Elliphant, Femme each make their marks on tour
For the past month, British singer Charli XCX has been touring the United States accompanied by fellow female musicians Elliphant and Femme. They’ve sold out their shows across the nation and brought together masses of fans who often stake out positions in line starting in the morning. Both Ellinor Olovsdotter of Elliphant and Laura Bettinson of Femme earned their places on this tour through their demonstrated commitment to their art and their phenomenal presence.
Elliphant in the room · Ellinor Olovsdotter, who performs under the name Elliphant, only began performing a couple of years ago. Before deciding to work in music, she worked in fashion and photography. Her work caught the attention of Diplo, who she describes as a pivotal mentor in her life. She is now touring with Charli XCX alongside singer Femme. – Photo courtesy of TEN Music Group
Elliphant began only a couple years ago as a new musical project of Olovsdotter’s. Having already been involved in fashion and photography, she spontaneously decided to begin making music and incorporated her experience traveling the globe into a unique, genre-bending sound, with elements of R&B, pop and world music. Her work quickly caught the attention of Diplo, who she describes as a pivotal mentor in her life and her equivalent to an A&R representative. Since then, Olovsdotter has become close friends and collaborators with Skrillex and has booked time with Dr. Luke, among other top producers. While she enjoys the opportunities to work with such talent, Olovsdotter said her hectic touring and recording schedule has left her unable to spend as much time in the studio with her music as she would like, noting that it takes time for her to process what she’s written and to fully appreciate how it sounds.“I’m never excited about my songs; they always come to me a month later,” Olovsdotter said. “Hearing them later I’m like, ‘Yeah, I need perspective.’”
Even though her songs have generated millions of hits and she has a history of working with artists who would inspire envy in anyone, Olovsdotter remains refreshingly humble and grounded. There are numerous musicians she said she would be enthralled to work with, including the members of Portishead, a band she described as the only act in recent memory over which she has truly been fan-crazed. For the moment, however she wants to hone her craft and work together with the touring crew she assembled in Sweden.
“I’ve been so cocky and, in a way, insecure, that I’ve tried to be in crazy control over everything and it made me very lonely in my art,” she said. “I always felt that my art didn’t have a crew. Now I have so many people on this project with me and I feel stupid because I wasn’t looking at what they were doing and they know what they’re doing.”
Playing alongside Elliphant on the tour is Femme, the one-woman powerhouse outfit of Laura Bettinson. Bettinson not only writes, produces, records and performs her own music, but she is also in charge of her art direction, merchandise and music videos. Bettinson began working with synthesizers and electronic production while a student at Goldsmiths, University of London. It became impractical for her to transport a piano around the city to perform and so she began looking into more portable solutions. That led to the creation of her spirited pop and caught the attention of famed Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich, who soon enlisted Bettinson as the lead singer of Ultraísta. A successful worldwide tour followed the release of their first record, and after the band’s two other members went to work on Atoms for Peace, she turned her focus to Femme and released her second single, “Fever Boy,” last fall.
With an EP already out and an album slated for early next year, there is plenty of new material on the way from Bettinson. Speaking about the sound of the record, she said, “There are still all those summer sass, laid-back jams. It’s quite pink, I guess, in some ways, but there are also darker moments on it, too. But basically what I tried to do is give you a sense of personality, because I’m making it all and producing it all and I think that there’s an inherent sense of my personality that comes through on it anyways. Which I guess if people like my personality, then people will like the record.”
When asked about her involvement in all aspects of her image and career, she seems confident and content.
“It wasn’t my agenda to set out and do it all myself, it’s just what I enjoy doing,” Bettinson said. “It didn’t occur to me that I would get anyone else to do it. It was just like, I feel like taking a photo, or I fancy making a video. So it’s been a very organic process in that sense, it’s just what I do. I wake up sometimes and make music and sometimes I like to take photos and I enjoy doing all of it. If suddenly I fall out of love with one thing, of course I’ll get someone else to try and help me do it, but it’s just a really natural process.”
With a bulk of new music soon to come from both of these entrepreneurial women, it won’t be long before they are headlining tours of their own. And they’ll have nothing to thank for it but their own hard work.