Chloe George Talks Tour, Songwriting, and Cheetahs

Singer-songwriter Chloe George's music exudes a honey-like warmth that wraps around you, drawing you in with its poignant lyrics and captivating melodies. With each track, Chloe showcases her talent, weaving together emotion and rhythm to create an experience that resonates deeply. Her latest EP, A Cheetah Hunting In Slow Motion, is a must listen. Currently on tour opening for Arlo Parks, Chloe was kind enough to chat with me this week in NYC. Between cooing over passing dogs and complimenting a woman on her cheetah coat, we talked tour, songwriting, and her latest release.

Sarah Brown: You’re currently on your first full tour opening for Arlo Parks. How’s that going? 

Chloe George: It’s been amazing! It’s my first full tour. I didn't know what to expect. I was so grateful, I've been wanting to go on tour forever and it's been so beautiful. I have the best crew ever. Arlo’s crew is amazing. She's so inspiring. I've watched her show every night. I'm just leaving here with a lot of gratitude, inspiration, and excitement. 

SB: Have you developed any pre/post-show rituals? 

CG: Honestly, not as much as I thought I would. I feel like it's like a tornado, especially because we are in a van and we usually get to the venue right when we have to load in and then it’s soundcheck. The biggest thing on a day of a show, at some point I just need to check in with myself. Usually, it's in the bathroom. I take a second to breathe and ground myself, center myself. Weirdly, doing my makeup has become a little moment of peace. 

SB: Have you had any moments where you’re like I can’t believe I’m playing this venue? 

CG: The Fox Theater was crazy because I'm from the Bay Area. It’s also stunning. That soundcheck specifically, I was like what the fuck. The Wiltern as well. I think I'll feel that way at Brooklyn Steel too. Toronto and Seattle were very, very special. For Toronto, we were at the Danforth Music Hall. I had seen a video of Ryan Beatty singing there, like, a week before. I was like, Oh my God, and now I'm singing there, that's so crazy. The crowd there was so supportive, just going in with me, for me. It felt so beautiful. That was kind of a moment where I almost started crying. Because it made me feel like, oh, I can do this. Like we can do this, you know? 

SB: What originally got you into music? 

CG: My family's pretty musical. My mom is a music teacher. I have three older siblings, they all did music growing up. Being the youngest of four, it was like, I'm in the carpool. I'm already there. Singing was always my thing, my peace. My mom says as a baby, I used to hum myself to sleep.

SB: So from birth.

CG: I came out singing! I remember being seven or eight and going and picking out songbooks for my mom's music room to get the lyrics and just sing acapella, the ones I knew from kind of like musical theater stuff. West Side Story and shit like that. I've always felt peace from it. The writing part came when I was 20. So it was kind of weird. They had to catch up. 

SB: Can you describe what your sound is like for people who haven't heard one of your songs?

CG: I feel like anytime someone's like, what do you make? I'm like pop R&B, I guess. But on a deeper level, I feel like it’s cathartic. It’s a little healing for me. When I'm writing it, I feel like I'm putting in the energy of me getting through something. So when people hear it, I think and I hope that they can grasp that. This is to get through something. Something is being worked out here.


SB: You wrote about the album on social media that the songs came from an uncomfortable and transformative eight months and ultimately, they helped you sit in discomfort. Is songwriting your way of expressing and working through your emotions?

CG: Yes, 1,000%. It's weird because it used to give me so much anxiety and I would put it off. The reason I love singing is because I felt like I was releasing something. I could emote through other people's words. The songwriting part… when that clicked in for me, I felt so lucky because it's a tool. It’s the only way I really work through things. I mean, besides therapy, journaling, and things like that. But, putting things into a song is the most, to me, satisfying and healing experience. 

SB: Is that scary in a way because it’s almost like you’re reading your journal to other people? 

CG: Weirdly no. I used to think that, I think. I used to be like, Oh my god, is this person gonna know that it's about that bla bla bla. But it's like this weird state that I get into, that kind of feels like I'm just the messenger for my feelings. It kind of has nothing to do with me. I'm just being honest. All I have is my truth and I'm channeling it in what is given to me in that moment. It has nothing to do with really smaller surface-level things.

SB: You originally gained a lot of recognition from a cover that you posted on TikTok. How do you deal with social media and putting yourself out there? Is it difficult to have so many people looking at you? 

CG: Yeah, it was weird. I feel like that happened at a time when I was ready for it. I think the internet's so fucking weird. I feel like I was really scared of being seen before that, and then it just kind of happened. And you're like, oh, wait, you're gonna be seen for what you want to be seen for. I feel like that happened at the perfect time for me. I was really just excited that people were there. It felt like the cover was something that reflected my journey and music and my style and tastes. So that felt good and cohesive. 

It felt weird at first to be like, damn, there's so many people here now. And how do you keep it up? But, I just tried to be so intentional with it. And not get in my head, no matter how many people are there. I’m doing stuff that feels good to me and whatever I want to post versus what I think people want. I think people can tell that you're trying to do an algorithm. 

SB: Cheetahs. They’re everywhere across your social media. Even your Twitter bio is just “cheetah.” Your album is titled A Cheetah Hunting in Slow Motion. Where does that come from?

CG: As I said, the songs came from a very transformational, uncomfortable time. Things I had leaned on in my character and my personality, didn't feel comfortable anymore. Extreme change from the guts, from the roots. That's where all the songs came from. It was this time last year, that I was finishing up the writing. I only wrote two more songs after we got the title. Most of it was done, and I was on shrooms. And I was with an ex at the time, who all of it is about actually. We were listening to the song and I was like, Oh, it sounds like a cheetah, like running in slow motion. He said that's a really cool title. I was like, oh, fuck, that's what it is. I changed it to cheetah hunting, but hunting in slow motion. Because the one thing that makes a cheetah cheetah is its speed. When it's not in that state, does it feel like itself? That was kind of where I came from with that. I feel like the few things that I've always been leaning on that makes me who I am, I can't lean on right now. So I just gotta fucking figure it out. I have to kind of start over. How do you find your identity when the thing that makes you you isn't there?

SB: What influences you when you write? Does all come from personal experiences or do you take stuff from the world around you?

CG: It's all through my lens. Something I've thought about with this tour is it's been really interesting listening to Arlo’s music every night because she's so outward. Her lyrics are so poetry based and it's all real tangible experiences and you're kind of taking in the physical kind of. A lot, if not all of my music comes from a feeling, how I was feeling in the moment. The background of my lens is just the feelings behind the reality. I'm in my head a lot. That's a part of me that I struggle with. And kind of why I write is to process the things that I overthink or didn't like how it felt or just the uncomfortable a little bit.

SB: Speaking of songwriting, you’ve written for other artists as well, such as Normani, Dua Lipa, etc.. Does your process differ when you're writing for yourself versus for others?

CG: Yes. Big time. It's hard because when you're writing for others, it's like you're channeling something from you for them. When I'm writing by myself, it's from me, for me. I'm unlocking something for myself in my life as a human to help me on my journey of being here. When you're doing that with somebody else, you have to get so comfortable for that to feel like second nature. It's a balance of what you're going to be giving and sharing with someone and what aligns. It's like one degree of separation when it's with someone else. It's still super personal, but it's not the same. 

SB: What’s next for you?

CG: I’m working on an album. We’re doing a full album. I have two EPs out. I think it’s time. Hopefully more tours. Definitely more tours. I’m putting it out there.