I would always go whenever I wanted to listen to music because like I said, I struggled really bad with anxiety and depression and you know, back in the day, I feel like being open about that stuff wasn’t as accepted as it is now. And, at that time, these bands were singing about things like that. And so it was something that I could go to and I related so much to it.
When I ended up in country music, I think it was very much so about getting my foot in the door. I was not gaslit into believing that I should do country, but I did have a lot of people in my ear kind of telling me “your tone sounds very country” and “you’d be a great country artist!” or even “your name, Taylor Acorn, it’s so country.” I was doing the singer-songwriter thing too, so I think just by listening to everybody else, I kind of just ended up there. I’m very thankful for it though because I have been able to meet some incredible people and fans that are now coming to these shows, which is so cool because they might not even enjoy pop-punk music, but they’re here and they’re giving it a try.
I don’t know, I was making the country music for a while and I just kind of got to a point where I was like, I don’t really love this. I’m not connecting with any of the songs that I’m writing. I’m not really growing any as an artist. And to me, it just made the most sense to just switch. And then of course, when I decided to start switching over and I started writing songs that catered a little bit more towards like the pop-punk community, Covid hit, and I was like, well dang, what do I do now? I can’t tour. No one’s gonna hear my music. And then, I did the cover of “Jamie All Over” on TikTok and had been doing the covers, and kind of like sprinkling my own music in. It just pushed me into the pop-punk space, which is really crazy because now I’m here.
Do you still see yourself doing covers? Are they something you still enjoy?
I really enjoyed doing the covers, I will say, but I was always very much so afraid that if I keep doing the covers, I’m gonna be a cover artist and that’s not what I wanted to be at all. It was something that kind of gave me enjoyment and fulfillment when we were all stuck at home and couldn’t do anything. I was literally in my apartment by myself. I had just moved and I had literally nothing else to do. Making those was really, really fun because I got to tap into all of my old playlists and get really nostalgic. But, I feel like the deeper that I got into the cover world, you start reaching more people and people have opinions. I did a cover of “First Date” by Blink-182 and that was kind of the catalyst as to why I stopped. I unexpectedly got a lot of hate. I was having people sending me death threats and telling me that I should just quit music. It was really hard and so I was like, you know what, I’m gonna just take some time and focus on my own music for a while.
It’s hard when people have an idea of what something sounds like or what’s good about something.
I understand it to an extent as well because as a fan of pop punk music and as a fan of Blink-182 as well, it can be a little gatekeepy. We are very protective of the music that we listen to and the genre that we listen to. I think I put that cover out at a time where pop-punk music was kind of the cool thing so every artist was doing pop-punk in some way or shape or form. I think it was misread. That was really hard because I love the music so much and I don’t want these people to hate me. But I’m so thankful for the covers nonetheless, just because it opened the gates to people who had maybe not even listened to those songs in a really long time, to hear it in a different light. The messages that I would receive from people in the community that we’ve built around those have been really cool. And now it’s just even cooler because I get to share my own music and people are hopefully liking it.
So let’s talk about your music! How about “Psycho”? What’s the story behind writing it?
I had gone into the studio with my friend Spencer Jordan and my friend Phil Barnes and it was our first time ever writing together. Spencer is just a little spitfire. I love him to death. He’s so talented. And he came in with this idea and when I had first heard it, I was like “Absolutely not. I would never say those things and I am not going to write that.” And he was like, “Just give it a chance.” He let me get my hands on it and kind of rework it. He had come in with the first verse, and when we had got to the chorus all of us just kind of looked at each other and were just like, “This is really crazy, but this is really good.”
We ended up finishing it and when we got the demo back, I was like, “There’s no way I can’t not put this out.” But also, I was very nervous because it is about really sensitive things and I didn’t want anybody to hear it and feel like I was being insensitive towards anything. I battled for a really long time, even though I loved it so much, with the idea of putting it out. I was teeter-tottering. Do I? Do I not? I was sending it to like every person that I knew for their opinion, and then finally I was like, you know what? It’s gonna be like the Blink-182 thing. People are either gonna love it or they’re gonna hate it. I feel like I got very fortunate in the sense where people were listening to it and interpreting it the way that I wrote it — from a very hypothetical standpoint.
You mentioned being worried about opinions. Especially with social media, how much do you listen to and where do you draw the fine line?
I am a Virgo. I am a chronic people pleaser. I literally let other people’s emotions and their feelings dictate how I live my entire life sometimes. And I’m learning now, especially, with starting to tour to listen to my own voice. I think a lot of the time when people are being really negative about something I let that get to me so bad and I know I shouldn’t. I’m just trying to like listen to my own voice and go with my gut and kind of block out all of the noise. But at the same time, like if I’m doing something that really upsets people, I never, ever, ever want somebody to feel like I don’t care. Because I very much do. So, that’s like the hard thing about it.
On one end I really care about what these people think and how they perceive me. And at the same time, it’s also art though too. And we make art from our own feelings and our own emotions. Like you said, it’s a very fine line. And recently too, I’ve taken all of the like counts and things like that off of all of my photos because I found myself sifting through comments and looking at those numbers and it’s such an unhealthy mindset, especially when you’re doing something like this. I’m getting to do what I’ve always wanted to do and there’s no sense in worrying about all of those little things. I’m just going with the flow.
There are positive things to take away from “Psycho”, specifically. It’s definitely very empowering, especially for women.
Very much so. I think that was the one song that I was also missing. I really care about uplifting people, especially women. I feel like there’s so many people nowadays that just disregard all of that stuff. As a woman in pop punk music, there’s very few of us and there’s not really any songs that like cater towards being a bad bitch and having that energy back. So many of us, in so many ways, let other people take that from us. I’ve been in so many situations, relationships, friendships — my mom was a single mom and seeing her go through all of that stuff in her own situations — I see these things happen and there’s not really anything that is out there to like tell girls that it’s okay. It’s okay to feel a little bit crazy because there’s fucking guys out there that make you feel crazy.
I think the only people that really genuinely got upset are the men that do those things. I would get comments about that stuff. I feel very strongly about all of that and my goal in this genre and this space is just to make people feel like they’re seen and they’re heard. Whether that’s if they wanna like go fuck shit up or if they wanna like be sad, like, yeah, that’s why I’m here. Female energy is genuinely the best energy. I love the guys that we’re with. I think they’re all so amazing. They’re so kind. But sometimes it’s just nice to be around girls. It’s nice to like be able to share makeup and clothes and do that kind of stuff and not be cooped up with like seven boys the entire time.
To see so many women on a tour is really really cool.
Yeah! There’s Real Friends’s photographer and Annie, the merch girl for The Home Team. It makes it even better that everybody has been so encouraging to one another and helpful. This is our first tour, so there’s a lot of things that we don’t know and there hasn’t been a single person that hasn’t lent their own advice or something of that nature.
So, today you announced “Wishing You Hell”. What was that writing process like?
So I wrote that song with Phil Barnes and Sam Tinnesz — I love his song writing so much. I think he’s fantastic. We got together and wrote that and it was a concept he had come in with and it was something that I very much so related to. I was in a relationship a few years ago where you know that one person that you see them and you’re just like, “Wow, I love you, but I really, really hate you and you make my life miserable.” That’s kind of the perspective that I wrote that song in.
It’s just fun. It’s energetic. It’s very sassy and it’s just kind of one of those songs that no matter whether it’s a relationship or a friendship or something, I think that somebody will be able to relate in that aspect. Hopefully, they’ll listen to it in their car and just absolutely rage. It’s a good one. It’s a good one to rage too, I won’t lie.
“Misfits” just came out; how did that collaboration with Magnolia Park come about and what was the process there?
So Josh actually just cold DMed me on Instagram and it was the funniest thing ever because it was such a dry message. I love them so much now that I’ve like met them and everything, but at first, I was very intimidated. They are doing so well right now in the punk scene. They’re absolutely killing it. I see them on TikTok and I’m just like “wow, they’re so great.” His voice is amazing.
But yeah, he cold DMed me and he was like “Do you wanna be on a song?” And that’s like all he said. And I was like, “Yes, of course.” And he went “Okay, cool. I’ll send you the demo.” It was very cut and dry. So, my friend Dan and I wrote the second verse and they had sent us over the demo. I wrote the second verse and then recorded my vocals on it, sent it over to them, and they were like “Hell yeah, let’s go. This is really sick.” That was really cool and I even screamed a little bit on the last part. It was really fun. I got to kind of experiment and have fun with it.
Did you guys do a video for that?
We did, yeah. I ended up flying out to Orlando, which is when I got to meet all of them, and they’re just so awesome. So cool, so fun to hang with. Yeah, it was really great.
Speaking of another collab, how did “Uncomfortably Numb” with Arrows in Action come about?
That one was really interesting. One of my really good friends and one of the people I collaborate with a lot produces all of Arrows’s stuff. I had vaguely known about Arrows through social media. They were always really kind to me on my posts and everything. We would kind of just banter back and forth and Dan, my friend, had come to me and he was like, “Hey, they have this song and they’re getting ready to put out an EP. Would you wanna sing on it?” And the first time I listened to it, I was like, “This is really cool.” And at that time I was still kind of in that weird in-between where I was still kind of country, but I was leaning more so into the pop-punk stuff. So it was like emo country, I guess.
I put my vocal on the second verse and it was kind of like the “Misfits” thing where we all heard it and we were freaking out. I loved it so much. It very much gave me “Monsters” by All Time Low kind of vibes. It was a really cool moment and it just came together so well. They FaceTimed me after they had heard the song all finished and they were freaking out. And I was freaking out. And then I had met them for the first time on our video shoot. And now, we are besties.
I’d say that, arguably, that song went pretty viral on TikTok.
I had this feeling for the longest time that there’s no way this song isn’t going to do something. Whether it’s going to jumpstart something for the both of us, go viral on TikTok or go to radio. I just had a feeling something was going to happen with the song. I’m so happy that it did, especially for them because they are so talented.
Vic’s writing is incredible and they’re the nicest people. Literally the nicest guys. So to see all of that just start blowing up — I remember it was like over Christmas break and we’re all like texting each other, like, what is happening? It was really, really crazy. And it definitely jump-started a lot of really amazing things for the both of us.
You never know what TikTok is going to do.
Literally like one day, you could have zero views and then the next day it’s like millions. It’s the craziest thing.
How is the collaboration process different from writing your own music?
I think it’s cool because [collaborating] kind of pulls me out of my own little shell where I’m so used to writing my own music and something like “Uncomfortably Numb” or like “Misfits” with breakdowns and things like that. I hear those and I get so excited. It makes me think I’m not writing for myself anymore. What would they appreciate on something? I always get really nervous though. “Uncomfortably Numb” was already written when I came on it. I just kind of had fun with the vocals. But “Misfits”, I won’t lie, I was like really nervous. I was like, “How do I not mess this up?” It was interesting. It definitely like got my little mind gears going.
Who would you want to feature on your song instead of the other way around?
I think a collab with Charlotte Sands would be really cool. That would be really dope. Very much full of woman empowerment and I just think she’s so dope. This one is really a stretch but Pierce The Veil is back and I would love to collab with them. Honestly, if somebody came to me and was just like, “You wanna collab?” I would just be happy. I think it’s so cool and I love being able to bring my own little elements to songs.
How do you feel that TikTok kind of changed things for you?
I think it completely changed everything for me. I think statically, I had like 10K followers on Instagram, and then as soon as I posted my first video on TikTok, it was just skyrocketing from there. People started recognizing me. They were sending videos to friends and it’s just very weird. I think the weirdest was my boyfriend and I went to a show out in Pittsburgh and we were just watching the show. But people were like recognizing me and coming up to me and being like, “Can I take a picture with you?” That was really crazy like trying to wrap my head around all of that. And I sometimes don’t even realize how much TikTok has done for me, but it really has completely changed my life. It’s just really cool.
Social media definitely isn’t everything but it can be very important.
It changes everything. I was doing the TikToks then I started doing the reels and that started taking off. I feel so fortunate that even happened and that I’m even in this position. I don’t really think about it as much as I probably should. I still feel like just a normal girl, just doing my thing, you know? And usually, half the time, I’m just sitting at home but it’s really cool how much an app can do for somebody.
Is [TikTok] still an important piece for you?
I still will, for sure, keep using it. With tour and everything, it’s definitely been a lot harder to keep up with consistent videos. And I won’t lie, it can get kind of consuming, like mentally and emotionally consuming, especially if like something doesn’t, have the same interaction with other people as you thought it would. It can become a little redundant, but I love it. I think it’s so valuable. I haven’t really been an artist that gets playlisted very often and it’s the one app that I’ve seen the people who view the videos translate over to Spotify streaming numbers. So, I don’t know, I think I’ll always use it. I will always think that it’s a very essential tool. I know there’s a lot of artists that don’t want anything to do with it, but I really do encourage people to just try because once that one video goes off, it’s game over.
What else do you have in store for us moving forward?
So I have “Wishing You Hell” coming out October 21st, which is really exciting. Then I think for releasing music, until the new year we’ll probably just like take a little bit of a break and finish out this tour. Then there is a tour in the spring. I don’t know if I can say what it is yet, but we will be going back on tour in the spring, which is also really exciting. There’s gonna be a bunch of really cool things. I’m really excited for 2023. I think it’s gonna be like a really good year. I hope so. I’m like crossing my fingers. I don’t wanna speak too soon, but I think it’s gonna be really great.
You can stream Taylor’s music below.
