Colette Carr has been making music at an absolutely furious over the past year: the 22-year-old Cherrytree/Interscope artist began releasing four-song EPs every two months beginning last November with “The Skitszo Collection (Part 1),” and will continue to do so until her debut album, “Skitszo,” is released in July. Working with artists like Cherry Cherry Boom Boom and Frankmusik, Carr is crafting unapologetic pop music that often bounces between sly rapping and affecting refrains.
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“I’m doing the craziest thing I think I can possibly think of, which is making music as fast as I can release it,” says Carr, who issued “The Skitszo Collection (Part 2)” last month and will deliver “Part 3” on Mar. 5. “It’s been a really insane balancing act. I’ll look back at how unreal it was, but right now I’m like, ‘What’s next?'”
As Colette continues giving her fans new music ahead of her debut album, the singer-songwriter caught up with Billboard to share five personally influential artists as part of Pop Shop’s “Gimme Five” series. From “Once in a Lifetime” to “Spice Up Your Life,” check out the artists that have made the biggest impact on a blossoming young talent:
Suzanne Vega
Colette Carr: “She’s one of my favorite artists ever, and ‘Left of Center’ is one of my favorite songs. I like the way she writes — I think she’s really honest and a really good storyteller, and her melodies are super catchy.”
Led Zeppelin – “They got me through a depression. I was very depressed in seventh grade, and all I could do was listen to them, and they helped me through all my tennis injuries and not being able to play.”
Eminem
“He made the first rap album [“The Eminem Show”] I ever bought. ‘Without Me’ was a life-changing song.”
Spice Girls – “Girl power for life. Every day of your life, the Spice Girls exist within us. That was such a huge part of growing up. I feel like they really put a stamp on girls in my generation. I dressed up like them for Halloween and did little shows with my sister and stuff. I’ve been every single one of them. My life goal is to be a perfect combination of all five Spice Girls.”
Talking Heads
“‘Once in a Lifetime’ is such a good song. I love the way they write — it’s too real! They just say exactly what’s on their mind and somehow it’s catchy enough to be a song: ‘How did I get here?’ and ‘This is not my beautiful house.’ It’s exactly what people think, and they put it in a song and it became an anthem.”
More Gimme Five: Carly Rae Jepsen’s All-Time Favorite Pop Songs