Liverpool-based artist Pixey talks her long-awaited debut album 'Million Dollar Baby' • Interview • DIY Magazine

It might seem like no time at all has passed since Pixey first burst onto the scene with her addictive debut proper ‘Just Move’ all the way back in 2020. Yet, somehow, we’re now four years, two EPs and one mini-album down the line, and the Liverpool-based polymath is finally releasing her debut record.

To mark the release of her eagerly-anticipated first full-length ‘Million Dollar Baby’, the pop starlet and do-it-yourself producer tells us a little more about the LP - an album that chronicles the successes and setbacks of her journey so far over infectious dance beats, all while boasting a sprinkling of Scouse charm.

You’ve mentioned that ‘Million Dollar Baby’ deals with finding that balance between the expectations of others and your own artistic expression. Can you expand on this a little bit?
I’ve always felt like I’m waiting for that moment. My career’s been a bit of a slow burner for me and it’s taken me longer to get where I am. The album is an arc of the last eight years, but written in a condensed amount of time. It represents a big chunk of time, my feelings about music, myself, and what it means to be an artist and a woman especially. Each song on the album is its own sonic landscape and the tracks weren’t necessarily written to be an album.

It starts really strongly with ‘My Power’, where I’m really taking ownership of my body and my brain. ‘The Thrill of It’ explores that period where I got really sick and what that meant, and how it made me feel about being a young person in the world and not being able to do what everyone else was doing. I rarely write love songs but there’s a few on there. Things have changed a lot since I started making music and so the album delves into a lot of things I’ve learned: what it means to be successful, and if it really even matters in the end.

Can you tell us a little bit about the production on this album? You’ve previously mentioned being very much involved in the production and having quite a hands-on approach with it?
The production on this album is the reverse of what it’s always been. Usually I would go into the studio, riff out ideas with a producer, go home and write them, and then bring them back to the studio to finish off together. When we started making the album, I wanted to do everything in the studio. To start with, I got a load of songs together that I’d written and produced first, and then took them into the studio. This gave me the freedom and time to dip in and out of songs and it’s the most involved I’ve ever been in production. I can see the mistakes I made in previous projects and for me, this time around I felt it was now or never. I had to become a better producer! Rich Turvey (Rachel Chinouriri, Blossoms) really gave me a kick up the arse. We had a week to get everything together. I showed him a few songs I’d done myself and said ‘can you do co-prod on them?’ and he was like ‘no, you can do it, you just need to be more careful with your craft’. I’m so proud of what we’ve produced.

One of the record’s lead singles, ‘Bring Back the Beat’, feels kind of retro and futuristic at the same time. You worked with Jungle’s Tom MacFarland on this one but have mentioned Northern Soul as an influence. What other genres can we expect to hear on the record?
A lot of sampling. I’ve had some issues with sampling in the past - trying to get things cleared as a smaller artist can be tricky. Moving into the album, I realised I needed to make them from scratch or use spliced ones and make them into something new. I was really inspired by TV Girl and The Go! Team, a lot of pop songs and synthesisers. Robyn was a huge inspiration for this album too, I think she has some really beautiful, introspective lyrics. I wanted to create something that touched on all the aspects of music I love without it feeling too all over the place.

“Things have changed a lot since I started making music and so the album delves into a lot of things I’ve learned: what it means to be successful and if it really even matters in the end.”

Obviously the record’s called ‘Million Dollar Baby’, which brings the 2004 film with Hilary Swank to mind. She deals with various setbacks in her path to success. What was the decision behind the title?
My career has, at times, felt like sometimes I’m taking one step forward and two steps back. I’m really grateful to still be making music. I was reflecting on how you get treated as a smaller artist, and the internal grind, comparing your rise with others and wanting those big moments and virality. It made me realise that you’re never going to be satisfied and the end goal isn’t really real. Even if I made a million dollars from the album, that wouldn’t really be the purpose. It’s not the point of making art at all. I hope people get that the album is a concept, presenting it as something I thought I wanted to be. I’ve been surrounded by people who are successful or rich but few of them are truly happy; it’s very empty.

Do you have a favourite track on the record? And a favourite track to perform live?
‘Love Like Heaven’ is my favourite track. The beat was inspired by an old Ringo [Starr] beat - super Liverpool! It was my first time recording just the tape alone and Rich [Turvey] gave me his studio for a week and showed me how to use his equipment. It was inspired a lot by walking down on the docks in Liverpool - I always just wanted a song that embodied that feeling. I wrote it for the city, not for a person, and I find it really emotional to sing. I love those chords. I sang it on the radio the other day and I almost couldn’t get through it. I write a lot of music for my friends. There’s a couple of tunes for my best friend - they’re very sample-y and TV Girl-inspired and I’ve played them to her and she really likes them.

‘Million Dollar Baby’ is out now via Chess Club Records.